Feeling taunted by the success of an inordinately fortunate nobleman, an officer decides to challenge him to a duel.

An adventurous melodrama about a classic love triangle: a poor man, a wealthy bank director, and Katya — young, yet wise beyond her years.

The play, traditionally considered a precursor to Uncle Vanya, contains many characters, situations, and fragments of text that were later carried over into Uncle Vanya from The Wood Demon. In this play, as in all of Chekhov's works, the characteristics of the Russian national character are reflected. Nature and man are interconnected: man first cleared the forest, and then civilization cleared man. Spiritual values have been lost, traditions destroyed, and the ability to empathize and feel for others has vanished.

The ruined barber Svirid Petrovich Golokhvosty decides to improve his situation by marrying the unattractive daughter of the wealthy merchant Prokop Serko. However, at the same time, he encounters the beautiful Galina.