Sofya “Sonya” Alexandrovna is Serebryakov's simple, gentle, and homely daughter by his first marriage. Like her Uncle Vanya, she has dedicated her life to the maintenance of the estate. Throughout the play, she is quick to chastise those who would disrupt the household—her father in particular—and attempts to keep peace among her relations. Her primary subplot involves her hopeless love for Dr. Astrov. Once disappointed, she miserably rededicates herself to her toils, telling her uncle that they can only look toward death for peace—the only time when they will be able to recall the past without bitterness and regret. In considering Sonya, one should note that her misery never quite reaches tragic proportions: Sonya is too modest to be a martyred lover and too pathetic to be a fallen heroine. Her "commonplace" misery, poignant in being so mundane, testifies to the subtlety of Chekhovian realism.