There are so many things that are wanted by people today, such as the newest phone or a car, but is it all worth it? None of these items will last forever, and when it comes down to it the thing that’s worth the most is knowledge. Knowledge is what makes you, you, it is all of your memories and thoughts, and your life will be better if you seek knowledge rather than worldly possession. “The Bet” by Anton Checkhov, a story about a man who spends 15 years in prison to win a bet and reads a lot of books while imprisoned, shows that knowledge is worth more than anything that is in this world through the advice, irony, setting, and the characters learning.
First off, advice given in the story explains that physical items have little worth. The prisoner makes it known to the banker that he has made the wrong choice in worrying about his wealthiness: “You have lost your reason and taken the wrong path” (Chekhov 216). This excerpt from “The Bet” is an example of the prisoner giving advice to the banker, he says that the banker has made the wrong choice. The banker could not believe that the knowledge that came all the books the prisoner read would be of any worth, this shows how advice demonstrates that knowledge is of more worth than worldly items.

Second, the irony due to the differences from the beginning of the story to the end, prove the worth of knowledge. The banker believes that the prisoner will lose many years of his life, that they will be wasted, in the story he says, “Think better of it, young man, while there is still time. To me two million is a trifle, but you are losing three or four of the best years of your life. I say three or four, because you won’t stay longer” (Chekhov 215). However, in the end of the story the prisoner says, “Your books have given me wisdom. I know that I am wiser than all of you” (Chekhov 215). After 15 years the prisoner finds he has gotten more out of life, he has learned more in that cell than everyone else outside of it, quite the opposite from what was expected. The prisoner did more than the banker in the little cell than the banker did outside free to do what he pleased, simply because he had more time to sit down and gain knowledge from books. The irony in the story shows how knowledge can do more for you than anything on the world.

Also, the setting, where the story unravels shows how knowledge is of great worth. The setting shows the theme because the character was stuck in a cell for 15 years but he came out with a new look on life, whereas the banker over the same amount of time did not change at all. “In your books I have flung myself into the bottomless pit, performed miracles, slain, burned towns, preached new religions, conquered whole kingdoms” (Chekhov 215). In this quote, the prisoner has spent 15 years in a cell, yet he says that he has had all of these experiences through the books he has read, or in other words he’s experienced more than the banker has because of the knowledge he gained from the books. The setting of this story work to prove that you don’t need to have anything but the ability achieve knowledge.

Lastly, what the character learned in the story provides supporting evidence of the theme of the story. The prisoner learns that he does not want the money of the world. “To prove to you in action how I despise all that you live by, I renounce the two million of which I once dreamed as of paradise” (Chekhov 216). This quote shows that after the 15 years spent in a cage he has learned that he doesn’t want the money anymore for it has no worth to him, he proves this by renouncing the money. This action is a proof that the prisoner once dreamed of the millions of dollars, but has learned throughout the course of the story that he wants only knowledge because it is worth far more than worldly belongings.

Knowledge is far more important than any item on the earth, “The Bet” shows this through the advice, irony, setting and the lesson that the character learned in this story. First, it shows the worth of knowledge through the advice the prisoner gives to the banker, saying that the banker had chosen the wrong path. Second, the irony shows the theme by showing that the banker believed the prisoner would lose those years of his life, he actually got more out of those years than the average person. Also, the theme is shown through the setting, the prisoner is in a small cell for 15 years and the banker is outside and can roam freely, but through the knowledge he acquired he lived more than the banker did. In the end the prizes of this world are not worth your time unless they can grant you more knowledge and experience, seek out all of the knowledge you can get so that you can fill your life with experiences and memories and your life will be better off.


Work Cited List

Checkhov, Anton. “The Bet.” Trans. Constance Garnett. Elements of Literature: Fourth Course. By Robert Anderson. Austin, TX: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1993. 215-216. Print.