OSHER 262 - Anton Chekhov's Play and Selected Short Stories:The Seagull, The Three Sisters,& the Chekhovian Mood

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1864-1904) was raised the son of a freed serf in Taganrog, Russia. He became a Doctor, a noted short story writer (he wrote in order to make money to go to medical school) and finally an international playwright. The Chekhovian "mood" is especially noteworthy in that through his characters he creates an atmosphere of ironic absurdity, aching sadness, and profound insight into the nature of the human being and the world. It often evokes in the reader an attitude of what has been called "laughter through tears" as well as human understanding. We will read two plays, The Seagull (recently made into a new movie) and The Three Sisters. If time allows, we will also read some short stories to be selected in class. ISBN: For the plays I recommend the anthology "Four great Plays: The Sea Gull, The Cherry Orchard, Three Sisters, Uncle Vanya." Tr. Constance Garnett. Mass Market paperback, 1963 ($4.50, used $1.99). For the short stories, any number of editions are available (this is also true of the plays) and I am sure most will have different texts, but we should be able to find stories that everyone has.