Anton Chekhov (1860–1904)
Author of Ivanov / The Seagull / Uncle Vanya / Three Sisters / The Cherry Orchard
About the Author
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was born in the provincial town of Taganrog, Ukraine, in 1860. In the mid-1880s, Chekhov became a physician, and shortly thereafter he began to write short stories. Chekhov started writing plays a few years later, mainly short comic sketches he called vaudvilles. The first show more collection of his humorous writings, Motley Stories, appeared in 1886, and his first play, Ivanov, was produced in Moscow the next year. In 1896, the Alexandrinsky Theater in St. Petersburg performed his first full- length drama, The Seagull. Some of Chekhov's most successful plays include The Cherry Orchard, Uncle Vanya, and Three Sisters. Chekhov brought believable but complex personalizations to his characters, while exploring the conflict between the landed gentry and the oppressed peasant classes. Chekhov voiced a need for serious, even revolutionary, action, and the social stresses he described prefigured the Communist Revolution in Russia by twenty years. He is considered one of Russia's greatest playwrights. Chekhov contracted tuberculosis in 1884, and was certain he would die an early death. In 1901, he married Olga Knipper, an actress who had played leading roles in several of his plays. Chekhov died in 1904, spending his final years in Yalta. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Series
Works by Anton Chekhov
Ivanov / The Seagull / Uncle Vanya / Three Sisters / The Cherry Orchard (1887) 2,555 copies, 9 reviews
Plays (Penguin Classics): The Bear / The Cherry Orchard / Ivanov / A Jubilee / The Proposal / The Seagull / Three Sisters / Uncle Vania (1959) 868 copies, 4 reviews
The Plays of Anton Chekhov: Nine Plays including The Sea-Gull, The Cherry Orchard, The Three Sisters and Others (1973) 183 copies, 1 review
Chekhov plays : The cherry orchard + The seagull + Three sisters + Uncle Vanya + vaudevilles (1988) — Original author — 98 copies
How to Write Like Chekhov: Advice and Inspiration, Straight from His Own Letters and Work (2006) 57 copies
The Image of Chekhov: Forty Stories by Anton Chekhov; In The Order In Which They Were Written. Newly Translated With An Introduction. (1963) 51 copies, 1 review
Théâtre complet, tome 1 : La Mouette - Ce fou de Platonov - Ivanov - Les Trois Soeurs (1973) 48 copies
The Collected Short Stories of Anton Chekhov Volume I: 100 Short Stories (Unexpurgated Edition) (Halcyon Classics) (2009) 29 copies, 1 review
Short Stories by Anton Chekhov: Bk. 1: A Tragic Actor and Other Stories (2009) 28 copies, 15 reviews
Stephen Fry Presents a Selection of Anton Chekhov's Short Stories (2009) — Author — 28 copies, 3 reviews
Chekhov the Major Plays 26 copies
Chekhov's Doctors: A Collection of Chekhov's Medical Tales (Literature and Medicine (Kent, Ohio), 5.) (2003) 23 copies
Verhalen 23 copies
Stories of Women: Includes 12 Stories Never Before Translated into English (Literary Classics) (1994) 22 copies
Um Homem Extraordinário E Outras Histórias - Coleção L&PM Pocket (Em Portuguese do Brasil) (2007) 18 copies
De bruid en andere verhalen 17 copies
Quatro pecas - A gaivota - Tio Vania - Tres irmas e O jardim das cerejeiras (Em Portugues do Brasil) (2019) 16 copies
Short Stories by Anton Chekhov: About Truth, Freedom, Happiness, and Love (2011) 14 copies, 2 reviews
Chekhov: The Vaudevilles and Other Short Works (Great Translations for Actors Series) (1998) 12 copies
Собрание сочинений. Том 10 Пьесы 12 copies
Cuentos (Clásica Maior) 11 copies
Great Short Stories 11 copies
El pabellón n.º 6 y otros relatos (El Libro De Bolsillo - Literatura) (Spanish Edition) (2001) 10 copies
Um Negócio Fracassado E Outros Contos De Humor - Coleção L&PM Pocket (Em Portuguese do Brasil) (2010) 10 copies
The Collected Short Stories of Anton Chekhov Volume II: 109 Short Stories (Unexpurgated Edition) (Halcyon Classics) (2009) 10 copies
Nueve cuentos sin final feliz / Nine Stories without a Happy Ending (Spanish Edition) (2002) 9 copies
Anton Chekhov: The Complete Plays 8 copies
Verzamelde werken 8 copies
Verhalen 3 7 copies
Letters of Anton Chekhov to his family and friends, with biographical sketch (2010) 7 copies, 1 review
Kirjeitä. [3] : Vuosilta 1899-1904 / valikoinut, suomentanut ja selityksin varustanut Martti Anhava (1990) 7 copies
Yumoristicheskie razzkazy : kniga dlia chteniya s kommentarien na angliskom yazyke i russko-angliiskim slovarem (1989) 7 copies, 1 review
The Plays of Anton Tchekov (Chekov): The Sea Gull, Uncle Vanya, The Three Sisters, The Cherry Orchard and Others (1950) 7 copies
Sentimentality 6 copies
Ariadne 6 copies
The Plays of Anton Tchekov (Chekov) 6 copies
Eine langweilige Geschichte. Aus den Aufzeichnungen eines alten Mannes (Inselbücherei, 258) (1977) 6 copies
VALITUT NOVELLIT 2 6 copies
Drammi 6 copies
SUURET KERTOMUKSET 2 6 copies
Neue Meistererzählungen 6 copies
The Collected Stories (Vol I of IV) 6 copies
Short Fiction 6 copies
Kratke priče 5 copies
The Plays of Anton Chekhov: The Seagull, On the High Road, The Proposal, The Bear, The Cherry Orchard, The Wedding, The Anniver (1935) 5 copies
Short Stories [Russian Readers] 5 copies
Selected Stories 5 copies
The Collected Stories (Vol IV of IV) 5 copies
The Collected Stories (Vol II of IV) 5 copies
Дом с мезонином Повести и рассказы 5 copies
Treasury of Classic Russian Love Short Stories: In Russian and English (English, Russian and Russian Edition) (1997) 5 copies
Racconti 2. 5 copies
Tchékhov : Oeuvres, tome 2 5 copies
Œuvres 5 copies
Wanjka en Kasjtanka 5 copies
Fyra skådespel 5 copies
Cuentos completos 5 copies
Chekhov: Three Stories: The Grasshopper, The Man in a Case, The Darling (Russian Texts) (Russian Texts) (2009) 4 copies
Novelas completas 4 copies
SUURET KERTOMUKSET 1 4 copies
Plays {The Anniversary, The Bear, The Cherry Orchard, On the High Road, The Proposal, The Seagull, The Three Sisters, The Wedding) (1935) — Author — 4 copies
Misery 4 copies
الألم 4 copies
L'estepa i altres narracions 4 copies
Terror 4 copies
The plays of Anton Chekov 4 copies
Baby 4 copies
Récits 4 copies
Het huis met het bordes 4 copies
Boys 4 copies
Рассказы 4 copies
Ravinen och andra noveller 4 copies
Vanka 4 copies
Drie verhalen 4 copies
De vlinder 4 copies
Herdepipan : noveller 3 copies
Дама с собачкой. Повести и рассказы 3 copies
Malingerers 3 copies
Contos 3 copies
The Collected Works of Anton Pavlovich Chekhov: The Complete Works PergamonMedia (Highlights of World Literature) (2015) 3 copies
Tchekhov's plays and stories 3 copies
Weiberwirtschaft. Meistererzählungen 3 copies
Obras ─ Colección de Antón Chejóv: Biblioteca de Grandes Escritores - Obras Completas (Spanish Edition) (2015) 3 copies, 1 review
La Rusia olvidada 3 copies
A Naughty Boy 3 copies
Valda noveller 3 copies
Povídky 3 copies
O GINJAL 3 copies
Doktorské povídky 3 copies
Anton Checkov Plays 3 copies
رسائل إلى العائلة 3 copies
AS TRES IRMAS (CONTOS) 3 copies
Una Cacera dramàtica 3 copies
Best Russian Short Stories 3 copies
Kirjeitä. [2] : Vuosilta 1891-1898 / valik., suom. ja selityksin varust. Martti Anhava (1986) 3 copies
Racconti 3 copies
The Kiss and the Duel 3 copies
Anima cara 3 copies
Chekov: The Major Plays 3 copies
Odabrane priče 3 copies
Humoristische Erzählungen. Jumoristiceskie Rasskazy. Aus dem Russ. übersetzt v. Paul Broich (1965) 3 copies
Neljä näytelmää 3 copies
The Duel and Other Stories (riverrun editions): an exquisite collection from one of Russia's greateat writers (2020) 2 copies
The First-Class Passenger 2 copies
Peças em Um Acto 2 copies
А. П. Чехов Собрание сочинений 9/12 2 copies
Mi Mujer, Flores Tardias 2 copies
الفلاحون والعنبر رقم 6 2 copies
The Wolf 2 copies
CONTOS - VOLUME VII — Author — 2 copies
Los campesinos/Mi vida 2 copies
А. П. Чехов Собрание сочинений 10/12 2 copies
Um Bom Par De Sapatos E Um Caderno De Anotacoes. Como Fazer Uma Reportagem (Em Portuguese do Brasil) (2007) 2 copies
Sorrow 2 copies
A Malefactor 2 copies
ابنة ألبيون 2 copies
Martı 2 copies
The Orator 2 copies
An Upheaval 2 copies
The Diplomat 2 copies
Overdoing It 2 copies
جهاز العروس 2 copies
Platónov Peça em quatro actos 2 copies
The Big Book of Christmas: 250+ Vintage Christmas Stories Carols Novellas Poems By 120+ Authors 2 copies
تواريخ حية 2 copies
L'estepa i altres narracions 2 copies
De kus en andere verhalen 2 copies
A Joke 2 copies
العازف الأجير 2 copies
Little Comedies 2 copies
The Kiss and Other Stories 2 copies
Joy 2 copies
The Mask 2 copies
To noveller 2 copies
الأعمال المختارة: الروايات 2 copies
Opowiadania wybrane 2 copies
Tutti i racconti XI 2 copies
Autobiografía 2 copies
El misterio de las almas 2 copies
Racconti e teatro 2 copies
The Witch and other stories 2 copies
Bütün Öyküler 1 (1880-1884) 2 copies
The Bet 2 copies
סיפורים מן הפרובינציה 2 copies
Drame 2 copies
Novelas completas 2 copies
Schauspiele 2 copies
Ein Drama auf der Jagd 2 copies
Fire dramer 2 copies
Chekhov on Writing: The Mentor, The Self-Critic, Literary Questions and Fictional Writers (Dover Thrift Editions: Literary Collections) (2025) 2 copies
A estepe; A minha vida 2 copies
Tsjechow vertellingen 2 copies
Six One Act Plays: On the High Road, The Proposal, The Wedding, The Bear, A Tragedian In Spite of Himself, The Anniversary (2021) 2 copies
Los mejores cuentos de Antón Chéjov: El maestro del relato corto (Los mejores cuentos de… nº 17) (Spanish Edition) (2017) 2 copies
Relato de un desconocido 2 copies
On the Sea and Other Stories : The Complete Short Stories of Anton Chekhov (Vol 2) (Complete Early Short Stories of Anto (2000) 2 copies
A Work of Art 2 copies
A Terrible Night [Short story] 2 copies
Russian Classics in Russian and English: Learn Russian with Chekhov (Russian Edition) (2013) 2 copies
Anton Checkhov Early Stories 2 copies
Racconti (2 volumi) 2 copies
Caccia tragica: romanzo 2 copies
Cuentos 2 copies
Syrena 2 copies
At the Mill (in Short Stories) 2 copies
Собрание сочинений 3 2 copies
Собрание сочинений 5 2 copies
Tre r̄ och andra noveller 2 copies
Puikas 2 copies
Novelas cortas 2 copies
Избранные произведения 2 copies
Romanzi brevi 2 copies
In The Twilight 2 copies
Wife For Sale 2 copies
Teatro maggiore 2 copies
Racconti: 1 2 copies
Il giorno di festa 2 copies
La Gaviota y otros cuentos 2 copies
РАССКАЗЫ 2 copies
Hyrdefløyten 2 copies
Short Stories of Anton Tchekhov 2 copies
Murgu i zi & Njeriu në këllëf 2 copies
Logodnica : schite si povestiri 2 copies
Т. 1. Повести и рассказы [1880-1894] 2 copies
Ward No. 6 and Other Stories 2 copies
The Stories of Anton Tchekov 2 copies
Önemli Bir Olay 2 copies
Povídky. 6, 1896-1903 2 copies
دموع لا يراها العالم 2 copies
Old Age [short story] 2 copies
Los campesinos. Mi vida. 2 copies
Hry 2 copies
ZONJA ME KONE 2 copies
"Racconti", 2 volumi 2 copies
A Reluctant Tragic Hero 2 copies
פריחה שנתאחרה : סיפורים 2 copies
Udvalgte noveller 2 copies
Lendo Tchekov (Uma viagem à vida do escritor, de Janet Malcom, e 37 contos, traduzidos por Tatiana Belinky) (2005) 2 copies
STORIES: VOLUME I AND II. 2 copies
El reto 1 copy
Ryska silhuetter 1 copy
Théâtre en 3 volumes 1 copy
Stp̃pen ... 1 copy
Elbeszélések : 1880-1885 1 copy
Os Mujiques 1 copy
Elbeszélések : 1886-1888 1 copy
TOPLU ESERLERI - HIKAYELER 3 1 copy
Os Três Contos Russos 1 copy
Stories By Tchekov (50.4) 1 copy
O Selvagem 1 copy
Hx̃an och andra noveller 1 copy
Contos Anton Tchekov 1 copy
TOPLU ESERLERI - HIKAYELER 2 1 copy
BUTUN HIKAYELERI - 1 CUKURDA 1 copy
BUTUN HIKAYELERI - 2 PRENSES 1 copy
Elbeszélések : 1889-1903 1 copy
TOPLU ESERLERI - HIKAYELER 1 1 copy
Un dramma a caccia 1 copy
Pjäser 1 copy
Racconti 3. 1 copy
ארבעה מחזות 1 copy
The STORIES Of ANTON TCHEKOV. — Author — 1 copy
RELATO DE UN NIHILISTA 1 copy
Primeros relatos 1 copy
Nouvelles 1 1 copy
Herdepipan 1 copy
A semmirekellő 1 copy
TOPLU ESERLERI - OYUNLAR 1 copy
Choix de nouvelles 1 copy
Les Moujiks 1 copy
Cseresnyéskert jelenetkép 1 copy
Modersmålsläraren 1 copy
A enfermaria nº 6 1 copy
Turha voitto 1 copy
Quatro peças: A gaivota, Tio Vânia, Três irmãs e O jardim das cerejeiras (Portuguese Edition) (2021) 1 copy
