‘The death sentence and the life sentence are equally immoral, but if I had to choose between the death penalty and imprisonment for life, I would certainly choose the second. For example, on page 211 it says, “Among the guests was a young lawyer, a young man of five and twenty. Throughout the story it also shows how much the lawyer changed from before he went into prison to the time he got out of prison. To not see a human being for 15 years would be torture to anyone, especially a successful young lawyer. An example of this is on page 212 when it says, “It was agreed that for fifteen years he should not be free to cross the threshold of the lodge, to see human beings, to hear the human voice, or to receive letters and newspapers.” In my opinion, this in itself is torture. The main character in “The Bet” experienced first hand the distressing reality of a life spent imprisoned. To begin, Checkov uses characterization to shed light on the argument regarding if the death penalty is more humane than life imprisonment. The character development, the way the plot is used, and the setting are all expressed to show Anton Chekhov’s view of the issue the death penalty is more humane than imprisonment for life. Anton Chekhov used a short, quick moving story to bring to light the controversial issue of whether or not life imprisonment is more humane than the death penalty. This is how the lawyer in “The Bet”by Anton Chekhov spent his young adult life all because of an argument one autumn night. Imagine spending 15 years of your life locked up in a room with no human interaction and hardly anything to do.

The bet chekhov