'אין-אונים של הלב': זיקתו של א"נ גנסין ליצירתו של א"פ צ'כוב

Uri Nissan Gnessin (1879-1913) had a powerful connection to the works of the great Russian authors: Gogol, Turgenev, Tolstoy. Particularly striking is his relation to the work of Anton Chekhov, in terms of language, characterization, subject matter, ideological background, and composition. The present paper focuses upon Gnessin's novel By (Etsel), which is compared to Chekhov's Uncle Vanya and to his stories 'Springtime', 'Talent', 'Willow', 'Verochka', 'Misery', 'The Duel', and 'Witch'. I find similarities in the fashioning of many subjects, such as the scenes of nature that concretize the hero's loneliness. The protagonist is 'a superfluous man' of the type made known by Goncharov, Lermontov, Turgenev and Panaev. He is unable to sustain an ongoing romantic relationship and as a result of the failure of his relationships with women undertakes a pathetic and ridiculous attempt to murder his rival or to commit suicide. However, notwithstanding the similarities, there are important differences between the two. Chekhov's works are fashioned with a humoristic, melancholy and lyrical atmosphere, while Gnessin creates a heavy, frigid atmosphere of suffering and thoughts of the destruction that await the hero and the author at the end of their path. Chekhov is a literary artist whose style is reminiscent of a comedy, while Gnessin is a philosopher, whose work is written in an existential, suicidal mood.