727 Quotes by Anton Chekhov

  • Author Anton Chekhov
  • Quote

    It’s worth living abroad to study up on genteel and delicate manners. The maid smiles continuously; she smiles like a duchess on a stage, while at the same time it is clear from her face that she is exhausted from overwork.

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  • Author Anton Chekhov
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    You ask me what life is. That’s like asking what a carrot is. A carrot is a carrot, and there’s nothing more to know.

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  • Author Anton Chekhov
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    Three o’clock in the morning. The soft April night is looking at my windows and caressingly winking at me with its stars. I can’t sleep, I am so happy.

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  • Author Anton Chekhov
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    If in the first act you have hung a pistol on the wall, then in the following one it should be fired. Otherwise don’t put it there.

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  • Author Anton Chekhov
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    It is the writer’s business not to accuse and not to prosecute, but to champion the guilty, once they are condemned and suffer punishment.

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  • Author Anton Chekhov
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    When you're thirsty and it seems that you could drink the entire ocean, that's faith; when you start to drink and finish only a glass or two, that's science.

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  • Author Anton Chekhov
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    Passion must be concealed in a society where cold reserve and indifference are the signs of good breeding.

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  • Author Anton Chekhov
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    You must trust and believe in people, or life becomes impossible.

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  • Author Anton Chekhov
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    Doctors are the same as lawyers, the sole difference being that lawyers only rob you, but doctors rob you and kill you too.

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