Anna Dobrokhotova Natalya Gundareva was born and raised in a village where life is relentless, filled with constant labor and a rhythm that leaves little room for breaks. The atmosphere is harsh, and though many toil just as hard, Anna stands out for her laziness and disorganization, chasing simple pleasures like sunbathing, lying on a feather bed, and savoring small luxuries rather than embracing the demanding routine around her. A random affair with a young student results in pregnancy and the birth of a child, but the relationship does not mature because Anna does not wish to marry at that moment.
She moves to the city and takes a job at a confectionery factory. Her income rises, yet her perspective on life stays largely the same: she remains self-centered, indifferent to others, and uninterested in broadening her horizons. In many ways, she embodies a petty bourgeois mindset, striving mainly for material comfort and personal convenience rather than any deeper purpose.
During a visit to a female friend, Anna meets Nikolai Egorovich Kushakov Pyotr Velyaminov, a lonely disabled war veteran. What begins as a romance blossoms into marriage, and at first Anna sees her life finally “in order.” The couple enjoys the trappings of prosperity: a private flat, furniture, and a refrigerator—symbols of an affluent life that bring her short-lived satisfaction. Yet the marriage soon sours; Kushakov leaves, finding it impossible to live with a partner who is self-absorbed and unseriously committed to the relationship. Their son, Yuri, supports his stepfather in the conflict and also leaves the house to enroll in the Nakhimov Naval School.
Before long, in the village, Anna’s old mother dies, leaving Anna utterly alone. While walking in the forest, she encounters Tikhon Dmitrievich Sokolov Oleg Yankovskiy, a simple construction worker who operates a crane. He is divorced, and at first he believes Anna could be the great love he’s been waiting for. Desperate to secure a husband, she clings to him with relentless tenacity and behaves in an excessively demanding and tiresome way. As Tikhon gets to know her, he discovers a blunt, shallow, selfish nature that repels him, and he does not hesitate to cast her out of his home. Thus, the once-appealing “sweet” woman—beautiful and materially comfortable—ends up in a profound loneliness that she has helped create through years of self-centered choices.
The story remains a quiet meditation on desire, possession, and the hollow promise of easy affluence, showing how Anna’s pursuit of comfort and status ultimately isolates her from those around her and from any real connection with life itself.
