Remembering and Forgetting in Chekhov

• In Event: The Vanishing Self: The Politics of Forgetting in Russophone and Balkan Literatures and Film

Abstract

The implications of remembering and forgetting are everywhere in Chekhov, one of his fundamental themes.  They are above all framed in terms of individual psychology and ethics; but that extends to what might be called the ethical impact on readers of his narratives and viewers of his plays, particularly as regards the function of repetition in his poetics.  This paper proposes to outline the topic in brief discussions of works that turn on remembering forgetting, such as the stories “Rothschild’s Fiddle,” “My Life,” and “Three Years,” as well as his play, Gull.

Author

• Michael C. Finke, U of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign