CHEKHOV'S "THE SEA GULL"

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Chekhov's innovativeness as a playwright is usually associated with his lack of "traditional drama principle" - understood as a clash of wills. However, proceeding from an understanding of conflict as we define it, it must be recognized that "The Sea Gull" does contain a struggle which, as will be demonstrated, is as complicated as in any other play, though the logic behind the actions of each character is deeply hidden. Which changes the "traditional drama principle" underwent in "The Seagull", will be demonstrated through comparing the ways of conveying information on characters" actions 1n plays by Chekhov to those of his predecessors. The most basic distinction is the absence of the explicit information about motives and aims of the play's characters. The motivation and purposes of characters in works by Lermontov, Gogol, Ostrovski (in his earlier plays) can be revealed quite easily. Moreover, the authors do it themselves, through the words of their characters. The logic behind actions of a character driven by love or greed is quite transparent. In the character comedies this logic bears the mark of the traditional patterns of behavior while greed recedes into the background. In any of the above cases a character's desire to ach1eve his goal determines his every action and reaction. These goals are attainable within a plot; they can be achieved as a result of certain actions and favorable circumstances. A romantic character's goals are Limited: once he achieves them, he has nothing else to do and the action stops. This is a situation Unknown, a character of Lermontov's "Masquerade", finds himself in after he takes his vengeance. It is possible to imagine what the subsequent life of Lypochka and Podkhaluzin, of Ostrovski's "It's a Family Affair"", would be like, but their motives are exhausted: the clash of wills resulted in their victory.
In traditional drama, a character's personality is always a concrete manifestation confined by certain bounds: while Khlestakoy's case is typical and can repeat itself, the events described in "Revizor" ("The Inspector General") begin and end within the play.
 The case of "The Sea Gull" characters is  more complicated . Their conscious goals transcend the bounds of the play and determine not only their mutual attitudes but also their social condition and their place in history and in eternity. Hence the impression that the characters carry on a struggle against their time and the whole "tenor of life". On this background their personal conflicts seem insignificant. However, the characters' goals, as they understand them, are not always their true goals. In Chekhov's plays, the verbally formulated information is not to be trusted. Or not entirely.
 When Kazarin in Lermontoy's "Masquerade" says: "I should draw Arbenin into playing one more time", or when Lypochka speaks about her desire to leave her parents' home and arrange her life in fashion, this is exactly what they mean and they confirm it with their actions. Which is more than can be said about Treplev, to quote just one example, when he advocates the new forms in art.
 Chehkov's  characters'  penchant  for reflection on their  activities and goals as they relate to eternal human values leads to a distortion of their self-appraisal. They form an unrealistic image of themselves which they cannot and do not live up to. Therefore, they do not only fail, within the plot, to achieve the goal they think they aspire to, but their actions are also directed elsewhere. The true direction of a character's actions can be revealed through a general analysis of his behavior.
 All of a character's actions must be arranged chronologically and examined for the presence of a definable direction. Considering that "direction" is a common denominator, an element present in every single act, the more contradictory a character's actions, the higher the level of generalization that is required. Such an approach to characters' actions makes it possible to dlscard unessential details of their behavior .

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