Monologue

Elena Ivanovna Popova Monologue from The Bear

From The Bear by Anton Chekhov

female · dramatic · 2:07 min

Rehearse this freeFind more monologues
POPOVA. The man! Men are faithful and constant in love! What an idea! What right have you to talk like that? Men are faithful and constant! Since we are talking about it, I’ll tell you that of all the men I knew and know, the best was my late husband.... I loved him passionately with all my being, as only a young and imaginative woman can love, I gave him my youth, my happiness, my life, my fortune, I breathed in him, I worshipped him as if I were a heathen, and... and what then? This best of men shamelessly deceived me at every step! After his death I found in his desk a whole drawerful of love-letters, and when he was alive—it’s an awful thing to remember!—he used to leave me alone for weeks at a time, and make love to other women and betray me before my very eyes; he wasted my money, and made fun of my feelings.... And, in spite of all that, I loved him and was true to him. And not only that, but, now that he is dead, I am still true and constant to his memory. I have shut myself for ever within these four walls, and will wear these weeds to the very end.... Chekhov, Anton. Plays By Anton Chekhov, Second Series. Trans. Julius West. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/7986/7986-h/7986-h.htm#link2H 4 0005. Retrieved January 15, 2019.

About this piece

Popova’s drawing room, Russian countryside

Rehearse Elena Ivanovna Popova's monologue

Run it out loud with a spotlight that follows your voice, line by line, until it's off the page. Free to start, no credit card.

Rehearse freeStart rehearsing

More from The Bear

Browse