From the Diary of a Violent-Tempered Man

Characters

• Nikolay Andreitch — narrator: solemn student of financial law writing on the dog licence; always threatens to explode, always gives way
• Nadenka / Varenka / Mashenka — the young lady from the neighbouring villa: the narrator never recalls her name; sure he loves her, she marries him as a sacrifice
• the wounded officer — the narrator's summer neighbour: wounded in temple and thigh; his memoirs never pass 'I was born in...'; escapes the altar with a medical certificate
• Mashenka's maman — the young lady's mother: kind but full of prejudices; calls him 'not handsome, but likeable' and blesses the marriage
• the narrator's maman — the narrator's mother: pours his morning coffee and weeps over the match: 'I wished for it myself!'
• the variegated young ladies — the dacha company: a chorus of young ladies: cleaning berries, judging men, singing ballads, clinging to the officer