Understanding Chekhov: a critical study of Chekhov's prose and drama

Abstract

Donald Rayfield. Understanding Chekhov. A Critical Study of Chekhov's Prose and Drama. London: Bristol Classical Press, 1999. 295 pp., L15.95, paper. Donald Rayfield's latest book on Chekhov is written in the traditional format of life and Its approach is structural, inter-textual, and biographical. book eliminates footnotes and refers to the works by titles without page numbers. book begins with biographical details and discusses the significance of Chekhov's two professions: medicine and writing. need to support himself and his family resulted in the publication of Chekhov's first humorous pieces, which were written between 1880-85 and were infused with irony and/or parody. Once his financial burden decreased, Chekhov was able to devote himself to serious works. By 1888 Suvorin enabled Chekhov to write only what the author was artistically interested in portraying. One can discern Tolstoy's morality penetrate his writings. Rayfield says that in 1886 Chekhov wrote stories that could be classified as (1) those in which right clashes with wrong and reaches a synthesis and (2) those in which contemporary, philosophical problems are taken up. In 1887 with Suvorin's help Chekhov revisited the towns, countryside, farms, and monasteries that he had known as a boy. That year he wrote the remarkable story, The Steppe. In the stories that followed in 1888-1889 psychological analysis, along with Tolstoy's technique of monitoring and analyzing every twitch of character's bodies, became a trend in Chekhov's stories. Chekhov had a more turbulent career as a playwright than as a storywriter. Most of the plays that he wrote later can all be seen as variations on one play (now called Platonov) written in his youth. Chekhov also wrote the plays Ivanov and Wood Demon, which were failures. He did not get back to writing a play for seven years; instead, he absented himself from the literary forefront by going to in 1890. In 1895 Chekhov produced his monumental The Island of Sakhalin in which he emphasized the potential for goodness in every individual and evil in every hierarchy. On his return from Sakhalin, Chekhov settled on his estate in Melikovo (1893-1899). According to Rayfield this was a time of both contentment and frustration. Chekhov started showing the ambivalence in his attitude towards other people, which was to continue through his later years. He feared loneliness and at the same time complained of lacking privacy. Women played a greater role in his life. Chekhov's reading at this time was unexpectedly varied. He became familiar with Hauptman, Ibsen, Strindberg, and Maeterlinck. He was fascinated with the stream of innovations employed in their plays. This helped him overcome the trauma of failure in the play Wood Demon. With this new surge of interest came Seagull, which broke the traditional canons and argued for two possible approaches: conservative and experimental. …