Nouvelles et récits 1 copy
récits choisis 1 copy
Théâtre 1 copy
6 nouvelles 1 copy
Naisia 1 copy
Tchekhov. Présentation de Roger Grenier... La Steppe : Oncle Vania. Les Trois soeurs. Douze nouvelles (1963) 1 copy
La Vallée 1 copy
Le Mendiant 1 copy
Pièces 1 copy
Três irmãs, As. Contos 1 copy
Verhalen Omnibus 1 copy
Les Méfaits du Tabac 1 copy
Contos Escolhidos 1 copy
Nouvelles 1 copy
Venäläistä rakkautta 1 copy
Théâtre de Tchékhov 1 copy
Anton Tchekhov : Nouvelles 1 copy
Putnik prvog razreda 1 copy
Contos e narrativas 1 copy
Två noveller 1 copy
Tchekhov 1860-1914 1 copy
Избранные рассказы 1 copy
Детвора 1 copy
The Duel 1 copy
KOLME KERTOMUSTA 1 copy
Избранные произведения 1 copy
Смерт Чиновинка 1 copy
Œuvres I 1 copy
TEKLIF 1 copy
KAKSIKYMMENTÄ 1 copy
The Schoolmaster 1 copy
sabrana dela 1-12 1 copy
Tuntemattoman tarina 1 copy
CONTOS DE TCHEKHOV Vol. I 1 copy
Histórias imortais 1 copy
Пятитомник (комплект). 1 copy
Valitut novellit 1 copy
דו-קרב וסיפורים אחרים 1 copy
Contos Os grandes clássicos 1 copy
Œuvres III 1 copy
Œuvres II 1 copy
Corerspondance 1877- 1904 1 copy
Kasztanka i inne opowiadania 1 copy
Utwory wybrane, T1 1 copy
Oeuvres de Tchekhov Théâtre (La cerisaie / Les trois soeurs / L'oncle Vania / La mouette) (1954) 1 copy
Utwory wybrane, T2 1 copy
На подводе 1 copy
Случай из практики 1 copy
ฆ่าปริศนา วันล่าสัตว์ 1 copy
Racconti. Volume terzo 1 copy
"Racconti" 1 copy
Рассказы 1886 – 1887: Том 3 1 copy
かわいい女 犬を連れた奥さん 1 copy
チェーホフの手帖 (1958年) (新潮文庫) 1 copy
Собрание сочинений, Том первый: Рассказы, повести, юморески 1880-1882, Том второй, Том третий (1999) 1 copy
Письма 1893-1904 1 copy
Рассказы. Повести. Пьесы 1 copy
48. Narraciones 1 copy
Степ 1 copy
Schite si nuvele 1 copy
Omul in carapace 1 copy
Рассказы 1 copy
NJE HISTORI E MERZITSHME 1 copy
Злостные банкроты 1 copy
Ушла 1 copy
ivanov agaviota tiovvanyal 1 copy
Cuentos ,I 1 copy
Novelas completas de Chejo 1 copy
Tres Años 1 copy
Siete cuentos 1 copy
Избранное 1 copy
Entre chiquillos 1 copy
El reto 1 copy
Excelentes Personas 1 copy
Extraña confesión 1 copy
Kirjeitä 1 copy
Mi mujer, Flores tardías 1 copy
Cuentos 1 copy
Избранное 1 copy
А.П. Чехов 11 1 copy
А.П. Чехов Пьесы 1 copy
Повести и рассказы 1 copy
Вишневый сад Комедия в 4 д 1 copy
Ионыч [Рассказы] 1 copy
KIRJEITÄ 2 MELOHOVON AIKA 1 copy
Сочинения А. П. Чехова 1 copy
Na velké ceste 1 copy
Ivanov 1 copy
Ce fou de Platonov 1 copy
La Mouette 1 copy
First Love and Other Stories 1 copy
סיפורים מן הפרובינציה 1 copy
Tutto il teatro : atti unici 1 copy
La dama del perrito y más 1 copy
A vizsgálóbíró 1 copy
Színművek 1 copy
Historia de una anguila 1 copy
El barranco y otros relatos 1 copy
Старость (Russian Edition) 1 copy
Пьесы 1 copy
A kutys hlgy 1 copy
Безнадёжный 1 copy
ПЬЕСЫ 1 copy
Рассказы 1 copy
О любви (Russian Edition) 1 copy
В бане 1 copy
Без места 1 copy
Шведская спичка 1 copy
Избрани раскази 1 copy
Csehov Elbeszélések I-II. 1 copy
Сочинения : в двух томах 1 copy
Письма А.П. Чехова 1 copy
Stāstu izlase jaunatnei 1 copy
Собрание сочинений В 12 т 1 copy
Из Сибири. Остров Сахалин 1 copy
Собрание сочинений : в 12 т 1 copy
Верочка (Russian Edition) 1 copy
Puikas : [stāsti] 1 copy
Stāsti 1 copy
Humoristiski stāsti 1 copy
Palata Nr. 6: [apsakymai] 1 copy
Рассказы 2 1 copy
Tri sestre i druge drame 1 copy
Von der Liebe : Novellen 1 copy
Novele 1 copy
Das weibliche Glück : acht Erzählungen — Author — 1 copy
Epistolaro di Checov I e II 1 copy
Humoresken und Satiren II 1 copy
Der Kirschgarten. Regiebuch 1 copy
Sairashuone no 6 1 copy
Anton Tschechow Gesammelte Werke in fünf Einzelbänden: Erzählungen aus den mittleren Jahren 1887-1892 (Winkler Dünndruck-Ausgabe) (1968) — Author — 1 copy
Anton Tschechows Ausgewählte Prosa I: Ein Zweikampf, Der Taugenichts, Die Dame mit dem Spitz, Eine Bagatelle, Der Kuss, Gram, Schatten des Todes und dreizehn ... Taschenbuch:… (2021) — Author — 1 copy
Eine vorurteilsfreie Frau 1 copy
Eine schutzlose Frau 1 copy
Eine Schreckensnacht 1 copy
I quaderni del dottor Čechov : appunti di vita e letteratura di Antòn Pàvlovič Čechov 1 copy, 1 review
Valitut novellit 2. 2 1 copy
Aro : ja muita novelleja 1 copy
Dramma di caccia 1 copy
HThe Iplays of Anton Chekov 1 copy
Valitut novellit. 2 1 copy
Le tre sorelle 1 copy
Racconti di Checov 1 copy
Suuret kertomukset. Osat 1-2 1 copy
The Stories of Anton Chekhov 1 copy
(Vi) a ward-boring story (the other 5 Hen) (Iwanami Bunko) (2009) ISBN: 4003262263 [Japanese Import] (2009) 1 copy
ΔΙΗΓΗΜΑΤΑ ΑΝΤΟΝ ΤΣΕΧΟΦ 1 copy
Palata N6 Rasskaz neizvestnogo cheloveka Chernyj monakh V ovrage Dom s mezoninom sost Knyazeva N / Palata â"-6 (In Russian) (2004) 1 copy
Sobranie sochinenii v 15 tomakh . Tom 1: Rasskazy, povesti, iumoreski. 1880-1882. Volume 1. (2010) 1 copy
Anton Cehov'dan Hikayeler 1 copy
14 NOVELA 1 copy
Dráma a vadászaton regény 1 copy
A kutyás hölgy elbeszélések 1 copy
A kutyás hölgy elbeszélések 1 copy
Drei Schwestern 1 copy
Рассказы и Повести 1 copy
Œuvres Complètes ( Edition De Georges Haldas ) - Tome VIII - Nouvelles Et Recits : 1895 - 1896 1 copy
Œuvres Complètes ( Edition De Georges Haldas ) - Tome VII - Nouvelles Et Recits : 1892 - 1894 1 copy
Œuvres Complètes ( Edition De Georges Haldas ) - Tome III - Nouvelles Et Recits : 1886 - 1887 1 copy
גן הדובדבנים 1 copy
Kabuğuna Sinmiş Adam 1 copy
Kachtanra 1 copy
Voisins 1 copy
מבחר סיפורי צ'כוב 1 copy
פריחה שנתאחרה. 1 copy
ארבעה מחזות 1 copy
Cuentos Completos Vol I 1 copy
Собрание сочинений 2 1 copy
Собрание сочинений 4 1 copy
Собрание сочинений 9 1 copy
Собрание сочинений 6 1 copy
Cuentos II 1 copy
Cuentos Completos Vol II 1 copy
Chist 1 copy
Cuentos 1 1 copy
Jumoristicheskie rasskazy 1 copy
Рассказы и повести 1 copy
Избранные рассказы 1 copy
Избранные Рассказы 1 copy
Onkel Vanja 1 copy
TRE SORELLE 1 copy
Drei Schwestern 1 copy
Théâtre 1 1 copy
Théâtre 2 1 copy
Théâtre 1 copy
دفاتر سرية 1 copy
البدين والنحيف 1 copy
الحرباء 1 copy
Depressie 1 copy
Verhalen 1896-1903 1 copy
Verhalen 1892-1895 1 copy
Dom s mezoninom 1 copy
Quatro peças 1 copy
Tutte le novelle 1 copy
Um Drama na Caça 1 copy
