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What Do I Read Next?
(Short Stories for Students)
"The Dead,’’ James Joyce's classic short story published in 1914. This story concerns a middle-aged man who discovers a secret about his wife's past which leads him to reflect on love and mortality. Set at a lively but haunted Christmas party in Dublin, Ireland, Joyce's story ends with a scene that contains striking similarities to the final scene in ''The Lady with the Pet Dog.''
"Learning from Chekhov,’’ by Francine Prose, in The Pushcart Prizes, Vol. 13, (1990). This down-to-earth and amusing novelist and short story writer reflects on a semester of teaching writing students important rules only to see them broken again and again in the stories of Chekhov, which she is reading each night on the bus home. Provides very accessible insights into Chekhov's artistry.
Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy. One of Russia's best known novelists, this is the novel on which some critics say Chekhov based ''The Lady with the Pet Dog.’’
"The Name Day Party,’’ by Anton Chekhov. Also known as ''The Birthday Party'' or ''The Party.’’ One of Chekhov's greatest works, this story of profound marital discontent is told from a woman's point of view.
Uncle Vanya, by Chekhov. This play features, among others, a bored wife at a country estate and a restless rural doctor who hopes to seduce her. They do not act on their impulse as do the characters in ''The Lady with the Pet Dog,'' but their situation still leads to painful complexity.
Where I'm Calling From by Raymond Carver published in 1989. This modern American short story writer of spare, humane, "minimalist" fiction was greatly influenced by Chekhov. This collection concludes with the story "Errand," about Chekhov's death. Carver himself died shortly after this work was published.