“At Home” – Anton Chekhov’s Textbook for Parents

Artur Sadecki

Abstract


In the paper one of Anton Chekhov’s works devoted to childhood, an 1887 short story At Home, falls under the scrutiny. Its action appears to be limited to a conversation between Bykovsky, the father who works as prosecutor for the circuit court, and Seryozha, the son who has been found smoking. Were it not for the main hero – the father – this short story would not have been placed as one of the exceptional pieces in Chekhov’s writings. Bykovsky comprehends the reality properly and his course of action is crowned with success, meaning the son stops smoking. His way of thinking reveals a deep understanding of children’s raising rules. Firstly, he is aware that a child has its own, separate world of thoughts and feelings. In this way, the father using his own words describes the phenomenon, which is now being investigated by the so-called Theory of Mind. Secondly, Bykovsky achieves success when he tells his son a fairy tale about the harmful effects of smoking. It apparently shows that he is conscious of the role of narration in the process of education, which is also an axiom in contemporary science. Therefore, it can be concluded that the short story At Home is a kind of an artistic “guide for parents”.

Keywords


Chekhov; children’s raising; Theory of Mind; narration

References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17951/en.2020.5.299-311
Date of publication: 2020-12-31 10:41:47
Date of submission: 2019-10-10 19:27:53


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