RACCONTI - VOLUME TERZO 1 copy
RACCONTI - VOLUME QUARTO 1 copy
ARIADNA 1 copy
RACCONTI - VOLUME SECONDO 1 copy
RACCONTI - VOLUME PRIMO 1 copy
Il consigliere segreto 1 copy
TRÊS IRMÃS 1 copy
Narraciones 1 copy
Hyrdefløyten : [Noveller] 1 copy
La dama del gosset 1 copy
Quatro Dramas (Tchêkhov) 1 copy
A minha mulher 1 copy
O beijo e outras histórias 1 copy
Contos Escolhidos 1 copy
O Pomar das Cerejeiras 1 copy
Ensirakastaja : kertomuksia 1 copy
Peasant Women [Short story] 1 copy
Chekhow : Stories 1895-1897 1 copy
La sala número seis 1 copy
On the Way [short story] 1 copy
A Wicked Boy 1 copy
סיפורים מן הפרובינציה 1 copy
סיפורים 1 copy
Rasskazy. Povesti. P'esy. 1 copy
In the Court [Short story] 1 copy
Pis'ma iz Yalty 1 copy
The Vaudevilles: Short Plays 1 copy
El tio Vania 1 copy
Vanka 1 copy
La bruja (Spanish Edition) 1 copy
Cuentos Cortos: Iván Matveievitch, Las Sensaciones Fuertes y Grischa (Spanish Edition) (2019) 1 copy
Extraña confesión 1 copy
Contes II 1 copy
Contes 1 copy
Els mugics 1 copy
La Rusia olvidada 1 copy
Un hombre irascible 1 copy
Los hombres que están de más 1 copy
Historia de mi vida novela 1 copy
RELATOS CORTOS 1 copy
Teatro completo 1 copy
La estepa / En el barranco 1 copy
NARRACIONES DE CHEJOV 1 copy
Selected Stories 1 copy
Treze Contos 1 copy
Five Chekhov Plays 1 copy
Der Kirschgarten 1 copy
The Chameleon 1 copy
The Huntsman 1 copy
مجموعه آثار آنتوان چخوف 1 copy
Vierochka [short story] 1 copy
قلادة آنا 1 copy
بطاقة اليانصيب 1 copy
الكلب 1 copy
Letters of Chekhov 1 copy
The Notebook of Trigorin 1 copy
Easter Week. 1 copy
The Night Before Easter 1 copy
Overseasoned 1 copy
Best Plays of Anton Chekhov 1 copy
Excellent People and Other Short Stories: Revised Edition of Original Version (Classics to go) (2015) 1 copy
Plays of Anton Chekhov, The 1 copy
Volodya 1 copy
Ninocka e altri racconti 1 copy
Anton Chekhov, Plays 1 copy
[Rasskazy] [Audio] 1 copy
He Understood {short story} 1 copy
Typhus 1 copy
Two Plays 1 copy
Chuckle With Chekhov 1 copy
Novelle ja jutustusi 1 copy
Seçme Öyküler 1 copy
The Festivities 1 copy
L'uno e l'altra 1 copy
The Confession {short story} 1 copy
At Sea {short story} 1 copy
The Novelettes and Short Fictions of Chekhov (Russian and Chinese Version) (Chinese Edition) 切柯夫中短篇小说选 (2015) 1 copy
Indigestion [short story] — Author — 1 copy
The Tales of Chekhov, vol 11 1 copy
Great Russian Writers 1 copy
Russian Classics in Russian and English: Plays by Anton Chekhov (Dual-Language Book) (Russian Edition) (2010) 1 copy
An Encounter {short story} 1 copy
Surgery {short story} 1 copy
Heartache {short story} 1 copy
Spring {short story} 1 copy
The Nincompoop {short story} 1 copy
The Milksop {short story} 1 copy
Ninochka {short story} 1 copy
El Mejor Teatro de Antón Chéjov: La Gaviota, El Tío Vania, El Jardín de los Cerezos, Tres Hermanas (Spanish Edition) (2015) 1 copy
قصاصة 1 copy
Russian short stories 1 copy
The Examining Magistrate 1 copy
Der Kirschgarten. Komödie 1 copy
In Passion Week 1 copy
Chekov Stories 1 copy
Typhus 1 copy
Ward no. 6 1 copy
Too Early 1 copy
Peasants 1 copy
Shrove Tuesday 1 copy
Reading Chekhov's plays in Russian : Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard : a parallel-text Russian reader (2022) 1 copy
In The Ravine 1 copy
Frost 1 copy
The Portable Chekhov 1 copy
Stories, Volume I 1 copy
Selected Works 1 copy
The cherry orchard 1 copy
NOVELLE E RACCONTI, 2 Volumi 1 copy
RACCONTI 1 copy
Anton Chekov: Selcted Works 1 copy
Great Works of Anton Chekov 1 copy
Selected short stories 1 copy
Kumpulan Cerita Pendek 1 copy
The Schoolmistress 1 copy
ANTON CECHOV Racconti. 1 copy
Three one-act comedies 1 copy
Kül altındaki kor 1 copy
Η κρίση 1 copy
Izbrannye Razskazy 1 copy
Russian prose early XX century (IN RUSSIAN LANGUAGE) / (??????? ????? ?????? ?? ???? / Russkaja proza nachala HH veka) (2005) 1 copy
Dhjete Novela 1 copy
Sobranie Socinienii, voll. 8 1 copy
The Island of Sakhalin. Translated by Luba and Michael Terpak. Introduction by Irina Ratushinskaya 1 copy
Ionych Vishnevyˆi sad 1 copy
The Schoolmaster 1 copy
On The Road 1 copy
Il duello e altri racconti 1 copy
A Lady’S Story 1 copy
Hush! 1 copy
A Peculiar Man 1 copy
The Lady with the Dog and Other Stories by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov Annotated and Illustrated Edition 1 copy
Korkulu gece : hikâyeler 1 copy
The Steppe 1 copy
Platonov (BBC Play of the Month) [1971 TV episode] — Playwright — 1 copy
Théâtre complet de Tcekhov 1 copy
Meistererzählungen 1 copy
Auszug als Leseprobe aus: Er und sie. Ende gut. Frühe Erzählungen in zwei Bänden 1880-1887. (2002) 1 copy
La lettura 1 copy
Cechov Anton Pavlovic 1 copy
Tre sorelle 1 copy
Racconti (1880- 1884) 1 copy
Tutti i racconti III 1 copy
Racconti volume secondo 1 copy
Sonnets of the Portugese 1 copy
The Portable Checkov 1 copy
Oeuvres de Tchekhov: Theâtre 1 copy
MATERIAL DE LECTURA 16 1 copy
Una apuesta y otros cuentos 1 copy
Anton Chehov: Three Plays 1 copy
Plays and Stories 1 copy
A Critical Study 1 copy
Two Plays 1 copy
Cechov teatro 1 copy
Racconti volume primo 1 copy
Racconti 1880 1884 1 copy
PLAYS Vol 2 1 copy
শ্রেষ্ঠ গল্প 1 copy
Contos e Narrativas 1 copy
Classic Short Stories 1 copy
Collected Short Stories 1 copy
Un drama de caza 1 copy
Anton Chekhov Selected Works 1 copy
Thun Avurudda 1 copy
Two Plays of Anton Chekhov 1 copy
আন্তন চেখভের শ্রেষ্ঠ গল্প 1 copy
Anton Chekhov : Kahaniyan 1 copy
Cheri Ki Bagiya 1 copy
TEEN BAHNEN 1 copy
CHUNI HUI KAHANIYAN 1 copy
Ο βυσσινοκηπος 1 copy
Great Stories 1 copy
La Principessa 1 copy
Kastanka e altri racconti 1 copy
Verzamelde werken 1 copy
LA SIGNORA COL CAGNOLINO 1 copy
Tre sorellle 1 copy
Siberia 1 copy
Tutti i racconti, 7 volumi 1 copy
Racconti russi 1 copy
Il genio russo. La steppa 1 copy
E' pericoloso esagerare 1 copy
Verocka 1 copy
الحارس الليلي 1 copy
Fire dramer 1 copy
Il duello 1 copy
Russische Erzählungen 1 copy
9: Il monaco nero 1 copy
Případy z praxe 1 copy
Povídky IV 1 copy
Povídky III 1 copy
Povídky II 1 copy
Pejskové a hafani : [Turgeněv - Čechov - Kuprin - Prišvin - Kazakov - Koněckij - Metter 1 copy, 1 review
