The summary of the play by A. N. Ostrovsky “The Dowry”


Main characters:
Harita Ignatyevna Ogudalova – middle-aged widow.
Larisa Dmitrievna is her daughter.
Moky Parmenich Knurov is a big businessman, an elderly man with a huge fortune.
Vasily Danilych Vozhevatov is one of the representatives of a rich trading company.
Julius Kapitonych Karandyshev is a poor official.
Sergei Sergeevich Paratov is a brilliant gentleman from the shipowners.

The action takes place in the town of Bryakhimov, on the Volga.

Knurov and Vozhevatov meet in a coffee house and talk. It turns out that Vozhevatov met at the pier of Paratov, from whom he buys the ship “Swallow”. Then they discuss the news that Larissa Ogudalova is getting married to Karandyshev. She, in their opinion, a good girl, but a non-dowry, so many people come to visit them, but not everyone decides to marry. Last year, she fell in love with Paratov, and he traveled for two months, beat off all the suitors and disappeared.

Larisa Dmitrievna rushed to catch up with him, but her mother returned her from the second station. Then she decided that she would go for the first one to woo. Karandyshev here and turned up with a proposal.

Appears Karandyshev and Larissa with her mother. Julius Kapitonovich invites Knurov and Vozhevatov to his house for lunch in honor of Larisa Dmitrievna.

Paratov comes to the city, who reports that he soon marries the daughter of the owner of gold mines and hopes to have fun the last days before the wedding. Sergey Sergeyevich learns that Larissa is getting married and decides to visit her. He comes to the house of the Ogudalovs and, conversing with her, achieves from her confession that she still loves him.

A dinner in the house of Karandyshev, who struggles to become equal with rich and powerful people and at the same time hates them. Tesha his wounded pride, he does not notice how ridiculous his attempts to collect around Larissa “elected society.”

The dinner ends with the fact that the whole company, except Karandyshev, leaves to go for a ride on the Volga with the gypsies.

Having a good time and having a good time, Paratov announces to Larissa that he is engaged to the owner of gold mines, and she needs to return home. After that Vozhevatov and Knurov play Larissa in the “toss”.

Blinded by his vanity, Karandyshev kills Larissa, trying to prove to all his imaginary right to dispose of life and death, that is, in essence, confirming that humiliating view of a woman as a “thing”, in which he himself convicted Knurov. The shot of his fiance Larissa perceives as benevolence. She thanks Karandyshev, says that she loves everyone, and dies.


1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

The summary of the play by A. N. Ostrovsky “The Dowry”