Letters of Anton Chekhov (Tchekhov) - Penn State University

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Letters of Anton Chekhov to His Family and Friends with biographical sketchMELIHOVO, April 13, 1895.I am sick of Sienkiewicz’s “The Family of the Polonetskys.” It’sthe Polish Easter cake with saffron. Add Potapenko to Paul Bourget,sprinkle with Warsaw eau-de-Cologne, divide in two, and you getSienkiewicz. “The Polonetskys” is unmistakably inspired by Bourget’s“Cosmopolis,” by Rome and by marriage (Sienkiewicz has latelygot married). We have the catacombs and a queer old professor sighingafter idealism, and Leo XIII, with the unearthly face among thesaints, and the advice to return to the prayer-book, and the libel onthe decadent who dies of morphinism after confessing and takingthe sacrament—that is, after repenting of his errors in the name ofthe Church. There is a devilish lot of family happiness and talkingabout love, and the hero’s wife is so faithful to her husband and sosubtly comprehends “with her heart” the mysteries of God and life,that in the end one feels mawkish and uncomfortable as after aslobbering kiss. Sienkiewicz has evidently not read Tolstoy, and doesnot know Nietzsche, he talks about hypnotism like a shopman; onthe other hand every page is positively sprinkled with Rubens,Borghesi, Correggio, Botticelli—and that is done to show off hisculture to the bourgeois reader and make a long nose on the sly atmaterialism. The object of the novel is to lull the bourgeoisie tosleep in its golden dreams. Be faithful to your wife, pray with herover the prayer-book, save money, love sport, and all is well withyou in this world and the next. The bourgeoisie is very fond of socalledpractical types and novels with happy endings, since theysoothe it with the idea that one can both accumulate capital andpreserve innocence, be a beast and at the same time be happy ….I wish you every sort of blessing. I congratulate you on the peacebetween Japan and China, and hope we may quickly obtain a Feodosiafree from ice on the East Coast, and may make a railway to it.The peasant woman had not troubles enough so she bought a pig.And I fancy we are saving up a lot of trouble for ourselves with this icefreeport.* It will cost us dearer than if we were to take it into our headsto wage war on all Japan. However, futura sunt in manibus deorum.*Prophetic of Port Arthur and the Japanese War.334
Anton ChekhovMELIHOVO, October 21, 1895.Thanks for your letter, for your warm words and your invitation.I will come, but most likely not before the end of November, as Ihave a devilish lot to do. First in the spring I am going to build anew school in the village where I am school warden; before beginningI have to make a plan and calculations, and to drive off hereand there, and so on. Secondly—can you imagine it—I am writinga play which I shall probably not finish before the end of November.I am writing it not without pleasure, though I swear fearfully atthe conventions of the stage. It’s a comedy, there are three women’sparts, six men’s, four acts, landscapes (view over a lake); a great dealof conversation about literature, little action, tons of love.* I read ofOzerova’s failure and was sorry, for nothing is more painful thanfailing …. I have read of the success of the “Powers of Darkness” inyour theatre …. When I was at Tolstoy’s in August, he told me, ashe was wiping his hands after washing, that he wouldn’t alter hisplay. And now, remembering that, I fancy that he knew even thenthat his play would be passed by the censor in toto. I spent two daysand a night with him. He made a delightful impression, I felt asmuch at ease as though I were at home, and our talks were easy ….*“The Seagull.”335
