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Anton Chekhov Quotes - Page 17

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Who keeps the tavern and serves up the drinks? The peasant. Who squanders and drinks up money belonging to the peasant commune, the school, the church? The peasant. Who would steal from his neighbor, commit arson, and

Who keeps the tavern and serves up the drinks? The peasant. Who squanders and drinks up money belonging to the peasant commune, the school, the church? The peasant. Who would steal from his neighbor, commit arson, and falsely denounce another for a bottle of vodka? The peasant.

Country, Drinking, School

"Peasants". Book by Anton Chekhov, 1897.

You've only got to begin to do anything to find out how few honest, honourable people there are. Sometimes, when I can't sleep, I think: "Oh Lord, you've given us huge forests, infinite fields, and endless horizons, and we, living here, ought really to be giants.

Sleep, Thinking, People

Anton Chekhov (2015). “Greatest Works of Anton Chekhov: Plays, Short Stories, Novel and A Biography (Including The Steppe, Ward No. 6, Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, Three Sisters, On Trial, The Darling, The Bet, Vanka, After the Theatre and many more)”, p.575, e-artnow

The critics suppose that it is easy to write a play. They aren't aware that writing a good play is difficult and writing a bad one is twice as hard.

Writing, Play, Theatre

And what does it mean -- dying? Perhaps man has a hundred senses, and only the five we know are lost at death, while the other ninety-five remain alive.

Mean, Men, Dying

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1945). “The plays of Anton Chekov: nine plays including The seagull ... and others”

Is it our job to judge? The gendarme, policemen and bureaucrats have been especially prepared by fate for that job. Our job is towrite, and only to write.

Jobs, Writing, Fate

Letter to L.A. Avilova, April 27, 1899.

Instructing in cures, therapists always recommend that "each case be individualized." If this advice is followed, one becomes persuaded that those means recommended in textbooks as the best, means perfectly appropriate for the template case, turn out to be completely unsuitable in individual cases.

Mean, Medicine, Advice

"A Dreary Story". Short story by Anton Chekhov, 1889.

I swear fearfully at the conventions of the stage.

Theatre, Conventions, Stage

Anton Chekhov (2015). “The Life and Genius of Anton Chekhov: Letters, Diary, Reminiscences and Biography: Assorted Collection of Autobiographical Writings of the Renowned Russian Author and Playwright of Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, The Three Sisters and The Seagull”, p.250, e-artnow

A grimy fly can soil the entire wall and a small, dirty little act can ruin the entire proceedings.

Wall, Dirty, Ruins

Letter to A.N. Kanaev, March 26, 1883.

In all my life I never met anyone so frivolous as you two, so crazy and unbusinesslike. I tell you in plain Russian your property is going to be sold and you don't seem to understand what I say.

Crazy, Two, Mets

Anton Chekhov (2012). “Ten Plays”, p.296, Courier Corporation

To make a face from marble means to remove from the slab everything that is not the face

Mean, Faces, Slabs

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1964). “Letters on the short story, the drama, and other literary topics”

It's been a long time since I've had champagne.

Long, Champagne, Long Time

Anton Chekhov (2007). “The Complete Plays”, p.17, W. W. Norton & Company

Lermontov died at age twenty-eight and wrote more than have you and I put together. Talent is recognizable not only by quality, but also by the quantity it yields.

Yield, Eight, Age

Anton Chekhov's letter to P.A. Sergeenko, March 6, 1889.

There will come a time when everybody will know why, for what purpose, there is all this suffering, and there will be no more mysteries. But now we must live ... we must work, just work!

Suffering, Purpose, Mystery

Anton Chekhov (2013). “Delphi Complete Works of Anton Chekhov (Illustrated)”, p.678, Delphi Classics

When an actor has money he doesn't send letters, he sends telegrams.

Money, Actors, Literature

"Personal Quotes/ Biography". www.imdb.com.

Here I am with you & yet not for a single moment do I forget that there's an unfinished novel waiting for me.

Here I Am, Waiting, Forget

Anton Chekhov (2007). “Chekhov Plays”, p.97, Wordsworth Editions

Ivanov: Once I worked hard and thought a lot but I never got tired; now I do nothing and think of nothing, but I'm tired in body and spirit. My conscience aches day and night, I feel deeply guilty but I don't understand where I am actually at fault. And add to that my wife's illness, my lack of money, the constant bickering, gossip, unnecessary conversations, that stupid Borkin... My home has become loathsome to me and I find living there worse than torture.

Stupid, Home, Tired

To describe drunkenness for the colorful vocabulary is rather cynical. There is nothing easier than to capitalize on drunkards.

Drinking, Vocabulary, Cynical

Letter to N.A. Leikin, December 24, 1886.

When you're thirsty and it seems that you could drink the entire ocean that's faith; when you start to drink and finish only a glass or two that's science.

Ocean, Glasses, Two

You are right in demanding that an artist should take an intelligent attitude to his work, but you confuse two things: solving a problem and stating a problem correctly.

Artist, Two, Different

"Letters of Anton Chekhov to His Family and Friends: With Biographical Sketch". Book by Anton Chekhov, 1920.

All the great sages are as despotic as generals, and as ignorant and as indelicate as generals, because they feel secure of impunity.

Sage, Impunity

"Letters of Anton Chekhov to His Family and Friends: With Biographical Sketch". Book by Anton Chekhov, 1920.

Of course politics is an interesting and engrossing thing. It offers no immutable laws, nearly always prevaricates, but as far asblather and sharpening the mind go, it provides inexhaustible material.

Law, Interesting, Mind

Letter to A.S. Suvorin, January 4, 1889.

If I were asked to chose between execution and life in prison I would, of course, chose the latter. It's better to live somehow than not at all.

Execution, Prison, Capital Punishment

"The Bet". Short story by Anton Chekhov, 1889.

Capital punishment kills immediately, whereas lifetime imprisonment does so slowly. Which executioner is more humane? The one who kills you in a few minutes, or the one who wrests your life from you in the course of many years?

Years, Punishment, Doe

"The Bet". Short story by Anton Chekhov, 1889.

Oh, I don't object, of course, to cutting wood from necessity, but why destroy the forests? The woods of Russia are trembling under the blows of the axe. Millions of trees have perished. The homes of the wild animals and birds have been desolated; the rivers are shrinking, and many beautiful landscapes are gone forever. And why? Because men are too lazy and stupid to stoop down and pick up their fuel from the ground.

Beautiful, Stupid, Home

Anton Chekhov (2015). “The Collected Works of Anton Chekhov: Novellas, Short Stories, Plays, Letters & Diary: Three Sisters, Seagull , The Shooting Party, Uncle Vanya, Cherry Orchard, Chameleon, Tripping Tongue, On The Road, Vanka, Ward No. Six, Swedish Match, Nightmare, Bear, Reluctant Hero, Joy…”, p.308, e-artnow

One must never place a loaded rifle on the stage if it isn't going to go off. It's wrong to make promises you don't mean to keep.

Mean, Promise, Rifles

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