Anton Chekhov

[Stewart]

Anton Chekhov (January 29 1860 ? July 15 1904) was a Russian short-story writer and playwright, considered to be one of the greatest short story writers in world literature. His playwriting career produced four classics: The Seagull, Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters, and The Cherry Orchard; and his best short stories are held in high esteem by writers and critics. Chekhov practised as a doctor throughout most of his literary career: "Medicine is my lawful wife," he once said, "and literature is my mistress."

Chekhov renounced the theatre after the disastrous reception of The Seagull in 1896; but the play was revived to acclaim by Konstantin Stanislavsky's Moscow Art Theatre, which subsequently also produced Uncle Vanya and premiered Chekhov?s last two plays, Three Sisters and The Cherry Orchard. These four works present a special challenge to the acting ensemble as well as to audiences, because in place of conventional action Chekhov offers a "theatre of mood" and a "submerged life in the text."

Chekhov had at first written stories only for the money, but as his artistic ambition grew, he made formal innovations which have influenced the evolution of the modern short story. His originality consists in an early use of the stream-of-consciousness technique, later adopted by Virginia Woolf and other modernists, combined with a disavowal of the moral finality of traditional story structure. He made no apologies for the difficulties this posed to readers, insisting that the role of an artist was to ask questions, not to answer them.

BIBLIOGRAPHY (partial)

PLAYS


That Worthless Fellow Platonov (most commonly known as Untitled play or simply, Platonov (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platonov_%28play%29)) (c. 1881 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1881))
On the Harmful Effects of Tobacco (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_the_Harmful_Effects_of_Tobacco) (1886 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1886), 1902 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1902))
Ivanov (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivanov_%28play%29) (1887 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1887))
The Boor or The Bear (1888 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1888))
The Proposal or A Marriage Proposal (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Marriage_Proposal) (c. 1888 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1888)-1889 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1889))
A Reluctant Tragic Hero (1889 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1889))
The Wedding (1889 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1889))
The Wood Demon (1889 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1889))
The Festivities (1891 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1891))
The Seagull (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seagull) (1896 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1896))
Uncle Vanya (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncle_Vanya) (1899 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1899)-1900 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1900))
Three Sisters (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Sisters_%28play%29) (1901 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1901))
The Cherry Orchard (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cherry_Orchard) (1904 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1904))

NON FICTION


A Journey to Sakhalin (1895 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1895)), including:

Saghalien [or Sakhalin] Island (1891 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1891)-1895 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1895))
Across Siberia


Letters

NOVELLAS


The Steppe (http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Steppe) (Step) (1888 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1888))
The Duel (http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Duel) (Duel) (1891 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1891))
An Anonymous Story [The Story of an Unknown Man] (1893 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1893))
Three Years (http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Three_Years) (1895 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1895))
My Life (1896 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1896))

As for the short stories, there are perhaps too many to list here. But they can be read here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bibliography_of_Anton_Chekhov).

RELATED LINKS


Anton Chekhov on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anton_Chekhov)
201 Stories of Anton Chekhov (http://www.ibiblio.org/eldritch/ac/jr/index.htm)

[Stewart]

I've always heard that Chekhov is considered one of the greatest short story writers ever but have never got around to reading him, partly because I tend to struggle with short stories in general. Does anyone have any favourites of his that they would recommend as must read?

[Howard]

Many great ones, but I'd suggest The Lady with the Little Dog and Ward Six for starters.

[Stewart]

Thanks, Howard. I'm glad to see Ward Six mentioned as that's the lead story in the collection I have.

[Eric]

It's strange that Chekhov was far better known, when I was young, as a playwright: Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, Three Sisters, The Seagull.

I didn't even know he was a short-story writer until I discovered that much-translated story The Lady With the Lapdog. Here it is in English:

Anton Chekhov : Lady With Lapdog (http://www.classicreader.com/read.php/bookid.2036/sec.1/)

But I too have not read more of his stories, although I don't have problems with them, as Stewart says he does. Nor did I know, till Googling just now, that he had written 201 (!) stories between 1892 and 1904:

201 Stories by Anton Chekhov (http://chekhov2.tripod.com/)

This is the same link that Stewart mentioned; it has the texts of all the stories. I will read the stories, but hope to find alternative translations, in due course, to those of Constance Garnett who monopolised a number of key Russian authors.