Ujo Váňa a iné 1 copy
Meine Frau 1 copy
Racconti V 1 copy
Racconti IV 1 copy
Racconti III 1 copy
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Povídky. Sv. 2, 1886-1887 1 copy
Povídky. [Sv.] 4, 1889-1892 1 copy
Sachalin ; Ze Sibiře 1 copy
Povídky. Sv. 1, 1883-1886 1 copy
Povídky. Sv. 1, 1883-1886 1 copy
Korespondence ; Zápisky 1 copy
Povídky, V, 1893-1895 1 copy
Povídky. III, 1887-1889 1 copy
POMÝLENÉ LÁSKY 1 copy
Racconti II 1 copy
Rasskazy i povesti 1 copy
Rasskazy i p'esy 1 copy
A Selection of Humorous Stories By A. P. Chekhov. Bondar's Russian Readers, Annotated and Accented - No. 2 (1943) 1 copy
Izbranniye Sochineniya 1 copy
Short stories and novels 1 copy
第六病房 1 copy
"Heartache" 1 copy
Las tres hermanas 1 copy
Two Plays: The Cherry Orchard and Three Sisters — Author — 1 copy
Relatos cortos 1 copy
Select tales of Tchehov 1 copy
Opere varie 1 copy
Výbor z povídek 1 copy
Srdce nechodí samo 1 copy
Poviedky 1 copy
Tzweiter band 1 copy
Schatten des Todes 1 copy
Geschichten in Grau 1 copy
Za súmraku 1 copy
Short Stories and Novels 1 copy
Novelas Cortas 1 copy
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Obras inmortales / 1 copy
Cuentos 1 copy
The indispensable Chekhov 1 copy
Ward six : and other stories 1 copy
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Tutti i racconti 1 copy
Verzamelde werken - 6 delen 1 copy
deel II 1 copy
Verhalen II 1 copy
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The three sisters 1 copy
Een hulpeloos schepsel 1 copy
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Kameleon 1 copy
Apotekarica i druge priče 1 copy
Pripovijetke 1 copy
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Platonov: tutto il teatro 1 copy
[1]: Atti unici 1 copy
La mia vita e altri racconti 1 copy
Ma femme 1 copy
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Racconti volume 5 1 copy
Nişanlı 1 copy
As três irmas : contos 1 copy
As tres irmas ; contos 1 copy
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A Noiva e Outros Contos 1 copy
Contos 1 copy
L'Homme à l'étui : L'Homme à l'étui - Le Groseillier épineux - De l'amour - Le Numéro gagnant - Ennuis de… (2011) 1 copy
La Dame au petit chien. Ma chérie. La Cigale. Lithographies originales de Terechkovitch (1965) 1 copy
O beijo e outras histórias 1 copy
Putnik prvog razreda 1 copy
Cehov'dan Hikayeler 1 copy
6 No'lu Koğuş 1 copy
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Čovjek u futroli 1 copy
Lo zufolo e altre novelle 1 copy
Debeli i mršavi 1 copy
Pomračenje mjeseca 1 copy
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Jednočinke 1 copy
Drama bez naslova 1 copy
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Lot të padukshëm 1 copy
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Il gabbiano: 1896 1 copy
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Maske 1 copy
Pahalı Dersler 1 copy
Mujikler 1 copy
Pripovetke 1 copy
Party and Other Stories 1 copy
A Living Chattel 1 copy
“Small Fry” 1 copy
Truyện ngắn Chekhov 1 copy
The Seagull [Box Set] 1 copy
At the Barber's 1 copy
Contos e Novelas 1 copy
The Grasshopper 1 copy
Fat and Thin 1 copy
A Happy Man 1 copy
Calchas 1 copy
Enemies 1 copy
Home 1 copy
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"Joy"(Rapture) 1 copy
An Enigmatic Nature 1 copy
The Husband 1 copy
“Oysters” 1 copy
"In a Strange Land" 1 copy
A Dead Body 1 copy
"The Head of the Family" 1 copy
The Huntsman 1 copy
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A Country Cottage 1 copy
Nerves 1 copy
"The Marshal's Widow" 1 copy
Boots 1 copy
In a Hotel 1 copy
“In the Graveyard” 1 copy
“The Album” 1 copy
“Choristers” 1 copy
“An Artist’s End” 1 copy
“Hush” 1 copy
“Children” 1 copy
“Oh, The Public” 1 copy
“A Slander” 1 copy
“The Bird Market” 1 copy
“A Tragic Actor” 1 copy
“An Inquiry” (The Enquiry) 1 copy
Death of a Civil Servant 1 copy
Volodya 1 copy
Children 1 copy
Old Age 1 copy
Θάλαμος 6 και άλλα Διηγήματα 1 copy
Sem Trama e Sem Final 1 copy
Selected Works: Plays 1 copy
Selected Works: Stories 1 copy
Чехов. Рассказы 1 copy
The Plays of Anton Chekhov 1 copy
Opere, volumul 10 (teatru) 1 copy
The Runaway 1 copy
اتاق شماره ۶ 1 copy
Dağ Yolunda 1 copy
Stories Volume II 1 copy
Great Works of Anton Chekhov 1 copy
The Vagabond 1 copy
Works Of Anton Chekhov, The 1 copy
Overdoing It 1 copy
"Mari d'Elle" 1 copy
As Três Irmãs 1 copy
An Awkward Situation 1 copy
Stories II 1 copy
Truyện Ngắn A.P. Chekhov 1 copy
La cerilla sueca 1 copy
La Tristeza 1 copy
Works of Anton Chekhov, The (One Volume Edition) — Author — 1 copy
Plays of Anton Chekhov, The — Author — 1 copy
Человек в футляре: Сборник 1 copy
ANTON CHEKHOV'S PLAYS 1 copy
The Two Volodyas 1 copy
The Beauties 1 copy
Un asesinato 1 copy
القصص القصيرة 1 copy
Cuentos Cortos: El Álbum, La Condecoración, Medidas Preventivas y Los Veraneantes (Spanish Edition) 1 copy
Una noche de espanto. 1 copy
De dame met het hondje 1 copy
أنطون تشيخوف: مختارات قصصية 1 copy
Insula Sahalin 1 copy
Povídky 1 copy
The Darling and Other Stories Annotated: Anton Chekhov (Russian Literature) [Annotated] (2021) 1 copy
The Lady with the Dog and Other Stories by Anton Chekhov, Fiction, Classics, Literary, Short Stories (2005) 1 copy
Complete Novellas: The Steppe, A Dreary Story, The Duel, An Anonymous Story, Three Years, My Life, and Peasants (2020) 1 copy
Избранное 1 copy
“The Looking-Glass” 1 copy
“A Defenceless Creature” 1 copy
Novele 1 copy
Sea-Gull, The ; Act 1-4 1 copy
Contos Escolhidos 1 copy
“A Happy Man” 1 copy
“The Jeune Premier” 1 copy
“An Avenger” 1 copy
“Frost” 1 copy
“A Happy Ending” 1 copy
“An Incident” 1 copy
“Anna Round the Neck” 1 copy
“Miss N.N.’s Story” 1 copy
“The Wager” 1 copy
“The Privy Councillor” 1 copy
“The Rook” 1 copy
“Neighbours” 1 copy
Sorrow [Горе] 1 copy
Selected Tales Of Tchehov 1 copy
Travel short stories 1 copy
Short stories (at the table) 1 copy
Theatre 1 copy
Associated Works
A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life (2021) — Contributor — 1,988 copies, 57 reviews
Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama (1995) — Contributor, some editions — 1,017 copies, 7 reviews
Perrine's Literature: Structure, Sound, and Sense (1970) — Contributor, some editions — 896 copies, 4 reviews
You've Got to Read This: Contemporary American Writers Introduce Stories that Held Them in Awe (1994) — Contributor — 414 copies, 3 reviews
Choice Cuts: A Savory Selection of Food Writing from Around the World and Throughout History (2002) — Contributor — 369 copies, 2 reviews
75 Short Masterpieces: Stories from the World's Literature (1961) — Contributor — 319 copies, 2 reviews
The Portable Nineteenth-Century Russian Reader (1993) — Author, some editions — 223 copies, 1 review
Adaptations: From Short Story to Big Screen: 35 Great Stories That Have Inspired Great Films (2005) — Contributor — 136 copies, 1 review
The Sophisticated Cat: A Gathering of Stories, Poems, and Miscellaneous Writings About Cats (1992) — Contributor — 112 copies, 1 review
Drama in the modern world: plays and essays (1964) — Contributor, some editions — 82 copies, 1 review
The World of Law, Volumes I-II: The Law in Literature, The Law as Literature (1960) — Contributor — 54 copies
The Greatest Christmas Stories of All Time: Timeless Classics That Celebrate the Season (2006) — Contributor — 50 copies
A Very Russian Christmas: The Greatest Russian Holiday Stories of All Time (2016) — Contributor — 47 copies, 1 review
Out of the Best Books: An Anthology of Literature, Vol. 1: The Individual and Human Values (1964) — Contributor — 40 copies
Out of the Best Books: An Anthology of Literature, Vol. 2: Love, Marriage, and the Family (1966) — Contributor — 36 copies
Great Short Stories: Russian, Japanese, American, Irish, French, English (2007) — Contributor — 36 copies
Best-Loved Short Stories: Flaubert, Chekhov, Kipling, Joyce, Fitzgerald, Poe and Others (2004) — Contributor — 34 copies
Out of the Best Books: An Anthology of Literature, Vol. 3: Intelligent Family Living (1967) — Contributor — 34 copies
Lapham's Quarterly - Lines of Work: Volume IV, Number 2, Spring 2011 (2011) — Contributor — 32 copies, 2 reviews
Nine Great Plays: From Aeschylus to Eliot (Revised Edition) (1956) — Contributor; Contributor — 28 copies
Isaac Asimov Presents : The Best Horror and Supernatural of the 19th Century (1983) — Contributor — 21 copies, 1 review
47 Great Short Stories: Stories by Poe, Chekhov, Maupassant, Gogol, O. Henry and Twain [Dover Thrift] (1990) — Contributor — 17 copies
The Graphic Canon of Crime & Mystery, Vol. 2: From Salome to Edgar Allan Poe to The Silence of the Lambs (2021) — Contributor — 14 copies
Selected Shorts: Food Fictions (Selected Shorts: A Celebration of the Short Story) (2007) — Contributor — 11 copies, 3 reviews
Library of the World's Best Mystery and Detective Stories: German, Russian, Scandinavian (1907) — Contributor — 9 copies
Acht vrouwen klassieke Russische verhalen van Poesjkin, Toergenjev, Leskov, Dostojevski en Tsjechov (1983) — Contributor — 6 copies
Bijt me toch, bijt me! De mooiste dierenverhalen uit de Russische Bibliotheek (2013) — Contributor — 5 copies
Uncanny Tales: Horror and the Uncanny in Russian Prose of the 19th and Early 20th Centuries (1975) — Contributor — 5 copies
Novellin parhaita 5 copies
The Methuen Drama Book of Naturalist Plays: A Doll's House; Miss Julie; The Weavers; Mrs Warren's Profession; Three Sisters; Strife (Play Anthologies) (2010) — Contributor — 5 copies
Piirakkasota; valikoima huumoria — Contributor — 3 copies
John Cleese Comedy Collection / How To Irritate People, Romance With A Double Bass, Strange Case Of The End Of Civilization (2007) — Author — 3 copies
Modern Short Stories — Contributor — 3 copies
Hoog zomerboek : dertien romans, novellen en lange verhalen van Gabriel García Márquez, Roald Dahl, Herman Koch, David (1994) — Contributor — 3 copies
Story in America, 1933-1934: Thirty-Four Selections from the American Issues of "Story," the Magazine Devoted Solely to the Short Story (1934) — Contributor — 3 copies
Modern Short Stories — Contributor — 2 copies
Halt auf freiem Felde : Eisenbahnabenteuer von Agatha Christie bis Tucholsky (1975) — Author — 2 copies
Sapte povesti de calatorie — Contributor — 1 copy
Знакомимся с русской и советской литературой Выпуск 3 — Contributor — 1 copy
A Caravan of Music Stories by the World's Great Authors — Contributor — 1 copy
Black Sabbath + Black Sunday: The U.S. Release Versions [Kino Classics/The Mario Bava Collection] (2014) — Author — 1 copy
Six Stories 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Chekhov, Anton
- Legal name
- Че́хов, Анто́н Па́влович
Chekhov, Anton Pavlovich
Tchekhov, Anton Pavlovitch - Other names
- Txèkhov, Anton Pavlovitx
- Birthdate
- 1860-01-29
- Date of death
- 1904-07-15
- Gender
- male
- Education
- Moscow University (Medicine)
- Occupations
- physician
playwright
short story writer - Organizations
- Membro onorario dell'Accademia russa delle Scienze settore Letteratura
- Awards and honors
- Premio Puckin per la Letteratura
Pushkin Prize (1888) - Relationships
- Chekhov, Mikhail (brother)
Knipper, Olga (wife)
Chekhov, Michael (nephew)
Chekhov, Nikolay (brother) - Cause of death
- tuberculosis
- Nationality
- Russia
- Birthplace
- Taganrog Governorate, Russian Empire
- Places of residence
- Russia
- Place of death
- Badenweiler, Grand Duchy of Baden, German Empire
- Burial location
- Novodevichy Cemetery, Moscow, Russia
- Map Location
- Russia
Members
Reviews
What happens when a misogynistic philanderer falls in love for the first time? Chekhov won’t give you an answer, which is one of the notable and enjoyable things about this story from 1899. Much is unknown and unsaid, by the author and his characters. Chekhov takes advantage of the brevity of the form to let the reader fill in the gaps - possibly in different permutations with each reading. There are gaps of backstory as well as the middle and, especially, the abrupt and open ending. It show more means Chekhov avoids moralising and the reader chooses whether it's a tragedy or happy-ever-after.
