Anton Pavlovich Chekhov is one of the most famous and talented playwrights in the world. It is surprising that this unique person, who created about 900 very different works, was a doctor by profession.
From the age of 13 he became a fan of the theater, and his first drama " fatherlessness” was written at the age of 18, during his studies at the gymnasium. And when he was already a student, he placed two stories in the Dragonfly magazine - then it was first published.
As a student, he mainly wrote short stories and humoresques, but from 1887 his works became longer and more profound. He developed a desire to travel, a desire to visit his native places, a sense of personal freedom, which helped Chekhov write on deeper and more philosophical topics. He traveled to Sakhalin, where he wrote nine essays under the general title " From Siberia».
Thus, Chekhov begins to use his humor and satire in the most effective way, with time his stories come out " Princess», « I want to sleep», « Baba", in which there is no author's assessment. This attracted the attention of critics, many of whom considered it a shortcoming. But over time, the author's impartiality in his work was appreciated, many beginning and young writers tried to inherit his style - such as I.A. Bunin and A.I. Kuprin.
Features of Chekhov's creativity
A feature of Chekhov's work is the absence of any important events in the life of the characters that could show the reader the author's intention. Chekhov always focused on a detailed description of the life of the characters, and thus spoke about the inner world of the characters and the emotional content of their lives. But most of all, readers and critics are struck by the conciseness of form, which can be traced in all of Chekhov's work. For example, the story " Husband”, which takes only 4 pages, but these pages are more than enough to fully show the psychology of a person who has become embittered and mired in the swamp of his own consciousness.
Chekhov's later works become deeper and more impressive - the famous " Three sisters», « Uncle Ivan», « boring story". The last story accurately reflects the degree of anguish and despair that gripped Russian society, and mainly the Russian intelligentsia in the 80s. Chekhov wants to most clearly reveal the images of mediocrity, immorality and vulgarity of the townsfolk, and this topic is raised in most of his works. Stories like " Guys», « Into the ravine e” present terrible pictures of folk life, and even in the story “Three Sisters” there are similar motives - in a city of a hundred thousand people there is not even anyone to talk to.
Chekhov's gloomy pessimism
Chekhov gloomy pessimism. But it is worth distinguishing the subtlety of his skill to notice the underlying causes and prerequisites for despair and hopelessness of the mind, which lead a person to immorality and suffering, from the general sarcastic view of the life of certain strata. Chekhov's stories and plays are revealed on the theater stage in a completely different light, because it is the stage and the embodiment of what is described that allow us to see those subtle details and nuances with which the author tried to convey to our consciousness the secret bottom of what is happening in the country and in the hearts of people.
A feature of Chekhov's work is the absence of any important events in the life of the characters that could show the reader the author's intention. Chekhov always focused on a detailed description of the life of the characters, and thus spoke about the inner world of the characters and the emotional content of their lives. But most of all, readers and critics are struck by the conciseness of form, which can be traced in all of Chekhov's work. For example, the story "Husband", which takes only 4 pages, but these pages are more than enough to fully show
The psychology of a person embittered and mired in the swamp of his own consciousness.
Chekhov's later works become deeper and more impressive - the famous "Three Sisters", "Uncle Vanya", "A Boring Story". The last story accurately reflects the degree of anguish and despair that gripped Russian society, and mainly the Russian intelligentsia, in the 80s. Chekhov wants to most clearly reveal the images of mediocrity, immorality and vulgarity of the townsfolk, and this topic is raised in most of his works. Such stories as "Guys", "In the ravine" are presented
Terrible pictures of folk life, and even in the story "Three Sisters" there are similar motives - in a city of a hundred thousand people there is not even anyone to talk to.
Chekhov is characterized by a gloomy pessimism. But it is worth distinguishing the subtlety of his skill to notice the underlying causes and prerequisites for despair and hopelessness of the mind, which lead a person to immorality and suffering, from the general sarcastic view of the life of certain strata. Chekhov's stories and plays are revealed on the theater stage in a completely different light, because it is the stage and the embodiment of what is described that allow us to see those subtle details and nuances with which the author tried to convey to our consciousness the secret bottom of what is happening in the country and in the hearts of people.