Why I would like to see other translations is to compare. For instance, I started reading Ward Number 6 online, from that website, and was almost immediately struck by an anomaly. Among the madmen there is a Jew, Moseika; he is said to have gone mad when his hat factory burned down. But Garnett uses the word "imbecile". That word implies a low intelligence. How can he have run a hat factory with low intelligence? I suspect that Garnett needed another word. Otherwise, her translation is, however, very vivid.

Chekhov the short-story writer certainly looks interesting.

[Beth]

Still have trouble relating ''stream-of-consciousness'' and Chekhov. Back to the drawing board! More Chekhov! Stewart, my favorite story is Misery. Very, very short, a snack of such dense and essential nutrients that your RDA could be filled before you even realize you've eaten. Must read! Chop, chop!

[spooooool]

I've always loved his stories, Beth. And i'd recommend the Sakhalin journals and his correspondence :)

[Beth]

I've been saving a copy of his selected letters, translated by Sidonie Lederer and with foreward by Lillian Hellman. All for some rainy day thirty years from now!

[Eric]

They reviewed the latest production of Ivanov on the Newsnight Review tonight. Did anyone see the programme? It is reckoned as one of Chekhov's less well-known plays (maybe not one of his best). Has anyone seen the play?

[Subhashree Naman]

There is a lesser known short story of his which happens to be my favourite.. it is called "The Bet". Check it out, definitely a good read!

[titania7]

I am glad to have discovered this thread on Chekhov. He is definitely one of my favorite short story writers. Among my favorite stories would be "The Teacher of Literature," "An Incident," "The Lady with the Dog" (quite an obvious one) and "Two Scandals." I'm quite a fan of Chekov's plays, as well. Having been a stage actress, I've had the opportunity to act in his plays, which, I assure you, is a unique and exhilarating experience! What I was told again and again by the different theatre directors I worked with was to remember that Chekhov intended for his plays to be interpreted humorously.

If anyone is interested, there is a top-notch book of essays on Chekhov's plays. When I was acting, it was my "Chekov Bible." It's called _Chekov's Plays_: An opening into eternity_ by Richard Gilman. The essays are brilliantly written. My favorite essay is the one on "Ivanov." Please understand--the essays are not merely on the themes and characters within the plays. They also give one a
richer, broader, more comprehensive understanding of Chekov himself. As Gilman writes, when speaking of what he terms (to coin a phrase Gogol used) Chekhov's "genius of the ordinary":

"Only a great, deep, rare genius can catch what surrounds us daily, what always accompanies us, what is ordinary--while mediocrity grabs with both hands all that is out of rule, what happens but seldom catches the eye by its ugliness and disharmony."

It is too difficult for me to choose my favorite Chekhov play. Perhaps, it would be "The Seagull." There is a contemporary playwright named Stephen Dietz who wrote "The Nina Variations," an intriguing little play centered around the heroine of "The Seagull," Nina. It is certainly worth checking out--if, that is, you enjoy reading plays.

titania7

"One's life has value so long as one attributes value
to the life of others by means of love, friendship,
indignation, and compassion."
~Simone de Beauvoir

[titania7]

I am glad to have discovered this thread on Chekhov. He is definitely one of my favorite short story writers. Among my favorite stories would be "The Teacher of Literature," "An Incident," "The Lady with the Dog" (quite an obvious one) and "Two Scandals." I'm quite a fan of Chekhov's plays, as well. Having been a stage actress, I've had the opportunity to act in his plays, which, I assure you, is a unique and exhilarating experience! What I was told again and again by the different theatre directors I worked with was to remember that Chekhov intended for his plays to be interpreted humorously.

If anyone is interested, there is a top-notch book of essays on Chekhov's plays. When I was acting, it was my "Chekhov Bible." It's called _Chekhov's Plays_: An opening into eternity_ by Richard Gilman. The essays are brilliantly written. My favorite essay is the one on "Ivanov." Please understand--the essays are not merely on the themes and characters within the plays. They also give one a
richer, broader, more comprehensive understanding of Chekhov himself. As Gilman writes, when speaking of what he terms (to coin a phrase Gogol used) Chekhov's "genius of the ordinary":

"Only a great, deep, rare genius can catch what surrounds us daily, what always accompanies us, what is ordinary--while mediocrity grabs with both hands all that is out of rule, what happens but seldom catches the eye by its ugliness and disharmony."

