2.2.2: Anton Chekhov (1860-1904)
A Doctor's Visit The Lady with the Dog Russian Realism Anton Chekhov was the grandson of a serf who purchased his freedom, whereas Chekhov would end up making enough money to purchase his own estate. Chekhov worked as a physician for most of his adult life, while making a name for himself as a playwright and as a short story writer. Several of his stories, in fact, draw on his experiences as a practicing physician, including "A Doctor's Visit" (1898). Four of Chekhov's plays are classics of the theater: The Seagull (1895), Uncle Vanya (1897), The Three Sisters (1900), and The Cherry Orchard (1903). Chekhov was influenced by Henrik Ibsen's use of Realism on stage, as well as his own experiences with all levels of Russian society. While Ibsen's plays focused on the middle class, Chekhov also looked at the decline of Russian aristocracy alongside the rise of the middle class, usually with neither group shown to advantage. His influence on modern theater is considerable. He proposed the dramatic convention that there should be no extraneous elements in a plot, which is called "Chekhov's gun"—if a gun is hanging on the wall onstage in the first act, it must be fired later in the play, with the same requirement if it is mentioned in a short story. This convention is often found in film, television, and modern short stories. Among Chekhov's short stories, many critics regard "The Lady with the Dog" (1899) as perhaps his best work, as well as a classic in the genre. In the story, Chekhov offers insight into the complexities of romantic relationships, balancing sympathy with realism. What could have been a cliché in another writer's hands becomes a sensitive portrayal of two people who find themselves in an impossible situation of their own making.
Written by Laura Getty