Essays on topics:
- In the history of the development of the national literary language in the 20th century, Yesenin's role as an innovator was undeniable. Russian classic, a native of the peasantry,...
- A feature of Bunin's work is the amazing autonomy, self-sufficiency of reproduced details, where the detail is sometimes in relationships unusual for classical realism with...
- Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860-1904) is a great Russian writer, talented playwright, academician, doctor by profession. The most important thing in his work is...
Many Russian classics had the unique ability to combine several professions and be able to correctly transform their knowledge into a literary work. So, Alexander Griboedov was a famous diplomat, Nikolai Chernyshevsky was a teacher, and Leo Tolstoy wore a military uniform and had an officer rank. Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was engaged in medicine for a long time and already from the student's bench he was completely immersed in the medical profession. The world lost a brilliant doctor, it is not known, but he definitely acquired an outstanding prose writer and playwright who left his indelible mark on the body of world literature.
Chekhov's first theatrical attempts were perceived by his contemporaries quite critically. The venerable playwrights believed that it was all because of Anton Pavlovich's banal inability to follow the "dramatic movement" of the play. His works were called "stretched", they lacked action, there was little "stage quality". The peculiarity of his drama was in the love of detail, which was not at all characteristic of theatrical drama, which was primarily aimed at action and description of ups and downs. Chekhov believed that people, in reality, do not shoot all the time, demonstrate heartfelt ardor and participate in bloody battles. For the most part, they go to visit, talk about nature, drink tea, and philosophical sayings do not shoot out of the first officer they come across or the dishwasher that accidentally catches their eye. On the stage, real life should light up and captivate the viewer, just as simple and complex at the same time. People calmly eat their dinner, and at the same time their fate is being decided, history is moving at a measured pace, or cherished hopes are being destroyed.
The method of Chekhov's work is defined by many as "petty symbolic naturalism". This definition speaks of his love for increased detail, we will consider this feature a little later. Another feature of the new "Chekhovian" drama is the intentional use of "random" replicas of the characters. When a character is distracted by some trifle or remembers an old joke. In such a situation, the dialogue is interrupted and winds around in some ridiculous trifles, like a hare's footprint in the forest thicket. This technique, so disliked by Chekhov's contemporaries, in the stage context determines the mood that the author wants to convey through this character at the moment.
Stanislavsky and Nemirovich-Danchenko noticed an innovative pattern in the development of the theatrical conflict, calling it "an undercurrent". Thanks to their deep analysis, the modern viewer was able to correctly interpret many of the details that the author introduced into his works. Behind the unattractive things lies the inner intimate-lyrical flow of all the characters in the play.
Artistic features
One of the most obvious artistic features of Chekhov's plays is the detail. It allows you to fully immerse yourself in the character and life of all the characters in the story. Gaev, one of the central characters in the play "The Cherry Orchard", is obsessed with children's treats. He says he ate his entire fortune on candy.
In the same work, we can see the following artistic feature inherent in works in the genre of classicism - these are symbols. The protagonist of the work is the cherry orchard itself, many critics argue that this is the image of Russia, which is mourned by wasteful people like Ranevskaya and cut down by the determined Lopakhins. Symbolism is used throughout the play: the semantic "speech" symbolism in the dialogues of the characters, like Gaev's monologue with the closet, the appearance of the characters, the actions of people, their behavior, also becomes one big symbol of the picture.
In the play "Three Sisters" Chekhov uses one of his favorite artistic techniques - "talk of the deaf". There are really deaf characters in the play, such as the watchman Ferapont, but the classic laid down a special idea in this, which Berkovsky will describe in the future as "a simplified physical model of conversation with those who have a different deafness." You can also notice that almost all Chekhov's characters speak in monologues. This type of interaction allows each character to properly open up to the viewer. When one hero says his final phrase, this becomes a kind of signal for the next monologue of his opponent.
In the play "The Seagull" you can see the following Chekhov's technique, which the author deliberately used when creating the work. It is the relation to time within history. Actions in The Seagull are often repeated, the scenes slow down and stretch. Thus, a special, exceptional rhythm of the work is created. As for the past tense, and the play is action here and now, the playwright brings it to the fore. Now the time is in the role of a judge, which gives him a special dramatic meaning. Heroes constantly dream, think about the coming day, thus they permanently arrive in a mystical relationship with the laws of time.
The innovation of Chekhov's dramaturgy
Chekhov became the pioneer of the modernist theater, for which he was often scolded by colleagues and reviewers. First, he "broke" the basis of the dramatic foundations - the conflict. People live in his plays. The characters on the stage “play out” their segment of “life”, which the author prescribed, without making a “theatrical performance” out of their life.
The era of "pre-Chekhov" drama was tied to action, to the conflict between the characters, there was always white and black, cold and hot, on which the plot was built. Chekhov repealed this law, allowing the characters to live and develop on the stage in everyday conditions, without forcing them to endlessly confess their love, tear their last shirt and throw a glove in the opponent's face at the end of each act.
In the tragicomedy "Uncle Vanya" we see that the author can afford to reject the intensity of passions and storms of emotions expressed in endless dramatic scenes. There are many unfinished actions in his works, and the most delicious actions of the characters are performed "behind the scenes". Such a decision was impossible before Chekhov's innovation, otherwise the whole plot would simply lose its meaning.
By the very structure of his works, the writer wants to show the instability of the world as a whole, and even more so the world of stereotypes. Creativity in itself is a revolution, the creation of an absolute novelty, which without human talent would not exist in the world. Chekhov does not even look for compromises with the established system of organizing theatrical action, he does his best to demonstrate its unnaturalness, deliberate artificiality, which destroy even a hint of artistic truth sought by the viewer and reader.
originality
Chekhov always put on public display all the complexity of ordinary life phenomena, which was reflected in the open and ambiguous endings of his tragicomedies. There is no point on the stage, as in life. After all, for example, we can only guess what happened to the cherry orchard. A new house with a happy family was erected in its place, or it remained a wasteland that no one needs anymore. We remain in the dark, are the heroines of the "Three Sisters" happy? When we parted with them, Masha was immersed in dreams, Irina left her father’s house alone, and Olga stoically remarks that “... our suffering will turn into joy for those who will live after us, happiness and peace will come on earth, and they will remember with a kind word and bless those who are now living.”
Chekhov's work of the early 20th century speaks eloquently of the inevitability of revolution. For him and his heroes, this is a way to upgrade. He perceives the changes as something bright and joyful, which will lead his descendants to a long-awaited happy life, full of creative work. His plays give rise to a thirst for moral transformation in the heart of the viewer and educate him as a conscious and active person, capable of changing not only himself but also other people for the better.
The writer manages to capture the eternal themes inside his theatrical world, which permeate the fate of the main characters through and through. The theme of civic duty, the fate of the fatherland, true happiness, a real person - the heroes of Chekhov's works live all this. The author shows the themes of internal torment through the psychologism of the hero, his manner of speech, details of the interior and clothing, dialogues.
The role of Chekhov in world drama
Absolutely! Here is the first thing I would like to say about Chekhov's role in world drama. He was often criticized by his contemporaries, but the “time”, which he appointed as a “judge” inside his works, put everything in its place.
Joyce Oates (an eminent writer from the USA) believes that the peculiarity of Chekhov is expressed in the desire to destroy the conventions of language and the theater itself. She also drew attention to the author's ability to notice everything inexplicable and paradoxical. Therefore, it is easy to explain the influence of the Russian playwright on Ionesco, the founder of the aesthetic movement of the absurd. A recognized classic of the theatrical avant-garde of the 20th century, Eugene Ionesco read the plays of Anton Pavlovich and was inspired by his works. It is he who will bring this love of paradoxes and linguistic experiments to the peak of artistic expressiveness, and will develop a whole genre on its basis.
