Ok, so here's the whole quote which is what I've always liked, but since I felt it violated the idea of my discussing the power and meaning of short quotes to throw that up initially, here it is:
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| Is it me, or does he look like Ed Norton here? |
Above quote was found here here - a great page with a bunch of Chekhov quotes on writing. So much great stuff there, but this one wins the blog post since it is one that I saw long ago and that stuck out to me. You know, there's no such thing as a free lunch. (Oh, wait... that doesn't apply to this.)
I think Chekhov is the greatest short story writer ever and he is also one of my favorite writers. So when he talks about craft, I sit up and listen. Do I think that great literature can be created that violates what he is saying, absolutely. There's probably a ton of it out there and I look to you literati to list some for me in the comments :) So, I don't think that this is the only way to write, but it certainly seems like one way of considering craft that could take a person a long way. Concerning oneself with the real people of the earth, representing them and their concerns honestly will take a writer very far. The further I get from undergrad and adolescence the further I get from trickery or novelty in form and subject matter and the closer I get to a more honest and realistic (at least I hope...) depiction of representavive/significant events with realistic characters. (well, to the best of my ability, etc, of course)
What do you all think of this quote?
As you know :), I don't like Chekov's fiction one bit. This quote, however, interests me b/c it makes me wonder how "fictionalized" his fiction actually is. Am I reading correctly what he's saying here: that he's trying to represent actual things he's heard/seen without, like, making stuff up?
ReplyDeleteIf so, that's sure an interesting view of "fiction" . . . .
I just spelled his name wrong. I knew it looked wrong. Oops.
ReplyDeleteWell, no, Chekhov is not ultimately advocating a sort-of pre-creative-nonfiction creative nonfiction. I can definitely see why you think that based on what he is saying above. But I can say as someone who has read (listened) to a lengthy biography of his and read a good deal of his work that he is not someone who is wed to autobiography.
ReplyDeleteHe does advocate here a fiction based heavily on actual reality but I think think he is just making a point about replicating dialogue here. And like probably any writer, Chekhov would likely steal bits of dialogue and character from his experience.