The lady with the lapdog - Essay Example

This story is about two people, Jack Twist and Ennis del Mar, who were both school dropouts. They both developed a personal relationship through herding sheep together and were attracted to each other. Jack is described as a “fair enough” man, “with curly hair and a quick laugh” while Ennis is said to be “cave-chested” with “a muscular and strong body” (Brokeback, Web). Both are worried about the societal consequences they will have to face if their secret is revealed. In the words of Joseph Conrad, “All a man can betray is his conscience”.

I agree strongly with this statement and I believe that betrayal is the worst experience that any human being is forced to face. In “the lady and the lapdog”, Gurov repeatedly betrayed his wife and was unfaithful to her as well as his daughters. Before meeting Anna, he went out with countless other women and always kept it a secret. Gurov and Anna knew that their secret relationship was unethical and against their cultural norms and traditions. It is illustrated though Anna`s conversation with Gurov in which she says, “I am a bad, low woman; I despise myself and don't attempt to justify myself.

It's not my husband but myself I have deceived. And not only just now; I have been deceiving myself for a long time . . . and now I have become a vulgar, contemptible woman whom any one may despise” (Chekhov, Web). On the other hand, the story of Brokeback Mountain involved two men who were aware of their attraction before their respective marriages. After their reunion, they continued their affair by betraying their families. They spent time together by going to fishing trips which further strengthened their bond.

This was an act of extreme disloyalty for their wives and eventually results in Ennis`s divorce. Both their wives would have felt completely betrayed and deceived. In both these texts, the characters were being disloyal with their family members. They felt guilty and instead of confessing, they continued it furtively. In the story of the lady and the lapdog, one can assume that both Gurov and Anna were trying to find reasons to escape their unhappy married lives and find inner peace. Anna had a husband who was a “flunkey” and she had no idea about his work.

She escaped the company of his husband by making excuses. Gurov, on the other hand, “secretly considered her (his wife) unintelligent, narrow, inelegant, was afraid of her, and did not like to be at home” (Chekhov, Web). It is clear that they both were unhappy with their lives and needed some peace. But the question is whether their families deserved this betrayal? Similarly, both Jack and Ennis were being unfaithful to their wives, Lureen and Alma but more than that, they were betraying themselves.

Once Ennis said, “I’m not no queer,” and Jack replied by saying “Me neither. A one-shot thing. Nobody’s business but ours”. (Brokeback Mountain, Web). This shows that were aware of their strong passion for each other but they refused to admit that they were “queers” which depicts their betrayal to themselves. On the contrary, in both these stories, the situations were such that they could not go against their cultural traditions and were unable to follow their heart. “The course of true love never did run smooth, William Shakespeare, A midsummer Night`s Dream”