According to Oates, Ionesco took from his works that special "broken" manner of the characters' replicas. "Demonstration of the impotence of the will" in Chekhov's theater gives reason to consider it "absurdist". The author shows and proves to the world not the eternal battles of feeling and reason with varying success, but the eternal and invincible absurdity of life, with which his heroes struggle unsuccessfully, losing and grieving.
The American playwright John Priestley characterizes Chekhov's creative style as "reversing" the usual theatrical canons. It's like reading a manual for writing a play and doing the exact opposite.
Many books have been written all over the world about Chekhov's creative discoveries and his biography in general. Oxford professor Ronald Hingley in his monograph "Chekhov. Critical and biographical essay" believes that Anton Pavlovich has a real gift of "escaping". He sees in him a person who combines disarming frankness and notes of "light slyness".
Interesting? Save it on your wall!In this article, we will introduce you to the life and work of Chekhov, the great Russian writer and playwright. From it you will learn about how he became an original author, about the creative heritage of Anton Pavlovich, about the personality and character of the creator of immortal works. We will begin to describe the life and work of Chekhov from his biography.
The young years of the writer
Anton Pavlovich was born in Taganrog. His father, Chekhov Pavel Georgievich, was a merchant who was a member of the third guild. Mother's name was Evgenia Yakovlevna. This is recorded in the register of births in the cathedral church of Taganrog.
According to the memoirs of Chekhov's brothers and himself, the upbringing in the family was strict. The young writer studied at the classical gymnasium, helped his father with his sister and brothers in the grocery store, and also sang in the church choir, which was organized by Pavel Georgievich. According to his father, the shop needed a master's eye, so Anton, being the most conscientious of all the children, turned out to be the clerk more often than others. A living gallery of various human types, conversations, characters passed in front of the future writer. He became an unwitting witness to various life situations, situations, conflicts. All this contributed to the fact that Anton Pavlovich developed a knowledge of people early, he quickly matured.
Moving to Moscow
My father went bankrupt in 1876, fled to Moscow from creditors, where he settled with his family. The eldest sons, Nikolai and Alexander, left to study in the capital even earlier. Anton, however, remained in Taganrog to finish high school. He earned his own living, gave lessons, even sent money to Moscow for his family. Thus begins the independent life and work of Chekhov. During the years of study at the gymnasium, he created the drama "Fatherlessness", the work "What the Hen Sang About" (vaudeville), as well as many comic short works.
Studying at the University
The life and work of Chekhov by years in the period from 1879 to 1884 is represented by the following events. At this time, the writer became a student at Moscow University, enrolling in the medical faculty.
At the same time, he publishes short sketches, parodies, jokes in various humorous magazines ("Alarm Clock", "Dragonfly", "Shards") under various pseudonyms (My father's brother, The Man Without a Spleen, Antosha Chekhonte, Purselepetants). The first works that were printed were parodies called "Letter to a learned neighbor", as well as "What is most often found ..." Both works were published in 1880. After 4 years, the writer's stories appeared, "Tales of Melpomene", after which in 1886 - "Colorful stories", in 1887 - "At dusk", in 1890 - "Gloomy people".
First recognition from readers and critics
The recognition of Russian critics did not immediately come to Chekhov, but he gained success with readers much earlier. And these critics are understandable. It was not clear what Chekhov the narrator was talking about, what goal he was leading to, what he was calling for. At that time, it was very unusual for him to refuse preaching, the desire to solve "big" problems in literature ("What to do?", "Who is to blame?"), as was traditionally the case in the works of Russian classics. However, a few years after his debut as a writer, in 1887, Chekhov was awarded the prestigious Pushkin Prize for a collection of short stories called At Twilight. This was recognition not only of him as a writer, but also of the genre in which Chekhov worked. Many of his contemporaries perceived the stories as a story about themselves, their lives. Chukovsky, for example, said that Tolstoy seemed omniscient, but his books were about someone else, but Chekhov's story "My Life" was written as if about him, reading it, as if reading your own diary.
