What are some literary elements in "The Bet" by Anton Chekhov?

The phrase "literary elements" seems to be rather vague
and all-encompassing. You might benefit from re-reading the story and trying to narrow
down your terms of reference somewhat, as clearly every work of fiction has a number of
"literary elements" that could be commented upon. One way to approach this question,
however, would be to talk about the difference between the two central characters, the
lawyer and the banker, and the way that these characters are shown to develop and evolve
through the experiences narrated in the story.

Let us begin
by considering the lawyer. Having made such an impetuous bet, the lawyer, by the end of
the story, is shown to have developed and matured immeasurably. His final note, which
renounces the money he was due to win, gives ample evidence of the way that he has
transcended so many of the earthly problems and issues that still dog the
banker:

You
have lost your reason and taken the wrong path. You have taken lies for truth and
hideousness for
beauty.

Clearly such
statements indicate the extent of the lawyer's development. By contrast, although the
banker is moved to tears by reading the lawyer's note, he still contradicts such an
action by the way that he carefully places the lawyer's letter in his safe. In contrast
to the lawyer, the banker is clearly shown not to have evolved beyond his greed and
self-interest.

Thus one literary element you could
helpfully focus on is that of characterisation and the way that it is used to compare
and contrast these two central characters.