Of Interpretation and Stolen Kisses: From Poetics to Metapoetics in Chekhov’s “Potselui” (1887)
Of Interpretation and Stolen Kisses: From Poetics to Metapoetics in Chekhov’s “Potselui” (1887)

Summary/Abstract: Among the underappreciated areas of Chekhov’s poetics is his frequent operation at the metapoetic level, often in works that, on the surface, appear thoroughly referential. Many of Chekhov’s works not only manifest, but actually portray aspects of the creation and reception of literature (and other art forms). A tendency toward self-reflexivity was evident in Chekhov’s very first publications, as is apparent in the title of his second work, “Chto chashche vsego vstrechaetsia v romanakh, povestiakh i t. p.?” [“What Is Most Often Encountered in Novels, Tales, and So On?”]; arguably, it persisted to the very end of his life: the humorous anecdote he related to his wife shortly before dying in Badenweiler, which involved a resort hotel’s clientele waiting futilely for their evening meal, unaware that the chef had abandoned his post, surely anticipated Chekhov’s own imminent departure from this world.

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