Medical activity and its reflection in creativity
Having received the post of county doctor, in 1884 Chekhov began to engage in medical practice.
From April to December 1890, the writer was on the island of Sakhalin, which at that time became the place where Anton Pavlovich's contemporaries served hard labor. It was for Chekhov a civil act, "going to the people." Anton Pavlovich in a book called "Sakhalin Island" (years of creation - 1893-1894) acted as a researcher of the life of the people, taking place in conditions of exile and hard labor. From that time, as Chekhov himself said, all his work was "sakhalinized". For example, the stories "Ward No. 6", "In Exile" (both written in 1892) reflected the impressions of visiting this island. The trip significantly worsened the writer's state of health, his tuberculous process worsened.
Moving to Melikhovo
The life and work of Chekhov, whose biography we are describing in brief, are already continuing in Melikhovo. Chekhov bought this estate near Moscow in 1892. In it, he not only created his works, but also treated the peasants, opened several schools for their children, a first-aid post, traveled to the provinces that were gripped by famine, and also participated in the population census. Until 1898, Chekhov's life and work took place in this estate. The works "Rothschild's Violin", "The Jumper", "The Seagull," The Teacher of Literature", "Uncle Vanya" and others were written.
A.P. Chekhov: life, work and achievements in Yalta
The writer moved to Yalta in 1898. Here he purchased a piece of land on which he built a house. Anton Pavlovich was visited by such famous contemporaries as Maxim Gorky, Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, Alexander Ivanovich Kuprin, Ivan Alekseevich Bunin, Isaac Ilyich Levitan.
Chekhov in the late 1880s created many plays for the theater, such as Leshy, Ivanov, The Wedding, as well as the vaudevilles Anniversary, The Bear.
In 1896, not understood by the audience and actors, one of his most famous plays, The Seagull, failed. But two years later, she had a resounding success in the production of the Moscow Art Theater, becoming a symbol of the new stage art. Closely connected with the theater at this time was the life and work of Chekhov. The best works of the writer were also staged in "Uncle Vanya" (in 1898), "Three Sisters" (in 1901) and "The Cherry Orchard" (in 1904). Since then, they have not left the stage in theater productions around the world.
Anton Pavlovich was elected an academician of fine literature in 1900, but he refused this title in 1902 (together with Vladimir Galaktionovich Korolenko), since Gorky's election to the Academy was declared invalid by the tsar's decree.
Last years
Chekhov in 1901 marries O. L. Knipper, an actress who played in the Moscow Art Theater. Three years later, the writer goes to the Badenweiler resort, in Germany, for treatment, as his health is deteriorating rapidly. Here he died on June 2 (according to the new style - June 15). Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was buried in Moscow, at the Novodevichy cemetery.
What does Chekhov's biography teach us?
Chekhov's biography is instructive: this man brought himself up. His words: "You have to train yourself." In his youth, the writer was not at all the Chekhov that we know. When his wife reported that Anton Pavlovich had a mild, compliant character, he told her that in fact his character was quick-tempered and harsh, but he was used to restraining himself, because it was not fitting for a decent person to dissolve himself, as Chekhov believed.
The life and work of the writer are closely related. What he wrote about in his works, the author tried to prove with his own life. His biography is instructive in that the writer was able to suppress rudeness and irascibility in himself, to develop softness and delicacy, which none of the writers of that time possessed. This is reflected in his work as well. The difference between the early Chekhov (the author of parodies and feuilletons) and the Chekhov of the 1890s is striking: over time, his creations acquired nobility, classical restraint, accuracy in expressing feelings and thoughts, and dignity. Chekhov's life and work are closely intertwined.
His favorite poems, which he dedicated at the age of 23 to Ekaterina Yunosheva, his classmate ("The Last Forgive"), a year later he cited in his story "Oh, women, women! .." as an example of mediocre rhyming.
