How we cite our quotes: (Act.Line)
Quote #4
ASTROV: I have my own desk here in the house… In Ivan Petrovich's room. (3.143)
Poor Vanya. We think we'd probably end up just as grouchy as he is if the country doctor had a desk in our bedroom that he could use whenever he wanted. But besides the grouch-factor, we can also see that having a work desk inside of a bedroom means that work, and managing the estate, are Vanya's constant concern.
Quote #5
SEREBRYAKOV: Where are the others? I don't like this house. It's like a maze. Twenty-six huge rooms, everyone wanders off and you never find them. [Rings.] Ask Mariya Vasilyevna and Yelena Andreyevna to come here!
YELENA ANDREYEVNA: I'm here. (3.284-88)
Wow. If the country house has 26 gigantic rooms, we'd like to know what the regular, everyday house is like. Serebryakov compares the family home to a maze, and it's an apt simile, because everyone in it seems lost, or running into a dead end. Sonya's got no prospects for love, and Vanya's got no way out of working for his brother-in-law. Pretty much everyone has reached a dead end in some way.
Quote #6
SEREBRYAKOV: [...] Our estate produces on average not more than two per cent. I propose to sell it. (3.342-43)
Home, sweet home? Not so much. While Sonya, Mariya, Marina, and Vanya all consider the estate their home (it's where their hearts are), Serebryakov obviously sees things differently. For him, it's an investment, and when it stops producing profits for him, he can sell it as easily as closing down his savings account. He doesn't really care about what this means for the people who live there.