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Is Chekhov's Writing Relevant? 1/3/2017 4:09:54 PM
I took part for a brief time in an internet forum on writing. Another member asked if it was best to write about what we know or is it acceptable to dive into unfamiliar territory? Along with others, I offered an answer -- that I always appreciated a comment Chekhov made in one of his letters, when he said that he prayed never to write about anything he couldn't understand or didn't love. Another participant in the forum snappishly informed me and other readers that Chekhov is irrelevant.
Chekhov is never irrelevant for me. It's true that his first writings were light-weight comic pieces, but by the time he died at age 44 he had developed into a writer whose skill and compassion earned him the attention of readers everywhere.
Take the case of his play "Uncle Vanya". More than ten years ago, I saw a Toronto production of it four times. I rediscovered lately that I have DVD's of three English productions of "Vanya", which I've just finished watching. All of them feature well-known actors in the role of Dr. Astrov, a talented but burned-out physician. The title character, Vanya, is played by competent actors, but not headliners, with one possible exception.
Other characters are also prominent, especially Sonja, Vanya's niece, and her new step-mother, with whom she has a rocky rapport. An ageing professor, Sonja's father -- arrogant, ill, demanding, convinced of his superiority -- also has a strong influence on the way the action works out.
So -- the time is the 1890's. The setting is a Russian country estate. We're invited to witness a dramatic episode in the life of a family that doesn't function well. The professor wants to take control of the group. He says they should sell the estate and buy property in Finland. Some favor the plan. Vanya explodes: he and Sonja, he says, have given their lives to keep the estate operating so the professor could have the income they sent to him faithfully. Sonja has nothing to hope for; the professor has ruined his life. He might have been another Schopenhauer or Dostoevsky. He fetches his rifle, shoots at the professor, and misses.
There are other story-lines in the play -- Sonja's loneliness and her unrequited love for Astrov, Astrov's flirtatation with the professor's young, intelligent, attractive wife. Chekhov gives most of the actors moments in which to shine.
Why did he call his work "Uncle Vanya" rather than give prominence to the country estate, as Turgenev did with "A Month in the Country", or to the family who couldn't come together.
Vanya is sensitive and aggrieved. He doesn't know how to solve his problems. He uses inept measures to prevent the sale of the old family property. He lacks the dynamic personality of a leader, yet Chekhov's consummate artistry in this work keeps him from scorning Vanya. Instead, he presents him as loving and loyal even when he's wrongheaded and at the point of deepest discouragement. Though flawed and impossible to deal with, he has justice on his side.
Some people know how to get things done and move the world along. Others either fit in or resist. In Chekhov's play, no one comes out ahead, no new arrangements appear to improve a bad situation. Only Sonja, through her faith in a better life in heaven, shows a promise of living in a satisfactory way. We'd think about the play altogether differently if Chekhov had named it for her.
The play might also have had a different title if Chekhov had brought in another character -- a leader who could have resolved the family's problem. Or supposing Dr. Astrrov hadn't been exclusively concerned with himself and had used his talents to help Vanya and the rest of the family.
Failure all around. A revelation of the way life can be at certain times for some people, though not for everyone. There's often a way to alleviate even the worst problems with trained, intelligent thinking, good will, and determination to succeed. At the end, the professor admonishes Vanya and the others to work. Not very helpful, since that's what they'd been doing anyway. In a sense, this work contains a reproach of a society that doesn't provide people with the tools to help themselves.
"Uncle Vanya" is a great play. One of the productions I watched on DVD was directed by Laurence Olivier, who played Dr. Astrov, with Michael Redgrave as Vanya. There's a quote on the package it came in from the London Sunday "Times": "The admitted master achievement of British 20th century theatre...". It pleases me to think that there will always be people who find relevance in Chekhov's work.