Chekhov's transformation manifested itself even in the appearance of the writer, which combined artless, typically Russian features with refinement and deep nobility.
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, whose life and work we are describing, was a very modest, tactful and hardworking person. He was not a so-called "teacher of life" and avoided direct discussion of aesthetics and ethics in his works. But the ennobling educational value of his books was (and, of course, continues to be) higher than the influence of any passionate sermons. The writer was irreconcilable towards mediocrity, vulgarity, but his courage and this intransigence were special for him - subtle, tactful, Chekhovian.
L. N. Tolstoy called Anton Pavlovich "an artist of life." The definition of this has two meanings: it means "artist" not only "master of the word." Chekhov painted his own life, constructing it from the first to the last minute as proof of a moral theorem.
Features of Chekhov's stories
As we have already said, the early stories of such a multifaceted writer as Chekhov, whose life and work we briefly present in this article, are very different from others written after 1888. This milestone was not mentioned by chance - it is considered a turning point in the work of the author of interest to us. In the early stories ("Thick and Thin", "The Death of an Official", etc.), the comic element dominates. The fantasy of their author, who called himself Purselepetantov, Antosha Chekhonte and others, was inexhaustible and rich in bright and unexpected funny cases, pictures, plots. He knew how to observe them in life.
The stories of the 1890s seem different in tone. They are dominated by skepticism, sadness, regret of the writer, they are largely philosophical. Chekhov's later works have a different poetics, which is expressed in the genre definition of these creations as satirical stories.
In fact, outwardly simple works are complex, they leave a feeling of inexhaustibility, reticence. they are not highlighted. The tone of the story is usually lyrical irony. With a sad smile, the writer peers into a person, recalls a beautiful, ideal life, the way it should be. The main thing for Chekhov is the awakening of moral consciousness in readers, and not at all the imposition of his ideas about the world and man, literature, and life.
Features of Chekhov's dramaturgy
Chekhov created his own theater, with his own special dramatic language. He was not immediately understood by Anton Pavlovich's contemporaries. His plays seemed to many to be unstaged, clumsily made, with a lack of action, with chaotic drawn-out dialogues, with the vagueness of the author's intention, etc. then unknown. Chekhov created a mood theater: halftones, hints with an "undercurrent" (Nemirovich-Danchenko) - in many respects anticipating dramatic searches in the 20th century.
Chronotope in Chekhov's drama
Anton Pavlovich expanded the concept of chronotope (space and time), which was characteristic of classical Russian literature of the 19th century. In the works of his predecessors, the center was mainly a noble estate, peasant and noble Russia. And Chekhov introduced into his works the image of an urban man with an appropriate urban worldview. Chronotope of Anton Pavlovich - cities. This refers not not to geography, but to psychology, the sensations of an urban person.
Chekhov also developed his own concept of depicting man and life - fundamentally unheroic, everyday. There are no sharp conflicts, struggles, clashes in the works. Sometimes it seems that nothing happens in them. Movement does not go from one event to another, but from mood to mood.
The language of the plays is polysemantic, melodic, poetic, symbolic, which was required to create a general sense of subtext, a general mood.
The value of Chekhov's work
- The book called "Sakhalin Island" was an artistic document of the era contemporary to the author.
- Chekhov was at the origins of modern tragicomedy.
- His work presents the best examples of Russian literature in all varieties of short prose genres.
- Chekhov's drama has become a kind of hallmark of Russian literature in the world.
- The call that Anton Pavlovich left us: "Take care of the person in you!" - eternal.
- This author was not only a writer and playwright, but also a poet. His life is reflected in the poems written during the years of study at the gymnasium.
- Both the work of Chekhov, whose best poems can be found in the eighteenth volume of the Complete Works and Letters, and his biography are very remarkable.
- The artistic discoveries of this writer greatly influenced the theater and literature of the 20th century. Translated into many languages, dramatic works have become invariably included in the theater repertoire around the world.
