Critics have long debated Chekhov's perspective on women, especially as portrayed in his short story "The Darling." In your own view, what does this story seem to "say" about women's role in Russian society? How would you compare and contrast this perspective with his short story "The Lady with the Dog"?

Chekhov is as well known for his plays as he is for his short stories. His greatest plays include: Uncle Vanya (1896), The Cherry Orchard (1904), The Seagull (1896), and Three Sisters. Choose one of these plays to read. What, in your assessment, is meant by the common remark that the message of Chekhov's plays is simply "You live badly, ladies and gentlemen." To what extent are his plays, and this message, meaningful to the contemporary audience?

Great Russian writers of the nineteenth century include Ivan Turgenev, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Leo Tolstoy, and Maxim Gorky...