It is too difficult for me to choose my favorite Chekhov play. Perhaps, it would be "The Seagull." There is a contemporary playwright named Stephen Dietz who wrote "The Nina Variations," an intriguing little play centered around the heroine of "The Seagull," Nina. It is certainly worth checking out--if, that is, you enjoy reading plays.

titania7

"One's life has value so long as one attributes value
to the life of others by means of love, friendship,
indignation, and compassion."
~Simone de Beauvoir

[titania7]

Sorry. I somehow posted by last reply twice! I think it was because halfway through previewing it, I became aware that, for some inexplicable reason, I was leaving the "h" out of "Chekhov" half the time. I have no idea why, except for the fact I'm sleepy and should probably be in bed. When I'm tired, the first thing I seem to lose the ability to do is spell correctly. I've even been known to spell my own name wrong when I'm too fatigued.

At any rate, there are now two nearly identical postings from yours truly (the only difference being, I spell Chekhov 100 % correctly in the second posting).

titania7

"The optimist sees the rose and not its thorns; the pessimist
stares at the thorns, oblivious to the rose."
~Kahlil Gibran

[Eric]

I am not a great fan of the theatre, but a few playwrights such as Strindberg (late plays) and Gombrowicz stand out for me as special. Plus Tadeusz Kantor. And Chekhov.

My favourite play is, I think, Three Sisters. It's such a long time since I saw the play that I cannot remember exactly why, but it's got something to do with the pace, the rhythm of the play. And strange Chekhovian things, like shots offstage. I've seen it on TV and perhaps once in the theatre. What is also intriguing is the lassitude of provincial Russian life in those days, and the aspirations and dreams of people, who are comfortably off, yet yearn for something more stimulating. Moscow as that place far away, the capital, a kind of paradise.

Titania, once you've posted a posting here, you can still edit it by pressing the red "edit" button along the bottom of the posting. This means that you can alter typos without having to post the whole thing again. After making your alterations on the pale lilac screen, you press the "save" button, also at the bottom of the posting, and lo and behold, your new amended version appears.

[spooooool]

I've seen Ivanov twice, the second and most brilliant production had Ralph Fiennes in the title role. Ivanov was worked out of an earlier one act play if i remember correctly.

[learna]

Chekhov at 150!

BBC - Chekhov Season - BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio 7 (http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/chekhov/)

[Manuel76]

I'm quite a fan of Chekhov's plays, as well. Having been a stage actress, I've had the opportunity to act in his plays, which, I assure you, is a unique and exhilarating experience! What I was told again and again by the different theatre directors I worked with was to remember that Chekhov intended for his plays to be interpreted humorously.
~Simone de Beauvoir

Very interesting, but do you mean "with sense of humour" or openly Humorous?

I think it's difficult to achieve the correct mood (or at least the traditional one I like, a new and original approach is sometimes interesting but often one feels it betrays the spirit of the play) of Chekhov's plays. It's a mixture of so many things, such a complex athmosphere!. Sometimes the result seems hurried or too underlined so it stress just one dimesion of the work forgetting so many others. Sometimes you're not sure if it's Chekhov or Brecht!

The Cherry orchard is, among his four great plays, the most humorous, The Seagull probably the most dramatic and perhaps his most direct (I mean the one in which he most clearly states his intentions). I'm not sure which one is my favorite but probably The Seagull or The three sisters.

[miercuri]

I shall be studying him this semester, very much looking forward!

[lenz]

I just took a look at The Three Sisters again and despite Chekhov's determination to make it satirical, once again, all I could feel was tragedy. There are lots of laughs to be had but I still can't read it without bursting into big blurry tears. He would have been contemptuous of such a reaction, I'm sure.

