Bao Hu lao Biography Library · Giants 100 -- Chekhov

Author: Zhao Peiyu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1998-10-01
Features: We are delighted to recommend the "Giant Biographies Series" to young friends. At the turn of the century, having such a fine series accompany you is a joy in wisdom. We believe that from the footsteps of these giants and masters, you can learn how to handle success and failure, comfort and hardship, joy and pain, smoothness and trials, understand how to face life, how to be a person, how to pursue knowledge, how to shape oneself, and how to shape the future.
Principal of Peking University: Zhao Yulin
Party Secretary: Dong Lingsheng
Principal of Tsinghua University: Zhao Qinggang
Giants are the elite of humanity. They have made outstanding contributions to the progress and civilization of human society. Their spirit of struggle and extraordinary achievements are deeply admired by people, becoming models for others to learn from. Giants are human, not gods; they come from ordinary people but surpass them. Their lofty ideals and belief in serving the country and humanity are the driving force behind their relentless efforts and fearlessness of difficulties.
Principal of Tianjin Nankai: Kang Xiuyan
By carefully reading this series, you will feel their appearance, speech, and actions, and experience their ideals, beliefs, ambitions, and moral integrity. This will help you learn how to be a person, how to pursue knowledge, and how to build a career.
Principal of Fudan University: Cao Tianren
Anton Chekhov (1860–1904) was a short story master renowned alongside the French writer Guy de Maupassant. Most Chinese students first learn about him through the short stories "The" (The) and "The" (The) in their middle school textbooks. Chekhov was born on January 29, 1860, to a grocer in Russia. He grew up in poverty and supported himself and his education by working as a private tutor. After graduating from the medical faculty of Moscow University in 1884, he became a doctor. His extensive contact with society and the people enriched his experiences, providing material for his future writing. From his second year of medical school, Chekhov began publishing short stories in humorous publications. Over his 20-year career, he wrote more than 400 short and medium-length stories and over a dozen plays. He created a unique style of lyrical psychological fiction—concise, artful, and masterfully crafted. He extracted fragments of ordinary daily life and used clever artistic techniques to portray life and characters with realism, subtly revealing profound social content. He believed that "genius is the sister of conciseness" and that "the skill of writing is the skill of cutting out what is bad." Chekhov's works are rich in content, with representative pieces such as "The" and "The" exposing the cruelty and shamelessness of the ruling class; "The" and "The" reflecting the vulgarity and ugliness of petty bourgeoisie; "The," "The," and "The" authentically depicting the suffering, life, and tragic fate of the working class; and "The" and "The" deeply revealing the emptiness and frustration of intellectuals, as well as their longing for renewal. His plays, such as "The" and "The," are similar to his novels in that they appear to tell ordinary life stories on the surface, but upon closer inspection, they contain profound thoughts, with dialogues often rich in subtext. His final play, "The," echoed the voice of young Russia: "Goodbye, old life!" "Hello, new life!" Chekhov passed away on July 15, 1904, in Germany. As the last outstanding realist literary giant of Russia in the late 19th century, he gained immense international acclaim for his unprecedented focus on the fate of "small people" and his merciless exposure of the autocracy and hypocrisy of the Tsarist regime. Chekhov's works had a wide influence in many countries in Europe and America. Soon after his death, his works were translated into Chinese and introduced to Chinese readers. His plays "The," "The," and "The" were translated into Chinese as early as 1921 and 1925 by the writers Zheng Zhenduo and Cao Jinghua. The Yan'an Lu Xun Art Institute frequently performed Chekhov's works. Today, almost all of his novels and plays have Chinese translations.