Nevertheless, I wouldn’t be as hyperbolic as Nabokov’s final sentence, here:
“All the traditional rules of story telling have been broken in this wonderful short story of twenty pages or so. There is no problem, no regular climax, no point at the end. And it is one of the greatest stories ever written.”
Image: Chekhov in his study at his White Dacha in Yalta (Source)
The anti-hero
After the first few sentences, I noted “what a horrid, horrid, stalkerish man he is. Self-justification drips from every page”. He often states that women are “the inferior race”, but he needs their company because men are boring and he knows he is attractive to women. I didn’t warm to Gurov as the story progressed, but I don’t mind that: it is an interesting character study. His thoughts about women are derogatory and dismissive, and are part of his deflection of blame or guilt.
“The personal life of every individual is based on secrecy, and perhaps it is partly for that reason that civilized man is so nervously anxious that personal privacy should be respected.”
He does reach a point of self-reflection, but it doesn’t mark a meaningful or plausible change. He thinks there has never been love in his affairs (another excuse), and acknowledges that “not one of them had been happy with him”. But he immediately remembers that they loved what they thought him to be (an image he cultivated), saw their mistake, and then continued to love him. So had they loved him or not? Either way, it’s the women’s fault.
What happens in Yalta stays in Yalta?
“They walked and talked of the strange light of the sea: the water was a soft, warm, lilac color, and there was a golden band of moonlight upon it.”
Yalta was a fashionable resort in Crimea (part of Ukraine, but occupied by Russia since 2014). Gurav is nearing forty and Anna is only twenty two. Both are on holiday without their spouses. The scenery is beautiful, the days are long, and the weather sultry. So far, so predictable. Where the story becomes interesting is what happens after they part “forever”.
Image: Sunset over Yalta by Ivan Ayvazovsky, in 1861, as it would have looked in their grandparents’ day (Source)
No gun
I’ve long been familiar with the principle of Chekhov’s Gun: that every element is necessary, so if a gun is mentioned early on, you know it will be fired before the end.
That’s not true here. There are lots of specific details that add realism, but don’t seem to affect the plot or have obvious symbolism: unhurriedly eating a watermelon, someone commenting that a sturgeon was “a bit high”, and an inkstand so unusual, I couldn’t find a picture of anything close to the description: “gray with dust and topped by a figure on horseback, its hat in its raised hand and its head broken off”.
Image: Inkwell with horse and jokey, c1900, French (Source)
There are even a couple of times the illicit lovers could have been caught, and in the case of the guard at Oreanda, Chekov teases the reader: “and this detail, too, seemed so mysterious and beautiful”. But nothing comes of it.
Quotes
Excuses, coupled with misogyny
• “They had found a wife for him when he was very young.”
• “He was eager for life.”
• “Women like his wife who loved without sincerity.”
• “Beautiful, frigid women.”
• “And these were women no longer young… and when Gurov grew cold to them their beauty aroused his hatred, and the lace on their lingerie seemed to him to resemble scales.”
• “He preserved the memory of carefree, good-natured women whom love made gay and who were grateful to him for the happiness he gave them, however brief it might be; and of women like his wife, who loved without sincerity… and of two or three others, very beautiful, frigid women, across whose faces would suddenly flit a rapacious expression… and when Gurov grew cold to them their beauty aroused his hatred, and the lace on their lingerie seemed to him to resemble scales.”
After Yalta
• “He did not dream of Anna Sergeyevna, but she followed him about everywhere and watched him. When he shut his eyes he saw her before him… He heard her breathing, the caressing rustle of her clothes.”
• “Her husband did and did not believe her”
• “He had two lives, an open one, seen and known by all who needed to know it, full of conventional truth and conventional falsehood, exactly like the lives of his friends and acquaintances; and another life that went on in secret… everything that was of interest and importance to him, everything that was essential to him, everything about which he felt sincerely and did not deceive himself, everything that constituted the core of his life, was going on concealed from others; while all that was false… all that went on in the open. Judging others by himself, he did not believe what he saw, and always fancied that every man led his real, most interesting life under cover of secrecy as under cover of night.”
• “They talked of how to avoid the necessity for secrecy, for deception, for living in different cities, and not seeing each other for long stretches of time.”
• “And it seemed as though in a little while the solution would be found, and then a new and glorious life would begin; and it was clear to both of them that the end was still far off, and that what was to be most complicated and difficult for them was only just beginning.”
See also
• I’ve read a trio of other Chekhov stories and given them very different ratings:
The Bet, 5*. See my review HERE.
The Death of a Government Clerk, 2*. See my review HERE
Misery, 5*. See my review HERE.
• Is Anna a nod to Tolstoy’s adulterous Anna Karenina?
• Was Amor Towles nodding to Chekhov when he created willowy Anna Urbanova with dogs in A Gentleman in Moscow? See my review HERE.
Short story club
I read this as one of the stories in The Art of the Short Story, by Dana Gioia, from which I'm aiming to read one story a week with The Short Story Club, starting 2 May 2022.
You can read this story here.
You can join the group here. show less
Nevertheless, I wouldn’t be as hyperbolic as Nabokov’s final sentence, here:
“All the traditional rules of story telling have been broken in this wonderful short story of twenty pages or so. There is no problem, no regular climax, no point at the end. And it is one of the greatest stories ever written.”
Image: Chekhov in his study at his White Dacha in Yalta (Source)
The anti-hero
After the first few sentences, I noted “what a horrid, horrid, stalkerish man he is. Self-justification drips from every page”. He often states that women are “the inferior race”, but he needs their company because men are boring and he knows he is attractive to women. I didn’t warm to Gurov as the story progressed, but I don’t mind that: it is an interesting character study. His thoughts about women are derogatory and dismissive, and are part of his deflection of blame or guilt.
“The personal life of every individual is based on secrecy, and perhaps it is partly for that reason that civilized man is so nervously anxious that personal privacy should be respected.”
He does reach a point of self-reflection, but it doesn’t mark a meaningful or plausible change. He thinks there has never been love in his affairs (another excuse), and acknowledges that “not one of them had been happy with him”. But he immediately remembers that they loved what they thought him to be (an image he cultivated), saw their mistake, and then continued to love him. So had they loved him or not? Either way, it’s the women’s fault.
What happens in Yalta stays in Yalta?
“They walked and talked of the strange light of the sea: the water was a soft, warm, lilac color, and there was a golden band of moonlight upon it.”
Yalta was a fashionable resort in Crimea (part of Ukraine, but occupied by Russia since 2014). Gurav is nearing forty and Anna is only twenty two. Both are on holiday without their spouses. The scenery is beautiful, the days are long, and the weather sultry. So far, so predictable. Where the story becomes interesting is what happens after they part “forever”.
