In psychological terms, Anton Chekhov’s ‘darling’ (Olga) suffers from Codependency Personality Disorder. More specifically, she is a vicarious codependent – someone who suspends their identity and gains fulfillment through the accomplishments of another. Olga’s ‘attachments’ in life include her father, a theatre manager, a timber merchant, a veterinary surgeon, and a young boy. Her relationship with the boy differs from the others. Being forced to assume a ‘motherly’ role rekindles Olga’s female identity. Sadly, motherhood and codependency don’t sit well together. In rediscovering her own identity, Olga begins to smother that of the boy. Themes: codependency, subservience, death, abandonment, identity, motherhood.
There has been considerable debate as to Chekhov’s narrative perspective on Olga (ridicule, pity or admiration), and whether she is intended to be symbolic of some aspect of Russian womanhood. As suggested on our introduction, Olga is far from a typical woman and therefore unlikely to be cast as such. An alternate view is that Chekhov uses her codependence to make a statement about Russian men. Perhaps for them, the perfect “darling” is a woman who is subservient and dotes on everything they say and do.
The Darling Text / PDF / Audio (4,950 words)