Interpreting ChekhovANU E Press, 1. 8. 2006 - 309 strán (strany) The author's contention is that Chekhov's plays have often been misinterpreted by scholars and directors, particularly through their failure to adequately balance the comic and tragic elements inherent in these works. Through a close examination of the form and content of Chekhov's dramas, the author shows how deeply pessimistic or overly optimistic interpretations fail to sufficiently account for the rich complexity and ambiguity of these plays. The author suggests that, by accepting that Chekhov's plays are synthetic tragi-comedies which juxtapose potentially tragic sub-texts with essentially comic texts, critics and directors are more likely to produce richer and more deeply satisfying interpretations of these works. Besides being of general interest to any reader interested in understanding Chekhov's work, the book is intended to be of particular interest to students of Drama and Theatre Studies and to potential directors of these subtle plays. |
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A. S. Suvorin Absurdist achieve action actors actress Anton Chekhov Anya argued artistic Astrov audience behaviour believe Benedetti characterisation Chebutykin Chekhov wrote Chekhov's characters Chekhov's plays Chekhovian Cherry Orchard comedy comic conventions of realism depiction disguised soliloquy dramatist Dunyasha expressed faith Gayev Gottlieb human Ibid idea inner interpretation Irina Ivanov Jonathan Miller Karlinsky Knipper Kommissarzhevskaya Letter to A. S. literary Liuba lives London Theatre Record Lopakhin Masha meaning melodrama Methuen Meyerhold misinterpreted Moscow Art Theatre Natasha nature Nemirovich-Danchenko Nina objective October Olga Knipper Oxford Chekhov performance text Platonov play's playtext playwright present problems production quoted in Hingley quoted in Magarshack Ranevsky reading response Review role Russian scene Seagull Senelick short stories Sonya stage Stanislavski subtext suggests symbolist talk technique theatrical Three Sisters tragic Treplev Trigorin Trofimov Tuzenbach Uncle Vanya Varya Vershinin vision of reality well-made play writing Yarmolinsky Yepikhodov York
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Strana 183 - We shall go on living, Uncle Vanya. We shall live through a long, long succession of days and tedious evenings. We shall patiently suffer the trials which Fate imposes on us; we shall work for others, now and in our old age, and we shall have no rest.
Strana 50 - God and men from the mere consciousness of his own insignificance — write how this young man squeezes the slave out of himself, drop by drop...
Strana 203 - The men of Chekhov do not bathe, as we did at that time, in their own sorrow. Just the opposite; they, like Chekhov himself, seek life, joy, laughter, courage. The men and women of Chekhov want to live and not to die. They are active and surge to overcome the hard and unbearable impasses into which life has plunged them.
Strana 48 - My holy of holies is the human body, health, intelligence, talent, inspiration, love, and the most absolute freedom — freedom from violence and lying, whatever forms they may take. This is the program I would follow if I were a great artist.
Strana 47 - I have no doubt that the study of medicine has had an important influence on my literary work; it has considerably enlarged the sphere of my observation, has enriched me with knowledge the true value of which for me as a writer can only be understood by one who is himself a doctor.
Strana 179 - Man has been endowed with reason, with the power to create, so that he can add to what he's been given. But up to now he hasn't been a creator only a destroyer. Forests keep disappearing, rivers dry up, wildlife's become extinct, the climate's ruined and the land grows poorer and uglier every day.
Strana 41 - Why this beauty of women? Where does the bird hurry, what is the meaning of its flight, if it and its young and the place to which it hastens will, like myself, turn to dust? It were better I had never been born or were a stone, to which God has given neither eyes nor thoughts. In order to tire out my body by nightfall, all day yesterday, like a mere workman \ I carried marble to the temple; but now the night has come and I cannot sleep . . . I'll go and lie down. Phorses told me that if one imagines...
Strana 23 - All I wanted was to say honestly to people: 'Have a look at yourselves and see how bad and dreary your lives are!' The important thing is that people should realise that, for when they do, they will most certainly create another and better life for themselves.
Strana 35 - The artist must pass judgment only on what he understands; his range is as limited as that of any other specialist — that's what I keep repeating and insisting upon. Anyone who says the artist's field is all answers and no questions has never done any writing or had any dealings with imagery. The artist observes, selects, guesses and synthesizes. The very fact of these actions presupposes a question; if he hadn't asked himself a question at the start, he would have nothing to guess and nothing...
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