The Escape of Chekhov’s Characters through Religion
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47451/art2022-05-02Keywords:
Chekhov, Christ, philosophy, religion, love, sacrificeAbstract
In a study that involves the interpretation of such complex characters as those in the sphere of Russian writing, I inevitably reached issues like faith, soul, religion, suffering and aspirations. Considering that mysticism underlies the Russian soul, I tried to understand the human dimension of the characters from Chekhov’s plays, Three sisters, Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard and The Seagull. Thus, I analysed the abyssal Slavic soul through the ideas of Russian mystical school and its representatives, Paul Evdokimov and Nikolai Berdiaev, starting from the image of Christ in Russian thinking. “The soul of the Russian man is directed to the Kingdom of God, but yields easily to temptations, imitations, and illusions, and easily falls into the power of the kingdom of darkness.” For Chekhov, one must be faithful or go in search of faith, otherwise his life will be deserted. This study is intended for those interested in russian dramatic characters and their search for faith.
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