--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To define his tendency in a word, I would…" description: "\"“To define his tendency in a word, I would say that Chekhov was the poet of hopelessness. Stubbornly, sadly, monotonously, during all the years of his ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/042/lev-shestov-12374_chekhov_to-define-his-tendency-in-a-word-i-would_2839550.jpg" --- # To define his tendency in a word, I would say that Chekhov… ![“To define his tendency in a word, I would say that Chekhov was the poet of hopelessness. Stubbornly, sadly, monotonously, during all the years of his literary activity, nearly a quarter of a century long, Chekhov was doing one alone: by one means or another he was killing human hopes. Herein, I…” quote by Lev Shestov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/042/lev-shestov-12374_chekhov_to-define-his-tendency-in-a-word-i-would_2839550.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/042/lev-shestov-12374_chekhov_to-define-his-tendency-in-a-word-i-would_2839550.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/042/lev-shestov-12374_chekhov_to-define-his-tendency-in-a-word-i-would_2839550.jpg) > ““To define his tendency in a word, I would say that Chekhov was the poet of hopelessness. Stubbornly, sadly, monotonously, during all the years of his literary activity, nearly a quarter of a century long, Chekhov was doing one alone: by one means or another he was killing human hopes. Herein, I hold, lies the essence of his creation. Hitherto it has been little spoken of. The reasons are quite intelligible. In ordinary language what Chekhov was doing is called crime, and is visited by condign punishment. But how can a man of talent be punished?”” [Lev Shestov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-shestov/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Chekhov’s work repeatedly extinguishes hope, reflecting a tragic view of humanity that feels like a moral crime. **In simple terms:** Chekhov often kills hope in his stories. Key Takeaway Recognize the impact of bleak narratives. Themes hopelessness artistic tragedy human condition Mood analytical thought‑provoking Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - reading literature - writing fiction - teaching literature - psychotherapy discussions Key Concepts existentialism literary criticism Questions to Reflect On - Why do authors choose to portray despair? - Can confronting hopelessness foster deeper empathy? A Different Perspective Some argue that hope is essential for resilience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chekhov/) [Chekhov Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chekhov-doing-3714265/) [Chekhov Poet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chekhov-poet-1233938/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Language Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language-chekhov-3714267/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Quarter of a century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quarter-of-a-century/) [Say Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/say-chekhov-3714266/) ## Related quotes > [I come from the theatre where there are no boundaries to the style you're doing; you're doing Molière, then you're doing Chekhov and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-ruffalo/i-come-from-the-theatre-where-there-are-no-boundaries-to-the-style/) [Mark Ruffalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-ruffalo/) > [Chekhov is this poet of melancholy and isolation and of wishing you were somewhere else than where you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/chekhov-is-this-poet-of-melancholy-and-isolation-and-of-wishing-you/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Art, science, love, inspiration, ideals—choose out all the words with which humanity is wont, or has been in the past, to be consoled or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-shestov/art-science-love-inspiration-ideals-choose-out-all-the-words-with/) [Lev Shestov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-shestov/) > [“Anton Chekhov tells the truth neither out of love or respect for the truth, nor yet because, in the Kantian manner, a high duty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-shestov/anton-chekhov-tells-the-truth-neither-out-of-love-or-respect-for-the/) [Lev Shestov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-shestov/) > [“If he tells the truth, it is because the most reeking lie no longer intoxicates him, even though he swallow it not in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-shestov/if-he-tells-the-truth-it-is-because-the-most-reeking-lie-no-longer/) [Lev Shestov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-shestov/) > [“He did not want to be original; he made superhuman efforts to be like everybody else: but there is no escaping one's destiny.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-shestov/he-did-not-want-to-be-original-he-made-superhuman-efforts-to-be-like/) [Lev Shestov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-shestov/) > [“in this direction-and he has been dead for not more than a quarter of a century. 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I always imagined I'd end up doing Chekhov, Ibsen and Shakespeare all my life and never play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-kingston/i-don-t-think-my-looks-are-modern-i-always-imagined-i-d-end-up-doing/) [Alex Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-kingston/) > [“Any idiot can face a crisis, it is day to day living that wears you out. —Anton Chekhov”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/any-idiot-can-face-a-crisis-it-is-day-to-day-living-that-wears-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Chekhov will seek out the key situation in the life of a cabman or a charwoman, and make them glow for a brief moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-wilson-lynd/chekhov-will-seek-out-the-key-situation-in-the-life-of-a-cabman-or-a/) [Robert Wilson Lynd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-wilson-lynd/) > [As Michael (Chekhov)'s pupil, I learned more about acting. 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Let's begin with man; let's be kind and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vasily-grossman/chekhov-said-let-s-put-god-and-all-these-grand-progressive-ideas-to/) [Vasily Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vasily-grossman/) > [Reading Chekhov was just like the angels singing to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eudora-welty/reading-chekhov-was-just-like-the-angels-singing-to-me/) [Eudora Welty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eudora-welty/) > [When we remove the snowdrift piled up over Chekhov in recent years, we uncover a man profoundly agitated by social problems; a writer whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yevgeny-zamyatin/when-we-remove-the-snowdrift-piled-up-over-chekhov-in-recent-years-we/) [Yevgeny Zamyatin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yevgeny-zamyatin/) > [Read the great stuff, but read the stuff that isn't so great, too. Great stuff is very discouraging. If you read only Beckett and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/read-the-great-stuff-but-read-the-stuff-that-isn-t-so-great-too-great/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [I'll never forget reading Chekhov's "A Doctor's Visit" on a train to Hawthorne, New York, and I got to the end - the scene…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ross/i-ll-never-forget-reading-chekhov-s-a-doctor-s-visit-on-a-train-to/) [Adam Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ross/) [Browse all 132 Chekhov quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chekhov/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“To define his tendency in a word, I would say that Chekhov was the poet of hopelessness. Stubbornly, sadly, monotonously, during all the years of his literary activity, nearly a quarter of a century long, Chekhov was doing one alone: by one means or another he was killing human hopes. 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