A Joke that is not so funny Essay

The Russian attitude toward love during Chekhov’s time is very patriarchal and is considered normal to marry for practical reasons, parental pressures or other considerations rather than for love. The feelings that accompany love, such as passion and spirituality, are not a societal consideration and this institutional attitude toward human emotion is the catalyst for Chekhov’s story. When a person is deprived of love, he or she builds up a futility of life which consumes the human soul. In Anton Chekhov’s “The Lady with the Dog”, the readers are placed in a setting where the main character Gurov, and his love interest Anna, are given the emotional freedom to feel love toward one another. This freedom is the driving force in the story

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was born in the small seaport of Taganrog, Ukraine on January 17th in the year 1860. Today he is remembered as a playwright and one of the masters of the modern short story. He was the son of a grocer and the grandson of a serf who had bought his freedom, that and that his

“For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things have been created through Him and for Him.”

A story, of any type, is greatly affected by the characters’ outlook on life. A bright, hopeful main character will give the narrative a more lighthearted feel, and cause the reader to feel encouraged and satisfied. If the character has a negative perspective, however, it can elicit sadness, pity, or even irritation from the reader. In Voltaire’s Candide and Tolstoy’s Death of Ivan Ilyich, two characters with very different worldviews are displayed. The lighthearted Candide maintained an attitude of cheerfulness and perseverance even through the hardships of his life, which stems from his deep love and care for others, while the coldhearted despair of Ivan Ilyich is only intensified into anger by the feigned optimism of those around him.

Anton Chekhov hardly restrained from writing the dreary aspects of life during his writing career. Noted as one of Russia’s most prominent realist writers of the late 19th century, Chekhov’s work ranged from critical issues concerning the mental health system in “Ward No.6” to illustrating the tiresome cycle occurring for ordinary people sensing they are incomplete with their dull, normal life in “The Lady with the Dog.” “The Lady with the Dog,” in particular portrays characters of Chekhov’s facing an unreachable desire; Gurov and Anna. This desire emulates two contrasting forces represented by the double-lives the couple lives, one being that of realism and boredom, and the other of strict passion and romanticism. Gurov and “the lady with

created the heavens and the earth.” This means there was nothing to this world until He created

His parents Foma Nijinsky and Eleonora Bereda. They owned touring dance company. His father teach Vaslav how to dance.

Chekhov in The Name-Day Party focuses on Olga and her relationship with her husband, Chekhov appreciation for women is portrayed (Finke, 2005). Chekhov’s work maintains a continuity of appreciation for the endurance and humaneness of women in the face of afflicted and patriarchal prejudice that fits in this feminist-oriented era. Chekhov, though not liberal or conservative politically have rejected all theories that generalize about life. Chekhov instead has put his faith in the people. On another case, the central female characters in The Lady with the Dog have been portrayed in comparable manner. Dmitri’s wife and Anna are portrayed in same light. They are

The father, Tevye, has five daughter - three of whom will get married throughout the play. Tevye and Golde’s third daughter, Chava falls in love with Fyedka, a Russian, and is ordered to,“...never see him again.” (Stein) As, “...the great book says,” (Stein) it is against Jewish tradition to marry outside of the faith. But not only is he Russian, he is not a Jew and the bending of tradition is something that Tevye cannot bring himself to do. After Chava and Fyedka elope and her family disowns her. From that point on, Chava is shunned into silence by her family. Tevye does not acknowledge Chava and Fyedka until the very end, even then only briefly, to wish that, “God be with…,” (Stein) them. His final statement shows that he still loves and cares for his daughter, but he does not agree with her decision to marry outside of the

Released on 1962,” It’s only Money” was his final film. “Rainy Night in Newark” was his last stage appearance (1963). In 1964 he was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor and underwent brain surgery in 1965. He died at the age of 51.

However, in Oates’ version, she utilizes the female character, Anna, to develop the story. In Chekhov’s story, the reader is more aware of the masculinity present in the story. Gurov is manipulative of women, and he uses them as a device to remove himself from his marriage. In the story, he speaks of women by saying, “It seemed to him that he had been sufficiently tutored by bitter experience to call them what he pleased…” (Chekhov 2014). He believes that all women are the same and are the inferior race compared to men. Anna’s actions in the Oates’ story contrast greatly compared to Gurov’s. Anna displays the feminine side of the relationship between the couple. Anna is not accustomed to being involved in several affairs, which can be seen through the emotional toll that it takes on her. Following the stereotypical female

Anton Chekhov (1860-1904) was born a year before the emancipation of serfism in Russia took place. Although he was the grandson of a serf, Chekhov was able to attend the medical school at the University of Moscow and become a physician. Chekhov started writing in order to support his family economically, becoming a master in drama and short stories. His literature is characterized by the use of colloquial language which could be understood even by the less educated and recently liberated serfs. Social change is the main theme in ‘The Cherry Orchard’, a four-act play written in 1904. In this play the different characters portray how changes in Russia after the emancipation of 1861 were taking place and although the play is set several

Edgar Allan Poe is a much known author. He is known for writing dark and mysterious stories and poems. “His imaginative storytelling led to literary innovations, earning him the nickname "Father of the Detective Story" (Edgar Allan Poe Biography.com). When writing stories he wanted the readers to have that one emotion or feeling when reading his writing. Poe has very many stories he is known for two of those short stories being; “The Oval Portrait” and “The Cask of Amontillado”.

In 19th century Russian literature there was often a gender inequality depicted between the male and female characters. Women were expected to get married, start a family, and obey their husbands. Women often made sacrifices and married men they weren’t fond of in order to support their families. Anton Chekhov’s writing questions these gender relationships. The female characters have a strong presence within Chekhov’s works, and they transcend typical gender roles.

used such dark, grim paths of plot in his stories and poems. Many of his stories have similar