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Eleven Stories
In this second collection in Oxford Paperbacks of stories drawn from Ronald Hingley's multi-volume Oxford Chekhov, appear eleven more masterpieces of the short story genre. His Wife, A Lady with a Dog, The Duel, A Hard Case, Gooseberries, Concerning Love, Peasants, Angel, The Russian Master, Terror, The Order of St.Anne, all demonstrate in prose the same subtlety of method and depth of purpose which characterize Chekhov's plays.
Audiobook
First published January 1, 1975
About the author
Anton Chekhov
5,946 books10.3k followers
Antón Chéjov
(Spanish)
Dramas, such as The Seagull (1896, revised 1898), and including "A Dreary Story" (1889) of Russian writer Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, also Chekov, concern the inability of humans to communicate.
Born ( Антон Павлович Чехов ) in the small southern seaport of Taganrog, the son of a grocer. His grandfather, a serf, bought his own freedom and that of his three sons in 1841. He also taught to read. A cloth merchant fathered Yevgenia Morozova, his mother.
"When I think back on my childhood," Chekhov recalled, "it all seems quite gloomy to me." Tyranny of his father, religious fanaticism, and long nights in the store, open from five in the morning till midnight, shadowed his early years. He attended a school for Greek boys in Taganrog from 1867 to 1868 and then Taganrog grammar school. Bankruptcy of his father compelled the family to move to Moscow. At the age of 16 years in 1876, independent Chekhov for some time alone in his native town supported through private tutoring.
In 1879, Chekhov left grammar school and entered the university medical school at Moscow. In the school, he began to publish hundreds of short comics to support his mother, sisters and brothers. Nicholas Leikin published him at this period and owned Oskolki (splinters), the journal of Saint Petersburg. His subjected silly social situations, marital problems, and farcical encounters among husbands, wives, mistresses, and lust; even after his marriage, Chekhov, the shy author, knew not much of whims of young women.
Nenunzhaya pobeda , first novel of Chekhov, set in 1882 in Hungary, parodied the novels of the popular Mór Jókai. People also mocked ideological optimism of Jókai as a politician.
Chekhov graduated in 1884 and practiced medicine. He worked from 1885 in Peterburskaia gazeta.
In 1886, Chekhov met H.S. Suvorin, who invited him, a regular contributor, to work for Novoe vremya, the daily paper of Saint Petersburg. He gained a wide fame before 1886. He authored The Shooting Party , his second full-length novel, later translated into English. Agatha Christie used its characters and atmosphere in later her mystery novel The Murder of Roger Ackroyd . First book of Chekhov in 1886 succeeded, and he gradually committed full time. The refusal of the author to join the ranks of social critics arose the wrath of liberal and radical intelligentsia, who criticized him for dealing with serious social and moral questions but avoiding giving answers. Such leaders as Leo Tolstoy and Nikolai Leskov, however, defended him. "I'm not a liberal, or a conservative, or a gradualist, or a monk, or an indifferentist. I should like to be a free artist and that's all..." Chekhov said in 1888.
The failure of The Wood Demon , play in 1889, and problems with novel made Chekhov to withdraw from literature for a period. In 1890, he traveled across Siberia to Sakhalin, remote prison island. He conducted a detailed census of ten thousand convicts and settlers, condemned to live on that harsh island. Chekhov expected to use the results of his research for his doctoral dissertation. Hard conditions on the island probably also weakened his own physical condition. From this journey came his famous travel book.
Chekhov practiced medicine until 1892. During these years, Chechov developed his concept of the dispassionate, non-judgmental author. He outlined his program in a letter to his brother Aleksandr: "1. Absence of lengthy verbiage of political-social-economic nature; 2. total objectivity; 3. truthful descriptions of persons and objects; 4. extreme brevity; 5. audacity and originality; flee the stereotype; 6. compassion." Because he objected that the paper conducted against [a:Alfred Dreyfu
Dramas, such as The Seagull (1896, revised 1898), and including "A Dreary Story" (1889) of Russian writer Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, also Chekov, concern the inability of humans to communicate.
Born ( Антон Павлович Чехов ) in the small southern seaport of Taganrog, the son of a grocer. His grandfather, a serf, bought his own freedom and that of his three sons in 1841. He also taught to read. A cloth merchant fathered Yevgenia Morozova, his mother.
"When I think back on my childhood," Chekhov recalled, "it all seems quite gloomy to me." Tyranny of his father, religious fanaticism, and long nights in the store, open from five in the morning till midnight, shadowed his early years. He attended a school for Greek boys in Taganrog from 1867 to 1868 and then Taganrog grammar school. Bankruptcy of his father compelled the family to move to Moscow. At the age of 16 years in 1876, independent Chekhov for some time alone in his native town supported through private tutoring.
In 1879, Chekhov left grammar school and entered the university medical school at Moscow. In the school, he began to publish hundreds of short comics to support his mother, sisters and brothers. Nicholas Leikin published him at this period and owned Oskolki (splinters), the journal of Saint Petersburg. His subjected silly social situations, marital problems, and farcical encounters among husbands, wives, mistresses, and lust; even after his marriage, Chekhov, the shy author, knew not much of whims of young women.
Nenunzhaya pobeda , first novel of Chekhov, set in 1882 in Hungary, parodied the novels of the popular Mór Jókai. People also mocked ideological optimism of Jókai as a politician.
