Chekhov's tradition in the literature of Lai Shengchuan

Abstract

This article is devoted to one of the aspects of the history of interaction between Russian and Chinese literature of the XXI century. This article examines the Chekhov tradition in the dramatic work of the modern Chinese playwright Lai Shengchuan. The subject of the study is the reflection of the Chekhov tradition in the plays of Lai Shengchuan (1954-). The main methods are descriptive, analytical and comparative methods. Many studies consider Chekhov's traditions in the works of Chinese writers of the mid-20th century, such as Lu Xin, Cao Yu, Ba Jin, and Chekhov's influence on the work of Chinese writers of the end of the 20th century and of the 21st century has been poorly studied. The scientific novelty of this work lies in the fact that it provides for the first time a systematic analysis of Chekhov's influence on the literature creation of Lai Shengchuan. Chekhov's tradition in the literature of Lai Shengchuan's is mainly reflected in three aspects - static dramatic artistic characteristics, expressions of the philosophy, as well as the unique concept of comedy. Lai Shengchuan considers Chekhov as his intimate friend and consciously uses Chekhov's dramatic concept and method of creating drama in his work, which is an effective proof of Chekhov's continuous influence on Chinese modern literature, reflects not only a kind of strong protection of the traditional classics of Chinese modern playwrights against the trend of commercial entertainment in current literature, but also their appeal and expectation for the development of a dramaturgical innovative spirit.