Lyricism in Cherry Orchard

To be lyrical means to express strong emotion imaginatively in praise of

something or somebody.
The Cherry Orchard is richly lyrical because everybody in the play waxes
lyrical about his or her favourite theme. Some of the characters rave
Nostalgically about the good old days of their early life.
Here is Lyubov, owner of Cherry Orchard, back home after many years,
speaking fondly about the bedroom of her childhood as she enters it.
The nursery ! My dear darling room !----- I used to sleep here when I was little. I feel a child
again.
A little later she again bursts out in the same vein.
Am I really back? Is it really me sitting here? I feel like jumping and waving my arms about
----- Oh God, how I love this country----
Her brother, the amusing billiards enthusiast,Gayev, is no less lyrical about
some things.
Just listen to him speaking to the good old family bookcase.
Dear, beloved respected bookcase------- I salute you! I salute your very existence which for over
a hundred years has saved the ideals of virtue and justice.
And here comes little Anya, Lyubovs daughter, with her feelings about
being back home.
My own room! My own windows! Im home again. I feel as though Id never been away.
Varya, the homely housekeeper, has her own moments of lyricism.
Her comments on the beautiful morning scene, as she opens a window of the bedroom, are quite
poetic.
And then there are the amusing small fry, the servants and the neighbours,
each with his or her own moments of lyricism.
Dunyasha, the maid, inspires the poetic ravings of her stupid lover
Yepichodov, the clerk, and is herself madly lyrical about Yasha, the obnoxious young servant of
the family.
Lopakhin, the upstart business man, is loudly lyrical as he enters Lyubovs
house after clinching a profitable deal that made him owner of the Cherry Orchard and the house.
As he bustles into the ball-room , he cries out to the musicians.
Hey --- you in there----play ! everybody come and see Yarmolai , Lopakhin. We are going to
build dachas for our children--- theyll see a new life here---- music---play!
The nostalgic musings of Firs, the faithful old servant, have a sure ring of
lyricism, whenever he starts speaking of the bygone days of feudal supremacy. He fondly recalls
the glorious past of the family and everything about it.
Born a slave, he could never reconcile himself with the freedom that came
after the abolition of slavery in Russia. He still loved the old order and loved to talk about it.
Even Pishckik, the inveterate borrower, grows lyrical while talking about the
prospects of a loan. So does Yasha, the attendant of Lyubov , on the subject of French life and
food.
Trofimov the perpetual student , the unflinching idealist, never fails to be
lyrical in speaking of his dreams of a bright future for mankind. When Lophakhin offers him some
money he says,
All these things have no power over me---- cant you understand? Humanity is on the move
towards higher truth---- towards the greatest happiness possible on this earth--- and I am in the
van, in the front rank!
Realizing that he may not live long enough to see that era of bliss he
selflessly declares that it wont matter if he is no more in the world. Others would still be there
to enjoy the blessings.
We see that everybody in the play has a theme to speak on lyrically. Nobody
cares to notice the underlying element of pathos in each case.
It seems that everyone in the play has a lyrical strain in his or her character. It
is nothing strange because it is a part of human nature. It is there in all of us.