His novels are short and pithy, concise and simple, compact in structure, vivid in plot, humorous in style, vivid in language, full of musical rhythm and profound in meaning. He is good at discovering people and things with typical significance from daily life, making artistic generalization through humorous plots, and shaping a complete typical image to reflect the Russian society at that time. His representative works The Chameleon and The Man in the Trap are exquisite and perfect artistic treasures in the history of Russian literature. The former has become synonymous with have it both ways who is good at profiteering in disguise. The latter has become a symbol of the conformist, timid and afraid of change.
The following is a more detailed introduction:
Chekhov, I'm the one. (антонпавловичехр)1860 65438 Grandfather was a redeemed serf. Father opened a grocery store, 1876 went bankrupt and the whole family moved to Moscow. However, Chekhov stayed alone in Taganrog, making a living as a tutor and continuing his studies. 65438-0879 entered the medical department of Moscow University. 1884 After graduation, he practiced medicine in Rhodes, Vignau and other places, got in touch with civilians extensively and learned about life, which had a good influence on his literary creation.
From 65438 to 1980 in Russia, the reactionary censorship of books and periodicals was unprecedentedly strict, and vulgar and boring humorous publications were all the rage. Chekhov often contributes to such magazines under the pseudonym of Antonia Chekhov (such as Dragonfly and Fragments). The short story A Letter to a Learned Neighbor (1880) What are the most common novels, such as humorous sketches, novels and novellas? (1880) is his early published work. Before the mid-1980s, he wrote a large number of humorous sketches and short stories, many of which were worthless jokes and funny stories, but there were also some excellent works, which inherited the fine democratic tradition of Russian literature and criticized the ugly phenomenon of society at that time, such as writing about petty officials who bullied the weak (on the nail, an official died, and the winner won). The gentry and lords who abused the weak (British women180) Have it both ways's slave bones (chameleon 1884), defender of autocratic system (Sgt. Priscilla Beyev 1885). However, due to his lack of livelihood and experience, he mainly wanted to hurry up and produce more. 1886 in March, the famous writer Grigorovic wrote to demand respect for his talent. He was deeply inspired and began to take creation seriously. 1886 wrote Wanka, Distress and Longing for Sleep, which showed the writer's deep sympathy for the poor workers. 1888 published the famous novella Prairie, which depicts and praises the nature of the motherland, ponders the fate of farmers and expresses people's desire for a happy life. The naming day (1888) and the duchess (1889) exposed the habits of hypocrisy, vanity and vulgarity. These works have made remarkable progress in ideological content and artistic skills. However, Chekhov, influenced by the petty-bourgeois environment, did not ask politics at this time, but only "wanted to be a free artist" and "the absolute freedom". Since 1886, he has been writing for the New Era published by reactionary scholar Suvorin. Although he got the advice of critic Mihailovski, he still kept in touch with it. 1888 10 Chekhov won half of the Pushkin Prize. At this time, he has been the author of five short stories (the story of Mel Pomney,1884; Colorful stories,1886; In the dark,1887; Naive words,1887; Collection of short stories, 1888). With the increasing reputation and status, he is strongly aware of his sense of social responsibility as a writer, and seriously thinks about the purpose of life and the significance of creation. He said: "A conscious life without a clear world outlook is not a life, but a burden and a terrible thing." This ideological image is reflected in the novella Boring Story (1889).
From this period, Chekhov began to create plays. One-act drama Marriage (1890) and On the Harm of Tobacco (1886), Fool (1888), Proposal (1888 ~ 1889), I. The script Ivanov (1887 ~ 1889) criticized the "redundant people" who lacked firm belief and could not stand the test of life in the 1980s.
From April 1890 to February 18, Chekhov, who was sickly, made a long journey to sakhalin island, where the czar's government placed exiles and exiles, and investigated all the residents there and "nearly 10,000 prisoners and immigrants" one by one. The trip to Sakhalin Island improved his ideological consciousness and artistic conception. In 189 1, he said in his letter: "... if I am a writer, I need to live among the people ... I need at least a little social life and political life, even a little." He began to realize that writing for New Times would only bring him "harm", and finally broke off relations with this publication at 1893. He had a deep understanding of Russian autocracy, and wrote sakhalin island (1893 ~ 1894) and Exile (1892), and the most important one was the Sixth District (1892). This novella accuses the prison-like czarist Russia of being gloomy and terrible, and at the same time criticizes Tolstoy's dogma of "Don't use violence against violence" which was stubborn not long ago. Lenin was strongly infected after reading it, saying that he "felt terrible", so that "he couldn't stay in his room" and "he felt as if he was locked in the sixth ward".
From 1890 to 1900, Chekhov went to Milan, Venice, Vienna and Paris for recuperation and sightseeing. Since 1892, I have settled in the newly purchased Meryhovo Manor in Sherpukhov County, Moscow Province. From 65438 to 0898, Chekhov, who suffered from severe tuberculosis, moved to Yalta. 190 1 married Olga knibir, an actor of Moscow Art Theatre. In Yalta, he often met with lev tolstoy, Gorky, Bunin, kuprin and Levitan.
