He was convinced of the need for unceasing striving, a belief that pervaded his life and work and he had a faith that the future would bring a better life for humankind.Ĭhekhov’s exceptional powers of observation, no doubt sharpened by his scientific training, enabled him to bring to the stage living characters. His powers of observation and his honesty permitted him to create characters readily recognizable as human, characters sharply individualized yet representative. When they do, they will surely create a new and better life for themselves.Īudiences will continue to be moved to tears by Chekhov’s plays, but his words give his audience a way of understanding the main ingredients of his greatness. See how badly you live and how tiresome you are.” The main thing is that people should understand this.

I wanted to tell people honestly: “Look at yourselves. Anton Chekhov (29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904 was talking about other writers when he said, “The best of them are realists and depict life as it is, but because every line they write is permeated, as with a juice, by a consciousness of an aim, you feel in addition to life as it is, also life as it should be, and it is that that delights you.” These very qualities that Chekhov praises in other great writers are the qualities in his greatest plays, The Seagull, Uncle Vanya, The Three Sisters, and The Cherry Orchard, plays that continue to delight audiences throughout the world, though that delight is sometimes expressed in tears.Ĭhekhov has been called a depressing writer, one who bring tears to an audience’s eyes, but he rejected that view adamantly, saying that he had never wanted tears: I wanted something else.

The Seagull by Anton Chekhov