For the Winter and Spring sessions, the group will engage in a detailed exploration of the short stories of Anton Chekhov, often viewed as the originator of the contemporary short-story form. The stories for January 24 are Chekhov's "Enemies" and "Gusev." These can be found in Anton Chekhov's Selected Stories (Norton 2014, edited by Cathy Popkin). For background, read Aileen Kelly's "Chekhov the Subversive" (Norton, 501-10) and miscellaneous letters in Norton. Particularly recommended are the letter to Chekhov's ne'er-do-well elder brother Nikolai (p. 514 ff. ), those to his patron, the wealthy editor Alexei Suvorin (especially p. 513, 523, 526, 529), and the letters to his wife, the actress Olga Knipper (p. 541 ff.). Leading the discussion is Ellen Lambert, who has a Ph.D. from Yale in English and taught high-school English at The Dalton School for over 25 years. Feel free to contact Ellen at or 914-582-4050 with any questions.
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