Chekhov's short story, The Betrothed

Chekhov's short story, The Betrothed, is about a young woman who leaves home days before her wedding in search for a different life. The life of this heroin represents a larger liberation of women of the nineteenth century. To fully understand the evolution of women within Russian literature, it is necessary to compare The Betrothed to literature of the earlier part of the century. Karamzin's Poor Liza also illustrates the fate of a young woman …

…ime when women could finally ask the question, "Do I want to live for other people or for myself?" it is not that Liza is of weaker character, but she lived in a time when posing such a question wasn't an option. Chekhov's story introduces a new woman in Russian literature; one who is capable of building her own life and one who is strong enough to break the rusted chains encircling women.