Image: Sunset over Yalta by Ivan Ayvazovsky, in 1861, as it would have looked in their grandparents’ day (Source)
No gun
I’ve long been familiar with the principle of Chekhov’s Gun: that every element is necessary, so if a gun is mentioned early on, you know it will be fired before the end.
That’s not true here. There are lots of specific details that add realism, but don’t seem to affect the plot or have obvious symbolism: unhurriedly eating a watermelon, someone commenting that a sturgeon was “a bit high”, and an inkstand so unusual, I couldn’t find a picture of anything close to the description: “gray with dust and topped by a figure on horseback, its hat in its raised hand and its head broken off”.
Image: Inkwell with horse and jokey, c1900, French (Source)
There are even a couple of times the illicit lovers could have been caught, and in the case of the guard at Oreanda, Chekov teases the reader: “and this detail, too, seemed so mysterious and beautiful”. But nothing comes of it.
Quotes
Excuses, coupled with misogyny
• “They had found a wife for him when he was very young.”
• “He was eager for life.”
• “Women like his wife who loved without sincerity.”
• “Beautiful, frigid women.”
• “And these were women no longer young… and when Gurov grew cold to them their beauty aroused his hatred, and the lace on their lingerie seemed to him to resemble scales.”
• “He preserved the memory of carefree, good-natured women whom love made gay and who were grateful to him for the happiness he gave them, however brief it might be; and of women like his wife, who loved without sincerity… and of two or three others, very beautiful, frigid women, across whose faces would suddenly flit a rapacious expression… and when Gurov grew cold to them their beauty aroused his hatred, and the lace on their lingerie seemed to him to resemble scales.”
After Yalta
• “He did not dream of Anna Sergeyevna, but she followed him about everywhere and watched him. When he shut his eyes he saw her before him… He heard her breathing, the caressing rustle of her clothes.”
• “Her husband did and did not believe her”
• “He had two lives, an open one, seen and known by all who needed to know it, full of conventional truth and conventional falsehood, exactly like the lives of his friends and acquaintances; and another life that went on in secret… everything that was of interest and importance to him, everything that was essential to him, everything about which he felt sincerely and did not deceive himself, everything that constituted the core of his life, was going on concealed from others; while all that was false… all that went on in the open. Judging others by himself, he did not believe what he saw, and always fancied that every man led his real, most interesting life under cover of secrecy as under cover of night.”
• “They talked of how to avoid the necessity for secrecy, for deception, for living in different cities, and not seeing each other for long stretches of time.”
• “And it seemed as though in a little while the solution would be found, and then a new and glorious life would begin; and it was clear to both of them that the end was still far off, and that what was to be most complicated and difficult for them was only just beginning.”
See also
• I’ve read a trio of other Chekhov stories and given them very different ratings:
The Bet, 5*. See my review HERE.
The Death of a Government Clerk, 2*. See my review HERE
Misery, 5*. See my review HERE.
• Is Anna a nod to Tolstoy’s adulterous Anna Karenina?
• Was Amor Towles nodding to Chekhov when he created willowy Anna Urbanova with dogs in A Gentleman in Moscow? See my review HERE.
Short story club
I read this as one of the stories in The Art of the Short Story, by Dana Gioia, from which I'm aiming to read one story a week with The Short Story Club, starting 2 May 2022.
You can read this story here.
You can join the group here. show less
"At Christmas Time" moves the way cold seeps through a thin coat—quiet, yet straight into the bones. Chekhov offers no melodrama and no hand reaching for our pity. Vasilisa’s longing drifts through the story like wood smoke over a frozen village, shaped by poverty, fear, and the blunt indifference of circumstance. The prose is spare and tender, alert to the small truths that make ordinary lives ache with reality.
Its brevity is both mercy and wound. Chekhov doesn’t linger, but what he show more leaves behind clings to you, the way certain memories do when the light fades. This isn’t the broad canvas of "The Steppe" or the quiet moral thunder of "The Lady with the Dog", yet it belongs to the same family—work that trusts restraint over display.
This is an adult Christmas story, stripped of tinsel and consolation. The season becomes a reckoning, not a refuge, and hope is in short supply for everyone involved. Still, there is something humane in its honesty. Like Chekhov at his best, it asks us to look harder at what we have, to hold it more carefully, and that we are all in need of grace. show less
Its brevity is both mercy and wound. Chekhov doesn’t linger, but what he show more leaves behind clings to you, the way certain memories do when the light fades. This isn’t the broad canvas of "The Steppe" or the quiet moral thunder of "The Lady with the Dog", yet it belongs to the same family—work that trusts restraint over display.
This is an adult Christmas story, stripped of tinsel and consolation. The season becomes a reckoning, not a refuge, and hope is in short supply for everyone involved. Still, there is something humane in its honesty. Like Chekhov at his best, it asks us to look harder at what we have, to hold it more carefully, and that we are all in need of grace. show less
"...unceasing progress towards perfection..."
Love, ah sweet love and the longing for it, the early giddiness, the high expectations, the disappointments, the irritations, the growing bitterness, the regrets...the philandering.
This story is about that but an unexpected one that begins at the end, with philandering. Nothing assures me that it will not be a wheel, turning back to the beginning.
If a romance story for you is about people you care about who wrench your heart over the obstacles show more they must overcome to be together, and the heart-warming joy of their union at last, this is not that kind of romance.
This is cynical romance, one that begins outside of marriage, as part of a game of short-lived pursuits to combat boredom. The man is a cad who likes women almost only because he finds men boring. He thinks of women as "the lesser race." He sees the lady with the dog, a young woman seeking her own first dalliance outside of a marriage that is just 2 years old, and together they begin an almost calculated affair.
But something happened. It became love. Although, I can't see why either sees anything in the other to warrant a surprised, passionate devout feeling of love. But there you go. Love, ah sweet, inexplicable love.
Almost always doomed to failure when its foundation is romance. Or lust. Or boredom. Or expectations of perfection. Or being too young. Or....well, yes, it's a fragile thing.
"...then a new and splendid life would begin..." show less
Love, ah sweet love and the longing for it, the early giddiness, the high expectations, the disappointments, the irritations, the growing bitterness, the regrets...the philandering.
This story is about that but an unexpected one that begins at the end, with philandering. Nothing assures me that it will not be a wheel, turning back to the beginning.
If a romance story for you is about people you care about who wrench your heart over the obstacles show more they must overcome to be together, and the heart-warming joy of their union at last, this is not that kind of romance.
This is cynical romance, one that begins outside of marriage, as part of a game of short-lived pursuits to combat boredom. The man is a cad who likes women almost only because he finds men boring. He thinks of women as "the lesser race." He sees the lady with the dog, a young woman seeking her own first dalliance outside of a marriage that is just 2 years old, and together they begin an almost calculated affair.
But something happened. It became love. Although, I can't see why either sees anything in the other to warrant a surprised, passionate devout feeling of love. But there you go. Love, ah sweet, inexplicable love.
Almost always doomed to failure when its foundation is romance. Or lust. Or boredom. Or expectations of perfection. Or being too young. Or....well, yes, it's a fragile thing.
"...then a new and splendid life would begin..." show less
My ears were ringing after finishing this play, because it felt like everyone was yelling all the time. Ivanov, the title character, is a disillusioned, burned-out 35-year-old who no longer loves his wife but can’t actually tell her himself because that would be too easy. He has an affair with a younger woman and everyone thinks he’s after her for the money, so there’s a lot of shouting about that. The estate he lives on isn’t making much money and his loans are being called in, so show more there’s a lot of angsting about that. I’m around Ivanov’s age and can definitely relate to feeling like a failure after acquiring a lot of responsibilities that you can’t keep up with, but I couldn’t condone his keeping his wife in the dark, nor the fact that he and others hid from her that she was dying of tuberculosis. show less
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