CBSE Class 10 English First Flight - The Proposal Summary & Notes

According to the CBSE Syllabus 2023-24, this chapter has been renumbered as Chapter 9.

Summary of The Proposal

Chapter 11 of Class 10 English textbook, ‘First Flight’, consists of prose – The Proposal, a farcical one-act play that was written in 1888–89 by Anton Chekhov, a Russian storyteller and dramatist. Here, we present you a summary of the prose in the form of CBSE English Notes Class 10. CBSE Class 10 students can check the prose summary of The Proposal here. They can refer to the CBSE Class 10 English Prose Notes – The Proposal while gearing up for their Board examinations.

Students can also go through CBSE Essays to improve their writing section of the English paper.

CBSE Class 10 English The Proposal Summary

The chapter, The Proposal, is a comedy-drama that is based on the tendency of two wealthy families who seek ties with each other to increase their estates by encouraging marriage that would improve their wealth. The play began with Ivan Lomov, who visited Stephan Chubukov, a wealthy neighbour of Lomov. Lomov was a wealthy person himself who was dressed neatly and had come to seek Chubukov’s twenty-five-year-old daughter, Natalya Stepanovna’s hand in marriage. Initially, Chubukov was curious about Lomov’s sudden visit and assumed that the young man had come to ask for money which he might not return.

Lomov was a thirty-five-year-old gentleman who suffered from severe heart-throbbing and became upset easily. He thought that Natalya was an excellent housekeeper, a well-educated and average-looking woman who would be an ideal partner to marry. However, when Chubukov heard about the proposal, he was glad and embraced Lomov. He immediately rushed inside to call his daughter, Natalya.

When Natalya arrived, Lomov began the conversation about how both families share a cordial relationship. As he spoke about his land Oxen Meadows, which was a disputed property, Natalya objected that the land belonged to her family. Lomov yelled back, stating that the land belonged to him. Both of them had a heated argument on this topic until Lomov had a sudden palpitation attack with numbness in his feet. In no time, Natalya’s father, Chubukov, arrived, and the father-daughter duo started abusing Lomov. Feeling insulted, Lomov rushed out of the house. As Chubukov continued to defame the young man, he accidentally mentioned Natalya about Lomov’s marriage proposal. Hearing this, Natalya immediately regretted insulting Lomov and asked her father to bring him back.

Chubukov rushed out of the house immediately to call Lomov. When the young man returned, Natalya started a conversation about their dogs. In no time, a second round of debate ensued between her and Lomov, where she mentioned that her dog Squeezer was better than Lomov’s Guess. Soon, Chubukov entered the scene, and the argument worsened. All three people began quarrelling, and soon Lomov fainted with another attack of palpitation.

Seeing this, Natalya asked her father to wake up Lomov as she expressed her desire that she like him too. Suddenly when Lomov made a movement, they offered him some water to drink, and Chubukov put Natalya’s hand over his hand. They agreed to marry, but the quarrel persisted as Natalya said that Squeezer was better than Guess. However, Lomov was adamant and refused to accept that his dog, Guess, was worse than Squeezer, Natalya’s dog. The curtain went down as the verbal fight continued among the characters.

Conclusion of The Proposal

The chapter – The Proposal displayed the quarrelsome nature of the characters of the play and how a wealthy family ruthlessly encouraged marriage with another wealthier family as a means to enhance their economic condition. We hope this CBSE Class 10 English First Flight Prose Summary of The Proposal helped students to have a thorough understanding of the chapter. Meanwhile, you can check BYJU’S for a huge collection of resources on CBSE Notes and CBSE study material and access sample papers, question papers, etc., for your Board exams preparation. You can also download BYJU’S: The Learning App for more interactive videos.