At the beginning of the 20th century, Anton Chekhov composed a play entitled The Cherry Orchard, which focused on many themes including childhood, attachment to the past and the hypocrisy of human beings, all themes that were clearly portrayed throughout the show. These themes are all causes of the theme that stands out above all else in The Cherry Orchard, this being the reversal of destinies. Mrs. Ranevsky is a co-owner of a large estate bordering the house of Lopakhin, the son of the serf who belonged to the Ranevsky family before the liberation of serfs in Russia. Over time, throughout the opera, a certain irony is noticeable in the roles of both Madame Ranevsky and Lopakhin, as well as the other characters. On the very first page of the work, Lopakhin talks about when he was a child. He tells Dunyasha: I remember when I was only fifteen my old father hit me in the face with his fist and my nose was bleeding. We were out in the yard and he had been drinking. Mrs. Ranevsky, I remember it as if it were yesterday, still young and young, took me to the sink, here, in this very room, in the children's room. "Don't cry, peasant," he said, "everything will be fine with your marriage." [A pause] "Little farmer!" …. My father, it is true, was a farmer, and here I am in a white waistcoat and brown boots; a silk bag made from a sow's ear; he just got rich, with a lot of money, but he is still a peasant's peasant (Chekhov 1). This quote from Lopakhin informs the audience that even Lopakhin himself knows that he has come a long way from when he was a young peasant. Mrs. Ranevsky took care of Lopakhin when they were children, and now Lopakhin gives her financial advice... half paper... all over Russia at the time. The play takes place shortly after serfs were freed across the nation, which allowed many former serfs and serfs to experience a reversal of fate as Russia underwent massive modernization. “Time changes everything” is a bit of a cliché, but it's true. clearly represented within The Cherry Orchard. Lopakhin and Madame Ranevsky completely change fate as time passes during the play. This reversal of destinies is often caused by ignorance and instability in decision-making, as Madame Ranevsky demonstrated. Simply because he considers himself superior to a particular type of person, he loses everything. Although one may acquire much wealth one day, it is unclear what fate holds the next day. Works Cited Chekhov, Anton. The cherry orchard. Dover Thrift Edition ed. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1991. Print.