Premier playwright of modern theater and trailblazer of the short story, Anton Chekhov was also a practising doctor, journalist, writer of comic sketches, philanthropist and activist. This volume provides an accessible guide to Chekhov's multifarious interests and influences, with over 30 succinct chapters covering his rich intellectual milieu and his tumultuous socio-political environment, as well as the legacy of his work in over two centuries of interdisciplinary cultures and media around the world. With a Preface by Cornel West, a chronology and Further Reading list, this collection is the essential guide to Chekhov's writing and the manifold worlds he inhabited.

‘Chekhov (as Cornel West and Yuri Corrigan remind us) poses a problem for the academy: he is notoriously hard to explain or teach. Rather than attempting to pin this elusive author down, this volume provides many different frames and contexts in which Chekhov’s works can be read and interpreted. An essential guide for all teachers, readers, and lovers of Chekhov.’

Irina Paperno - University of California, Berkeley

‘Chekhov in Context is an invaluable resource, the volume I wish I’d had on my shelf my entire career.  But it’s so much more than the reference work that implies. Exquisitely conceived by Yuri Corrigan and beautifully executed by its distinguished contributors, the book explores the network of personal circumstances, social structures, literary institutions, humanistic and scientific disciplines, environmental concerns, and ideological urgencies of Chekhov’s world with extraordinary nuance.  Moreover, it does so not to account for or even to interpret Chekhov’s work, but (in Corrigan’s felicitous formulation) to ‘complicate’ it. The resulting treatment of individual works is stunning, as is the analysis of the ways in which Chekhov irrevocably altered the status quo.  The book makes a critical–and inspiring–contribution.  Kudos to all concerned.’

Cathy Popkin - Columbia University