The great short story writer, Katherine Mansfield (New Zealand), was obviously a disciple of Chekhov's. In fact, after her early death (1923), she was accused of plagiarism when one of her first stories, "The-Child-Who-was-Tired," was seen to be a slight variation of his "Sleepy". It is certainly the same story - different setting, names - with a small change in the main character's motivation. It is a blot on her name but, in her defence, it was offered for publication at a time of physical and emotional stress. Anyway, I love her prose a little more than Chekhov's.

[learna]

It difficult to write briefly about Anton Chekhov, the writer who is a legend of Literature( with a capital letter). I'd like to mention of the latest play "The Cherry Orchard" that is a result of his work, his life, a frontier of the Golden Literature and a prediction of the changes in Russia. Chekhov promised his wife to write a comedy but those were smiles with tears behind. Alexander Sokurov said about Chekhov:"Something always stands behind his irony."
I have just seen a very interesting video chronical about Chekhov and Russia at those days.
In 1921 "The Cherry Orchard" was a big success in Germany: Tarasova, the actress, said that the people of the first emigration, the officers had fainted away seeing that play.
He died in Germany and his wife Knipper-Chekhova had to achieve the permission from the German governmen to bury him in Russia( as he had had a tuberculosis according to some rules he had to be cremated there).
Feeling the death Chekhov asked to send round for the doctor odered some champagne and said:: „Ich sterbe“. Then said it in Russian, drank, said with smile:" I have not drink champagne long since", lay and died ( his wife's memories) .

[Manuel76]

I just took a look at The Three Sisters again and despite Chekhov's determination to make it satirical, once again, all I could feel was tragedy. There are lots of laughs to be had but I still can't read it without bursting into big blurry tears. He would have been contemptuous of such a reaction, I'm sure.


I'm not so convinced about those satirical intentions. I mean partly it can be humorous but it's at the same time dramatic.

Take for example Masha from The Seagull and Uncle Vanya, they are sometimes stupid and comic, they take themselves too seriously and tend to overact. But if they become wholly comic on stage then Masha's scenes in fouth act and Uncle Vanya last scene are not satisfying at all.

That's why I found Malle's version of Uncle Vanya, otherwise great, had an unconvincing Vanya, while older version with Redgrave and Olivier was poorly staged but had, for me, a great lead actor.

I liked too the Sidney Lumet film The Seagull, not highly considered by critics and with some failures but for me a good version.

After being so tragically performed under Stanislavski (whose points of view where directly rejected by Chekhov), critics discovered humour in his plays, and it seemed to them that this new Chekhov, by being ironic and even cinic was much more mature, modern, interesting...

[lenz]

I'm not so convinced about those satirical intentions. I mean partly it can be humorous but it's at the same time dramatic.

Chekhov was certainly satirising Russian society and his characters represent a weakness that he saw as preventing Russia from entering the modern world. That doesn't mean that he doesn't sympathise with his characters, too; he must, after all, to make them human. So, he invites us to laugh at their (and our) human weaknesses and to see the tragedy in their inability to move beyond their fatalism.

[Manuel76]

I'm not so convinced about those satirical intentions. I mean partly it can be humorous but it's at the same time dramatic.

Chekhov was certainly satirising Russian society and his characters represent a weakness that he saw as preventing Russia from entering the modern world. That doesn't mean that he doesn't sympathise with his characters, too; he must, after all, to make them human. So, he invites us to laugh at their (and our) human weaknesses and to see the tragedy in their inability to move beyond their fatalism.

Totally agree with you, Lenz. I just hate when they try to make it too clearly anything: I mean to clearly comic or too directly tragic.

[Eric]

Satire is part of a larger thing, humour. Satire tends to border on the caricature and be for political or social ends. I, like the rest of you, feel that Chekhov's humour resides in subtlety, not slapstick. As with Shakespeare, if there is a comic scene it is nearly always counterbalanced by a wistful or tragic one.

I've not seen his plays on TV or in the theatre for very many years. But thinking back to when I did see them, I found them extremely good. The fatalism that embraces life in the country houses of Russia may, on the one hand, be very Russian, but it is an examination of the universal qualities of hope and yearning, as well as of the petty comic foibles of people, that makes Chekhov great as a playwright.

I hope one day to read several of his short-stories, as he was also a master of that genre, but I have never really explored the stories he wrote.