“My land is worth little to me, but the principle ..”- Who is the speaker? Which land he referring to? What ‘principle’ does he mean? What made him utter such a statement?

The speaker is Ivan Vassilevitch Lomov. He is referring to the Oxen Meadows.

According to Lomov, Natalya and her father Chubukov are lying because the real owner of the Oxen Meadows is the Lomovs. Therefore, they must stick to their ‘principle’ and accept the truth that the Lomovs is the real owner of the Meadows. 

Lomov and Natalya were arguing about the ownership of the Oxen Meadows. Lomov was saying that those meadows were his property as his aunt’s grandmother gave the free use of the meadows forever to the peasants of Natalya’s father’s grandfather and in return, they had to make bricks for her. But Natalya disagreed with the fact and argued along with Chubukov. That’s why Lomov made such a statement.

“He got left behind because the Count’s whipper-in hit him with his whip.”- Who is ‘he’ in this sentence? Name the master of him. Name his two contenders. When did the speaker say this?

In the above-quoted sentence, he refers to Chubukov dog Squeezer.

The master of Squeezer is Chubukov.

Squeezer’s two contenders are Lomov’s dog Guess and the Count’s dog.

Natalya and Lomov argued for the second time over their dogs and with the intervention of Chubukov, their argument turned into a scandalous one. According to Lomov, Guess was better than Squeezer and on the Marusinsky hunt, Guess ran neck-and-neck with the Count’s dog and Squeezer was left behind. Therefore he was not better than Guess. At this, Chubukov protested and said that the Count’s whipper-in hit him with his whip. Chubukov, Natalya and Lomov all quarrelled for unnecessary things and made unwanted chaos.


“What sort of a hunter are you?”-What does Natalya want to say and why does she say so? What suggestions does she make after that?

“I’ve noticed that those hunters argue most who know least.”-State context and explain the content.


“My heart’s bursting!” —Who is the speaker? What happens immediately after the above comment?

“I give you my blessing and so on. Only leave me in peace!”—Who is the speaker? Why did the speaker say so?


“I give you my blessing and so on. Only leave me in peace!”-What does the speaker intend to mean by this comment?

“I … I’m happy too. …”- Who is the speaker? When did the speaker say this? What happened then?


“I ….I’m happy too. ….” -Who says this and when? Why is the speaker ‘happy? How would you explain her happiness?

“What a weight off my shoulders…!”-What aspect of the social condition is revealed by Chubukov through this comment?


“But … still you will admit now that Guess is worse than Squeezer.”-Who is the speaker? Whom is the speaker addressing? Describe the incident involving Guess and Squeezer.

“… that’s a way to start your family bliss!”-Who is the speaker? What way has been referred to here? Give your view on what the speaker says.


Discuss ‘The Proposal as a farcical satire.

Comment on the theme of marriage in this play. How do Lomov and Natalya contribute to this theme?


How did Chubukov welcome Lomov when he paid them a visit?

How does Chubukov react to Lomov proposal?


On what issues did Lomov and Natalya quarrel at first? How did their argument come to an end?

Why did Lomov think about taking a decision about getting married? Whom did he want to marry? Why?


What are Oxen Meadows? What is the measure of the land? What is the controversy?

Describe the episode where Lomov and Chubukov engage themselves in an argument regarding the past incidents of each others’ families.