Uncle Vanya (Russian: Дя́дя Ва́ня, tr. Dyádya Ványa, IPA: [ˈdʲædʲə ˈvanʲə]) is a play by the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. It was first published in 1898, and was first produced in 1899 by the Moscow Art Theatre under the direction of Konstantin Stanislavski.
The play portrays the visit of an elderly professor and his glamorous, much younger second wife, Yelena, to the rural estate that supports their urban lifestyle. Two friends—Vanya, brother of the professor's late first wife, who has long managed the estate, and Astrov, the local doctor—both fall under Yelena's spell, while bemoaning the ennui of their provincial existence. Sonya, the professor's daughter by his first wife, who has worked with Vanya to keep the estate going, suffers from her unrequited feelings for Astrov. Matters are brought to a crisis when the professor announces his intention to sell the estate, Vanya and Sonya's home, with a view to investing the proceeds to achieve a higher income for himself and his wife.
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“..when one has no real life, one lives by mirages. It's still better than nothing.”
“What must human beings be, to destroy what they can never create?”
“There is no greater sorrow than to know another's secret when you cannot help them.”
“Everything should be first-rate in a person, his face, clothes, soul and thoughts.”
“An idle life cannot be pure.”
“Man is endowed with reason and the power to create, so that he may increase that which has been given him, but until now he has not created, but demolished.”
“I used to think every fool was out of his senses, but now I see that lack of sense is a man's normal state, and you are perfectly normal.”
“God alone knows what a man's real calling is.”
“...shallow in thought, shallow in feeling.”
“When real life is wanting one must create an illusion. It is better than nothing.”
Anton Chekhov was born on January 29th ,1860 in the small seaport of Taganrog, Ukraine. He is regarded as one of Russia’s most cherished story tellers. He has produced some hilarious one-acts, but his tragic stories have gained him the name of being one of the major dramatists. Today, he is remembered as a playwright and one of the masters of the modern short story. He was the grandson of a serf and the son of a grocer, whose religious fanaticism caused much of his early years to reside under its shadow. While he was studying medicine at the University of Moscow, he began writing short stories. After graduating in 1884, he worked as a freelance writer and journalist. He used the money gathered from writing to support himself and his family, and by 1886, he had gained wide fame. Chekhov’s works were published in various St. Petersburg papers The Shooting Party published by him was translated into English in 1926.
In the early part of his career, he mastered the art of one-act and produced some fine pieces. In 1888, he wrote a story, The Bear, in which a creditor pursues a young widow, but later proposes marriage to her after being impressed that she’s agreed to fight a duel with him. In 1889, he wrote The Wedding, which became an instant hit amongst his fans.
While contributing regularly to St. Petersburg daily Novoe Vremia he developed the style of calm writing. He was criticized by his opponents because his stories lacked social commentary, at the same time, he was praised by authors such as Leo Tolstoy and Nikolai Leskov.
In 1888, Chekhov was rewarded the Pushkin Prize and in 1889 he was elected a member of the Society of Lovers of Russian Literature. He withdrew from Literature and turned to Science for a while when his play, The Wood Demon failed in 1889. As a part of his doctoral research, he made a trip to the penal colony of Sakhalin, north of Siberia, where he surveyed 10,000 convicts sentenced to life on the island. During the latter half of the year, he traveled all over the word, including South East Asia, the Indian Subcontinent, and the Middle East.
In 1901, Chekhov married an actress who had performed in his plays, Olga Knipper, On July 15, 1904, in Badenweiler, Germany, Chekhov died. He is buried in the cemetery of the Novodeviche Monastery in Moscow.
Source: famousauthors.org