19 The 1990s and the early 20th century were the heyday of Chekhov's creation. At that time, the Russian liberation movement entered a new stage of proletarian revolution. Encouraged by the revolutionary class, the democratic spirit among students and other residents gradually became active. Chekhov also gradually overcame the tendency of not asking about politics and actively participated in social activities: 1892, rescued the famine in Nizhny Novgorod and Voronezh provinces; 1892 to 1893, participating in the cholera fighting work in Sherpukhov County; 1897 to participate in the census; 1898 supported the just action of the French writer Zola in defending Dreyfus, and thus alienated the relationship with Suvorin; 1902, in order to protest against the decision of the czar authorities to cancel the qualification of honorary academician of Gorky Academy of Sciences, he and Korolenko gave up the title of honorary academician of Academy of Sciences obtained in 1900; 1903 he sponsored persecuted young students to fight for democracy and freedom. His democratic stance became more and more firm, his observation of social life became more and more profound, his premonition of the brewing revolution became more and more clear, and he gradually saw a faint "fire" from the dark reality. His creation has entered a new stage. He emphasized that works of art should have clear ideas (The Seagull,1896); He came into contact with major social problems in a series of works. For example, Farmers (1897) reflects the poverty of farmers' material life and spiritual life with sober realism: extreme poverty, ignorance, backwardness and barbarism; In the Canyon (1900) also describes the rural bourgeoisie-the rich peasants' crazy plunder and cruel nature of wealth. These novels are a powerful refutation of populists who beautify the life of rural communes. The theme of exposing capitalism can also be found in The Kingdom of Women (1894) and Three Years (1895). Interview (1898) shows that the capitalist "devil" not only crushes the workers, but also tortures the conscience of the descendants of factory owners. They realize that life is meaningless and unreasonable, so they are deeply depressed. The drama Uncle Vanya (1897) describes the tragic fate of intellectuals who have no real ideals and serious goals, and their honest and selfless work eventually becomes meaningless sacrifice. The Woman with a Dog (1899) takes love as its theme, exposing vulgarity and hypocrisy, and arousing readers' "aversion to a muddled and half-dead life". "A House with an Attic" (1896) and "My Life" (1896) denied the "trivial" theory that prevailed in the 1980s and 1990s, criticized the progressive ideas of liberals, and thought that "a stronger, braver and faster way of struggle" was needed to get out of daily activities. His creation gradually sounded "can't live like this anymore!" Sound. In The Trap Man (1898), it reveals the suppression of society by reactionary forces in the 1980s, its conservatism and weakness, and lashes the trap man's habits that existed at that time. In gooseberry (1898) and Yao Neiqi (1898), he described the emptiness and depravity of a selfish and humble person curled up in a small world of personal happiness, pointing out that "what people need is not a land of three Russian feet, nor a manor, but the whole earth, the whole nature and that vastness.
With the further upsurge of social movements in the early 20th century, Chekhov realized that a powerful and sweeping "storm" was coming, and the bad habits of laziness, indifference and aversion to labor in society would be swept away. He praised labor and hoped that everyone would use their own labor to prepare for a better future (three sisters, 1900 ~ 190 1). The Bride (1903), written on the eve of the revolution in 1905, expressed the desire to "turn over a new leaf" and move towards a new life. The script cherry orchard (1903 ~ 1904) shows the inevitable decline of the nobility and its historical process of being replaced by the emerging bourgeoisie, and at the same time shows the optimism of resolutely bidding farewell to the past and yearning for a happy future: the axe sound of cherry orchard's logging is accompanied by "Long live the new life!" Cheers. However, because Chekhov's ideological position has never gone beyond the scope of democracy, the newcomers in his works do not know the only way to create a new life, and the "new life" they yearn for is always just a hazy vision.
1June, 904, Chekhov went to Badenville, Germany for treatment because of his illness. He died there in July 15, and his body was transported back to Moscow for burial.
Chekhov created a lyrical psychological novel with unique style and concise and delicate art. He intercepted ordinary fragments of daily life, described and portrayed life and characters with exquisite artistic details, and showed important social contents from it. This kind of novel is lyrical, expressing his dissatisfaction with ugly reality and longing for a better future, and integrating praise and criticism, joy and pain into the image system of his works. He believes that "the sister of genius is concise" and "the ability to write is the ability to delete poor writing". He advocated "objective" narrative, saying that "the more objective, the deeper the impression". He trusts readers' imagination and understanding ability, and advocates readers to ponder the meaning of works from the image system.
The theme, tendency and style of Chekhov's drama creation are basically similar to his lyric psychological novels. He does not pursue bizarre twists and turns, but describes ordinary daily life and characters, from which he reveals important aspects of social life. Chekhov's plays are rich in subtext and lyricism. His realism is full of inspiring power and profound symbolic significance. Seagull and cherry orchard are his original artistic symbols. Stanislavski, Danchenko and Moscow Art Theatre (founded in 1898) cooperated creatively with Chekhov and made great innovations in stage festivals.
Chekhov occupies a place in world literature. He is as famous as Mo Bosang for his short stories. Many writers in Europe and America have talked about the influence of Chekhov's creation on 20th century literature. In China, shortly after Chekhov's death, novels such as Pastor in Black and Ward 6 were translated and introduced. His plays Hai Ou, Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters and cherry orchard were translated into Chinese by Zheng Zhenduo and Cao Jinghua on 192 1 and 1925 respectively. Later, Lu Xun Art Academy performed Fool, Proposal and Memorial Day in Yan 'an. Qu Qiubai, Lu Xun, Mao Dun, Guo Moruo and Ba Jin all discussed Chekhov. Almost all his novels and plays are translated into Chinese.
"On the stage, we must make everything as complicated as life and as simple as life. People eat, just eat, but at this time their happiness is formed, or their lives are ruined. "
-Chekhov