Beautiful summer evening
When the author and Savka are sitting on the bank of the river fishing they observe a beautiful sunset, and the author provides a really touching description of the event: “A copse with alder-trees, softly whispering, and from time to time shuddering in the fitful breeze, lay, a dark blur, on the right of the kitchen gardens; on the left stretched the immense plain. In the distance, where the eye could not distinguish between the sky and the plain, there was a bright gleam of light.” The image is a remarkable example of what a wonderful master of words Chekhov was.
Birds talking
Imitation of the sound of birds, along with parallels to human speech, is a very often-used method in literature to draw the reader’s attention and provoke an image of what is heard. This one is used in the story as well: “Everything was sinking into its first deep sleep except some night bird unfamiliar to me, which indolently uttered a long, protracted cry in several distinct notes like the phrase, "Have you seen Ni-ki-ta?" and immediately answered itself, "Seen him, seen him, seen him!" Thus the author puts the world of people with the world of nature on a par. Along with that, he adds vitality to the story.
Marvelous night
While Savka and the author were sitting on the bank of the river fishing, the night gradually has covered everything around: “ Meanwhile the darkness was growing thicker and thicker, and objects began to lose their contours. The streak behind the hill had completely died away, and the stars were growing brighter and more luminous. . . . The mournfully monotonous chirping of the grasshoppers, the call of the landrail, and the cry of the quail did not destroy the stillness of the night, but, on the contrary, gave it an added monotony.” Usually the image of night has a sad or even troublesome effect, but in the given situation the night produces an effect of comfort and piece.