Page 1 and 2:
LETTERS OFANTONCHEKHOVTO HIS FAMILY
Page 4 and 5:
Letters of Anton Chekhov to His Fam
Page 6 and 7:
Page 8 and 9:
Page 10 and 11:
Page 12 and 13:
Page 14 and 15:
Page 16 and 17:
Page 18 and 19:
Page 20 and 21:
Page 22 and 23:
Page 24 and 25:
Page 26 and 27:
Page 28 and 29:
Page 30 and 31:
Page 32 and 33:
Page 34 and 35:
Page 36 and 37:
Page 38 and 39:
Page 40 and 41:
Page 42 and 43:
Page 44 and 45:
Page 46 and 47:
Page 48 and 49:
Page 50 and 51:
Page 52 and 53:
Page 54 and 55:
Page 56 and 57:
Page 58 and 59:
Page 60 and 61:
Page 62 and 63:
Page 64 and 65:
Page 66 and 67:
Page 68 and 69:
Page 70 and 71:
Page 72 and 73:
Page 74 and 75:
Page 76 and 77:
Page 78 and 79:
Page 80 and 81:
Page 82 and 83:
Page 84 and 85:
Page 86 and 87:
Page 88 and 89:
Page 90 and 91:
Page 92 and 93:
Page 94 and 95:
Page 96 and 97:
Page 98 and 99:
Page 100 and 101:
Page 102 and 103:
Page 104 and 105:
Page 106 and 107:
Page 108 and 109:
Page 110 and 111:
Page 112 and 113:
Page 114 and 115:
Page 116 and 117:
Page 118 and 119:
Page 120 and 121:
Page 122 and 123:
Page 124 and 125:
Page 126 and 127:
Page 128 and 129:
Page 130 and 131:
Page 132 and 133:
Page 134 and 135:
Page 136 and 137:
Page 138 and 139:
Page 140 and 141:
Page 142 and 143:
Page 144 and 145:
Page 146 and 147:
Page 148 and 149:
Page 150 and 151:
Page 152 and 153:
Page 154 and 155:
Page 156 and 157:
Page 158 and 159:
Page 160 and 161:
Page 162 and 163:
Page 164 and 165:
Page 166 and 167:
Page 168 and 169:
Page 170 and 171:
Page 172 and 173:
Page 174 and 175:
Page 176 and 177:
Page 178 and 179:
Page 180 and 181:
Page 182 and 183:
Page 184 and 185:
Page 186 and 187:
Page 188 and 189:
Page 190 and 191:
Page 192 and 193:
Page 194 and 195:
Page 196 and 197:
Page 198 and 199:
Page 200 and 201:
Page 202 and 203:
Page 204 and 205:
Page 206 and 207:
Page 208 and 209:
Page 210 and 211:
Page 212 and 213:
Page 214 and 215:
Page 216 and 217:
Page 218 and 219:
Page 220 and 221:
Page 222 and 223:
Page 224 and 225:
Page 226 and 227:
Page 228 and 229:
Page 230 and 231:
Page 232 and 233:
Page 234 and 235:
Page 236 and 237:
Page 238 and 239:
Page 240 and 241:
Page 242 and 243:
Page 244 and 245:
Page 246 and 247:
Page 248 and 249:
Page 250 and 251:
Page 252 and 253:
Page 254 and 255:
Page 256 and 257:
Page 258 and 259:
Page 260 and 261:
Page 262 and 263:
Page 264 and 265:
Page 266 and 267:
Page 268 and 269:
Page 270 and 271:
Page 272 and 273:
Page 274 and 275:
Page 276 and 277:
Page 278 and 279:
Page 280 and 281:
Page 282 and 283:
Page 284 and 285: Letters of Anton Chekhov to His Fam
Page 384 and 385:
Page 386 and 387:
Page 388 and 389:
Page 390 and 391:
Page 392 and 393:
Page 394 and 395:
Page 396 and 397:
Page 398 and 399:
Page 400 and 401:
Page 402 and 403:
Page 404 and 405:
Page 406 and 407:
Page 408 and 409:
Page 410 and 411:
Page 412 and 413:
Page 414 and 415:
Page 416 and 417:
Page 418 and 419:
Page 420 and 421:
Page 422 and 423:
Page 424 and 425:
Page 426 and 427:
Page 428 and 429:
Page 430 and 431:
Page 432 and 433:
Page 434:
show all

Letters of Anton Chekhov (Tchekhov) - Penn State University

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?