그레마스의 기호학적 사각형 개념으로 다시 읽는 체호프의 <벚꽃 동산>

Rereading Anton Chekhov’s <The Cherry Orchard> with A.J. Greimas’ Concept of the Semiotic Square: Focusing on Lubov Andreyevna Ranevsky and Ermolai Alexeyevitch Lopakhin’s Desire and Emotion

Anton Chekhov's play <The Cherry Orchard> is often interpreted as a tragedy, despite the author's subtitle that it is a four-act comedy. One of the main reasons for this interpretation is the view that the characters move into an emotionally negative state after the sale of the cherry orchard. For two central figures of the work, Lubov Andreyevna Ranevsky and Ermolai Alexeyevitch Lopakhin, however, the possession and loss of the cherry orchard are not simply explained by the oppositions that are commonly associated with it, such as possession-joy and loss-sorrow. To examine this in more detail, French lingust A.J.Greimas's concept of the Semiotic Square was utilized. The four elements of possession/maintenance, loss, non-loss, and non-possession of the cherry orchard, corresponding to each corner of the square, which create the semantic action of the play. For Ranevsky, she has a non-loss desire to not lose the cherry orchard rather than a desire to possess/maintain it. When this defensive desire is thwarted, Ranevsky is able to relieve her economic hardship and distance herself from the ambivalent place of memory. Lopakhin's actions also initially focus on the non-loss rather than the possession of the cherry orchard, which then shift to possession. He felt anxiety as he moved from loss to non-loss but as he moves from non-loss to possession, his emotions transform into pleasure, fulfillment and guilt. Based on the concept of the Semiotic Square, this research attempts to examine the desires and emotions of the two main characters in <The Cherry Orchard> according to possession/loss/non-loss/non-possession framework from the Semiotic Square, and read how they contribute to the tragicomedy nature of the work.