Charactor Analyis: Jacob from "rothchild's Fiddle" by Anton Chekov

In examining the character Jacob from "Rothchild's Fiddle" by Anton Chekov it can be concluded that the most active Me, based on the description by William James in "The Social Me", is the Spiritual Me; this is because of the fact that every action he does can be seen as a direct result of his emotions. Jacob's actions are depicted on several occasions which demonstrate the extent of his emotions on his actions.

Even though at first analysis it may appear as though the motive for Jacob's actions would be the Material Me, the basis for this argument, which is that he always is discussing losses and inability to gain, can be disregarded when Jacob's past is unmasked. After learning that his daughter had passed in the past, it becomes conceivable as well as likely that he is concentrated on the losses due to a psychological effect of the early death of his daughter. James describes the Spiritual Me as a collection of thoughts. When given this definition it can be determined that the psychological effect of the loss would directly fall under the category of the Spiritual Me.

In further examination of the text, it is revealed that Jacob was religious based on his confessions and celebrating of Saint's Days. In understanding this it can be said that Jacob could feel that it was a necessity to give Rothschild his fiddle, which in itself is a major event, in order to redeem himself for his "sins". This is opposed to another misguided conclusion that he did this for the social recognition that would satisfy his Social Me. While this is an understandable conclusion to draw, it is merely an unlikely event based on his past of solitude emotions. As it has been shown in the book on multiple occasions, Jacob does not seem to make an effort of social acceptance. This further supports that this theory is incorrect.

Although both the Social and Material Me have evidence to support them, they are both insufficient to draw a logical conclusion. This is contrary to the vast evidence of the Spiritual Me. Based on the evidence supporting the Spiritual Me and the lack of solid evidence supporting the Social and Material Mes, the conclusion that Jacob's actions are greatly influenced by the Spiritual Me is the most logical.

Works Cited

Chekov, Anton. Rothschild's Fiddle. Illinois: The Great Book Foundation, 1990

James, William. The Social Me. Illinois: The Great Book Foundation, 1990

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