Chekhov graduated in 1884 and practiced medicine. He worked from 1885 in Peterburskaia gazeta.
In 1886, Chekhov met H.S. Suvorin, who invited him, a regular contributor, to work for Novoe vremya, the daily paper of Saint Petersburg. He gained a wide fame before 1886. He authored The Shooting Party , his second full-length novel, later translated into English. Agatha Christie used its characters and atmosphere in later her mystery novel The Murder of Roger Ackroyd . First book of Chekhov in 1886 succeeded, and he gradually committed full time. The refusal of the author to join the ranks of social critics arose the wrath of liberal and radical intelligentsia, who criticized him for dealing with serious social and moral questions but avoiding giving answers. Such leaders as Leo Tolstoy and Nikolai Leskov, however, defended him. "I'm not a liberal, or a conservative, or a gradualist, or a monk, or an indifferentist. I should like to be a free artist and that's all..." Chekhov said in 1888.
The failure of The Wood Demon , play in 1889, and problems with novel made Chekhov to withdraw from literature for a period. In 1890, he traveled across Siberia to Sakhalin, remote prison island. He conducted a detailed census of ten thousand convicts and settlers, condemned to live on that harsh island. Chekhov expected to use the results of his research for his doctoral dissertation. Hard conditions on the island probably also weakened his own physical condition. From this journey came his famous travel book.
Chekhov practiced medicine until 1892. During these years, Chechov developed his concept of the dispassionate, non-judgmental author. He outlined his program in a letter to his brother Aleksandr: "1. Absence of lengthy verbiage of political-social-economic nature; 2. total objectivity; 3. truthful descriptions of persons and objects; 4. extreme brevity; 5. audacity and originality; flee the stereotype; 6. compassion." Because he objected that the paper conducted against [a:Alfred Dreyfu
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 16, 2024
I think half of these were new to me and I liked those in a different way than the ones I reread. Like delight vs a deeper understanding
February 25, 2019
This collection of stories presented in audio format was my first introduction to the stories of Anton Chekhov. These stories were all very effective at clearly painting pictures in my mind of a host of weak-willed, ineffective, or otherwise unhappy characters. Based on these stories, I would say that Chekhov was seriously Jaded with life.
I think that the major characters are all from the richer portion of Russian society toward the end of the rule of the Tsars. So, perhaps there is something coming through of the decadence and decline of that society that eventually led to the Bolshevik revolution. But, these are just my thoughts, there is nothing overtly political about these stories.
I think that the major characters are all from the richer portion of Russian society toward the end of the rule of the Tsars. So, perhaps there is something coming through of the decadence and decline of that society that eventually led to the Bolshevik revolution. But, these are just my thoughts, there is nothing overtly political about these stories.
August 12, 2018
Read Chekhov: 11 Stories and you'll understand why Anton Chekhov is considered a master storyteller.
January 11, 2025
None of these stories is my new favorite from Chekhov (that is probably still "In the Cart"), but they still capture much of the essence of what I love about him and other classic Russian writers: a heavy atmosphere and deep exploration of human emotion.
October 10, 2017
What little gems are these stories! Glad I got reacquainted with this towering genius.
April 27, 2019
With few words, Chekhov puts in in the scene. His work is very theatrical. I highly recommend it to anyone.
July 10, 2024
Several interesting short stories, one including a wandering monk. Characters were interesting.
June 15, 2012
I fell in love with Chekhov after reading this. Definately looking forwards to reading more of his short stories!
After initial readings, of this short stories, my thoughts were 'is this it?'
It seemed so anticlimactic - sure it was descriptive, lively and dialogue was good but I couldn't find a real good storyline in it. But then I read each story again and this time thinking about what the hell he could be trying to convey. Then I began to see, little by little what he was talking about.
I especially loved the three short stories about the school teacher and the vet, although I can't quite rememeber their uber cool sounding russian names. The Duel was also a great read, and was one that had much more story than others thanks to its length, but the end was so anticlimactic. I really was expecting more. But the journey to the end was definately worth it, and it's really the journey that matters.
Brilliant book.
After initial readings, of this short stories, my thoughts were 'is this it?'
It seemed so anticlimactic - sure it was descriptive, lively and dialogue was good but I couldn't find a real good storyline in it. But then I read each story again and this time thinking about what the hell he could be trying to convey. Then I began to see, little by little what he was talking about.
I especially loved the three short stories about the school teacher and the vet, although I can't quite rememeber their uber cool sounding russian names. The Duel was also a great read, and was one that had much more story than others thanks to its length, but the end was so anticlimactic. I really was expecting more. But the journey to the end was definately worth it, and it's really the journey that matters.
Brilliant book.
October 4, 2011
A true master of human psychology and the short form. Most of these stories are wonderful in media res tales that highight some hard to define human quality. Chekhov deals with characters from all levels of society and manages to find a way to make them all complex and interesting. They are all, also, startlingly modern in tone.
I'm not sure whether I prefer his plays or his prose but, you know what, it doesn't matter - it's all so good!
I'm not sure whether I prefer his plays or his prose but, you know what, it doesn't matter - it's all so good!
June 7, 2012
Terrific audio book for walking about.
Creates 19th century world, which envelops you.
Listened to several of these twice.
Creates 19th century world, which envelops you.
Listened to several of these twice.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews