# Kirilin — The Duel character guide

> Kirilin in The Duel by Anton Chekhov.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** VII Kirilin

**First appearance:** 0003-iv

## Snapshot

A handsome but mediocre officer whose attentions to Nadyezhda Fyodorovna become a brief, careless surrender she already regrets.

## Who they are

Kirilin enters Nadyezhda Fyodorovna's stifling summer as the answer to a desire she can no longer reason with, and she gives in without resistance or joy. He proves coarse and unremarkable, and the affair is over almost as soon as it began—yet it has already altered her, seeding a self-contempt she cannot shake. His presence matters less for what he does than for what he exposes: the vacuum of her days and the ease with which boredom becomes betrayal.

## Relationships

### [Nadyezhda Fyodorovna](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/characters/nadyezhda_fyodorovna)

_psychological_

Kirilin is a predatory, obsessive suitor who manipulates and sexually exploits Nadyezhda when she is vulnerable.

### [Ivan Andreitch Laevsky](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/characters/ivan_andreitch_laevsky)

_rivalry_

Laevsky and Kirilin are rivals over Nadyezhda, with Kirilin's predatory behavior fueling Laevsky's jealousy and shame.

### [Atchmianov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/characters/atchmianov)

_rivalry_

Atchmianov and Kirilin are competing suitors for Nadyezhda, each trying to undermine the other.

### [Atchmianov](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/characters/atchmianov)

_rivalry_

Atchmianov and Kirilin are competing suitors for Nadyezhda, each trying to undermine the other.

### [Ivan Andreitch Laevsky](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/characters/ivan_andreitch_laevsky)

_rivalry_

Laevsky and Kirilin are rivals over Nadyezhda, with Kirilin's predatory behavior fueling Laevsky's jealousy and shame.

## In the story

### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/chapters/v)

Mentioned as having visited Nadyezhda twice in Laevsky's absence.

### [VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/chapters/vi)

Demands wine for the picnic despite having no money; acts haughty and sleepy.

### [VII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/chapters/vii)

Confronts Nadyezhda Fyodorovna about their failed love affair, accusing her of coquetry, and later spreads rumors about her.

### [XIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/chapters/xiii)

Walks behind Nadyezhda Fyodorovna on the boulevard, humming a threatening tune.

### [XIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/chapters/xiv)

Confronts Nadyezhda, insists on a lesson and two interviews, and arranges to meet her at Muridov's.

### [XV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/chapters/xv)

Found with Nadyezhda Fyodorovna in a secret meeting, contributing to Laevsky's distress.

### [XVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/chapters/xvii)

Recalled by Laevsky as loathsome, but merely continuing what Laevsky began.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/characters/kirilin
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_duel_se/characters