Personality of Dimitri in Story: ‘ The Lady with the dog’

Dmitri Gurov is the protagonist of The Lady with the Dog. An unhappily married banker on vacation by himself in Yalta when he meets Anna,, he decides to start an affair with her more out of boredom than anything else. He is closer to 40 than 20, with two sons and a daughter at home, as well as a history of womanizing. However, Gurov finds Anna to be different from his past affairs, which were simple and pleasurable until they weren’t. He doesn’t quite understand Anna, and seems to think that her opinion of him is mistakenly good, yet connect to some larger, more transcendental love through his relationship with her.

Gurov finds himself unable to shake his feelings for Anna after he returns to Moscow, and gradually his entire life seems to be a hypocritical lie without Anna in it. Gurov goes to St. Petersburg to restart the affair, finding himself all the more in love with Anna as they have to be increasingly secretive about their relationship. Gurov grows to see this secret love as far more valuable and true than anything else he’s experienced in his life, and he ends the story trying to find a way to be with Anna permanently. Gurov goes from chasing transitory pleasures that stave off his boredom to pursuing a genuine, tender connection with a woman who both sees him as and inspires him to be better than he is — a task all the more urgent for how comparatively late in life he’s fallen in love for the first time.

Chehov’s main character, Dmitri Gurov an affluent, middle-aged banker, is initially described as nonchalant and arrogant. His attitude towards women had been shaped by his reluctance to his wife whom he’ secretly considered as unintelligent, narrow and inelegant. Gurov is the protagonist of Lady with the Dog. Gurov meets Anna in the resort of Yalta, where both have come to escape their stifling lives. ... As his relationship with Anna deepens, the protagonist recognizes that he has misrepresented himself to women. His age forty years old ,unhappy ,married banker on vacation by himself in yalta.

Initial Characterization: Cynicism and Detachment

Dmitri Gurov is introduced in Anton Chekhov's "The Lady with the Dog" as a middle-aged banker whose personality is marked by a profound sense of detachment and cynicism, particularly toward his personal life and relationships. At around forty years old, Gurov is unhappily married, viewing his wife as "unintelligent, narrow, and inelegant" (Chekhov, 1899, p. 361), a sentiment that underscores his arrogance and emotional aloofness. His history of womanizing reveals a nonchalant attitude toward fleeting affairs, which he pursues not out of deep passion but as a means to alleviate boredom during his solitary vacation in Yalta. Textually, Chekhov describes Gurov's interactions with women as habitual and dismissive: he nicknames them "siren" or "creature" in his mind, reducing them to archetypes rather than individuals (p. 362). This initial portrayal paints Gurov as a man trapped in a cycle of superficial pleasures, using his affluent, urban existence to mask an underlying dissatisfaction with the mundanity of his Moscow life.

The Spark of the Affair: Boredom and Curiosity

Gurov's encounter with Anna Sergeyevna in Yalta marks the beginning of a subtle shift in his personality, though it initially stems from his characteristic boredom rather than genuine intent. Described as a "young and attractive" woman walking her dog (p. 363), Anna intrigues Gurov precisely because she represents an escape from the resort's repetitive social scene. His decision to seduce her is portrayed with a casual arrogance; he reflects that "he had begun speaking to her in a familiar tone, as if they had known each other for a long time" (p. 365), highlighting his manipulative confidence honed from past conquests. Yet, even here, Gurov's personality reveals layers of self-awareness—he acknowledges his own "contempt for women" but proceeds anyway, driven by a transient curiosity. This phase illustrates his personality as one of calculated detachment, where emotional connections are temporary distractions, but it also hints at an unspoken yearning for something more substantial, as he finds Anna's innocence disarming compared to his previous "simple and pleasurable" liaisons (as summarized in the query).

Deepening Attachment: Confusion and Idealization

As the affair progresses, Gurov's personality evolves from cynical detachment to a state of confusion and unexpected idealization, revealing a vulnerability he has long suppressed. Upon returning to Moscow, he anticipates the usual fade of infatuation, but instead, Anna haunts him: "He could not sleep at night... and everything that had seemed to him easy before now seemed complicated and difficult" (p. 370). This textual evidence underscores his growing realization that Anna differs from his past flings; he perceives her as possessing a "higher opinion of him" than he deserves, which both flatters and unsettles his arrogant self-image (p. 368). Gurov begins to romanticize their bond as something "transcendental," contrasting sharply with his earlier view of women as mere "creatures." His personality here fractures— the once-nonchalant womanizer now grapples with genuine longing, viewing his daily life, including his family, as a "hypocritical lie" without her (p. 371). This internal conflict exposes a man who, for the first time, confronts the emptiness of his transient pursuits.

The Secretive Pursuit: Growth Toward Authenticity

Gurov's journey to St. Petersburg to reunite with Anna signifies a pivotal transformation in his personality, from self-serving hedonist to someone capable of tender, secretive devotion. The necessity of their clandestine meetings amplifies his emotional investment; he notes how "their love, so warm and profound... grew stronger and more beautiful" amid the risks (p. 374). Textually, Chekhov illustrates this growth through Gurov's reflective monologues, where he admits, "What had seemed simple and natural in Yalta now seemed strange and improper" (p. 373), signaling a newfound respect for the affair's purity. No longer driven by boredom, Gurov's arrogance softens into humility—he sees Anna not as a conquest but as an inspiration to become "better than he is," aspiring to a life unmarred by his past deceptions. This phase reveals a personality maturing late in life, prioritizing a "genuine, tender connection" over societal norms, as he desperately seeks a permanent way to be with her (p. 375).

Resolution and Enduring Tension: A Man Redefined

By the story's end, Gurov's personality has undergone a profound, if unresolved, redefinition, evolving from a bored, arrogant philanderer to a man awakened to the possibility of true love, though burdened by its inaccessibility. He reflects on their situation with a mix of hope and melancholy: "And it seemed as though in a little while the solution would be found, and then a new and splendid life would begin" (p. 376), yet Chekhov leaves this ambiguous, emphasizing the tension between Gurov's internal growth and external constraints. His initial disdain for his wife's "inelegance" now pales against his reverence for Anna, whom he credits with unveiling his capacity for deeper emotion. This late-blooming authenticity—chasing "transitory pleasures" no more—highlights Gurov as a tragic figure: a middle-aged protagonist whose personality, once defined by detachment, now yearns for redemption through love, underscoring Chekhov's theme of human complexity and the redemptive power of unexpected connections.

[1](https://www.enotes.com/topics/lady-pet-dog-lap/characters)

[2](https://www.gradesaver.com/the-lady-with-the-dog/study-guide/character-list)

[3](https://www.litcharts.com/lit/the-lady-with-the-dog/characters/anna-sergeevna-von-dideritz)

[4](https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Lady-With-the-Dog/character-analysis/)

[5](https://www.litcharts.com/lit/the-lady-with-the-dog/characters)

[6](https://www.sparknotes.com/short-stories/the-lady-with-the-dog/characters/)

[7](https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/chekhov/character/dmitri-gurov/)

[8](https://study.com/academy/lesson/video/the-lady-with-the-dog-theme-analysis.html)

[9](https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/lady-with-dog/characterization.html)