- This author managed to create new moves in literature, significantly influencing the development of the short story genre. The innovation lies in the use of the so-called stream of consciousness, a device that was later adopted by James Joyce, as well as other modernist writers.
- Chekhov was the first in Russian literature who vividly demonstrated to us the image of an inhabitant from the provinces, devoid of a thirst for activity, a broad outlook, and good aspirations. Like no one else, the writer clearly showed how dangerous narrow-mindedness is for society and the individual (the stories "Teacher of Literature", "Ionych").
So, we have presented in general terms the life and work of Chekhov. We have selected the best and most interesting and instructive for you. We recommend, however, to use other sources. The life and work of Chekhov by dates can be studied in more detail if desired. There are a great many books written about this author now. It is interesting to get acquainted with the correspondence of Anton Pavlovich with his wife, published in 1972 by Shchats V., Danilova S. and others, as well as with the work of N. I. Gitovich, created in 1986, which presents the memoirs of contemporaries about this great writer. The chronology of Chekhov's life and work can be supplemented based on these and other sources.
Artistic features. Chekhov was a true innovator in both prose and drama. L.N. very accurately said this. Tolstoy: "Chekhov created new ... for the whole world forms of writing, the likes of which I have not seen anywhere else." The stories and stories of the writer are striking in the absence of a bright entertaining plot in them - everything happens, as in life. Those events that unfold on the pages of his works constitute only an external outline, and most importantly, this is an internal plot, a change in the hero himself, his attitude to life. With the exhaustion of the external conflict, this internal conflict persists and is carried beyond the limits of artistic reality into real life, creating a feeling of an open ending. The writer invites readers to think about the questions posed, but he himself remains extremely objective, the author's position is not directly expressed. But it exists, it is only expressed by other means - through subtext, a special mood, through a composition often built on musical principles, like “a good musical composition” - this is how the writer himself said about his story “Happiness”. Such a structure helps to saturate the text with inner emotionality and, avoiding detailed descriptions, "include" the reader in the orbit of the author's thoughts. At the same time, an amazing brevity and capacity of Chekhov's prose is also achieved, which developed the ability to "talk briefly about long things." “Brevity is the sister of talent,” the writer argued, and he achieved conciseness by various means. So he does not seek to consistently tell about all the events in the life of the hero, but uses the "top" composition. It is in this way that the whole life of Ionych is presented, the story of which fits on several pages. We see the hero only at the most important, turning points in his development, between which a year or several years pass. Often the scenes seem to be repetitive (for example, a visit to the Turkins' house), but in some details the reader notices what remains unchanged and what changes (the "talents" of the Turkins are unchanged, the way Startsev's movement changes - on foot, in his own carriage, on a troika with bells; he from a slender young man turns into a solid, full, and then into an obese Ionych, similar to a "pagan god").
The role of detail in Chekhov's prose is very great. It helps to create a characteristic "pulsating rhythm" that conveys the special sound of this lyrical prose, "prose of moods", sometimes giving it a melodic, musical sound, and sometimes invading with a disharmonious note. The detail gives the author the opportunity to avoid lengthy descriptions, setting a certain tone that helps the reader to "finish" the picture himself. It is known that Chekhov argued that instead of a detailed description of the moonlit night, it is enough to say that “the neck of a broken bottle shone on the dam”, and this detail will create an integral representation. But Chekhov has such details that grow to the highest level of generalization, becoming symbolic details. Such a detail, for example, is the case from the story "The Man in the Case", "the fence with nails" in "The Lady with the Dog". But at the same time, Chekhov remained realism, reaching its highest forms. Tolstoy said that Chekhov "has developed an extraordinary technique of realism", that "everything is true to the point of illusion" with him. And the beauty of the writer's language was especially noted: “What an excellent language ... It's just a pearl,” Tolstoy admired. “None of us: neither Dostoevsky, nor Turgenev, nor Goncharov, nor I could write like that.”