# Mihail Lvovitch Astrov — Uncle Vanya character guide

> Mihail Lvovitch Astrov in Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Astrov, Doctor Astrov, Mihail Lvovitch

**First appearance:** 0002-act-i

## Snapshot

The overworked country doctor who plants forests, treats typhus, and drinks once a month to blunt a life that has swallowed his feelings.

## Who they are

Astrov is the doctor who has served this district for over a decade, aging visibly under the strain of endless calls and epidemics. He tells Marina how spotted typhus once left him working all day without food, then a patient died under chloroform and he was conscience-stricken as if he'd killed him on purpose. He wonders whether future generations will remember the road he and others are beating out for them, and Marina answers that God will. His weariness and his stubborn idealism make him the play's most clear-eyed figure.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_vanya_se/characters/mihail_astrov
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_vanya_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/uncle_vanya_se/characters