Vanka
by Anton Chekhov
Vanka, a young orphan apprenticed to a cruel shoemaker, secretly writes to his grandfather asking to be rescued. His innocent hope contrasts painfully with his harsh reality.
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- Vanka is a nine-year-old orphan in Moscow.
- He is apprenticed to a shoemaker and treated cruelly.
- He misses his grandfather and village life.
- On Christmas Eve he secretly writes a letter to his grandfather.
- He describes hunger, punishment and loneliness.
- He addresses the letter to his grandfather in the village.
- The story ends with Vanka’s innocent hope that the letter will reach him.
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Vanka is an orphan working as an apprentice in Moscow. He is lonely, hungry and badly treated by his master and others in the household.
On Christmas Eve he secretly writes to his grandfather. He remembers the village, his grandfather and the happier life he once knew. His letter describes the physical punishment and misery he experiences in Moscow.
Vanka sends the letter without a complete address, simply trusting that his grandfather will receive it. The ending is deeply tragic because the reader understands that his hope is unlikely to be fulfilled.