Here we have an interesting premise: A narrator recalls an incident in which he behaved abominably, earning someone’s lifelong hatred.
To wit: As a boy, he discovered his older brother kissing the family tutor. He threatens to tell his parents, terrifying the young woman, Zinotchka. In the end, he really does rat out Zinotchka, but before his parents can take action against her, she marries the brother and maintains her hatred for the narrator for ever. Poof, end of story.
There’s not much to say about “Zinotchka” except that the portrait of a spoiled rich kid is chillingly ugly, and as an adult, while he recognizes that he is despised for what he did, he remains pretty much an ugly soul.
READ THIS? READ THAT!
Chekhov was not afraid of portraying villains of all sorts: scoundrels, snobs, boors, bullies and thieves. The gross entitlement of the narrator of this story, and his willingness to overturn Zinotchka’s life, can’t help but remind me of “An Upheaval,” in which an essentially powerless young woman is forced to make a brave choice by her feckless employer.
A Chekhov Circus 