A Tragedian in Spite of Himself

Play by Anton Chekhov

A Tragedian in Spite of Himself Russian: Трагик поневоле, romanized: Tragik ponyevole, also known as A Reluctant Tragic Hero) is an 1889 one-act play by Anton Chekhov.

Synopsis

In the play, Ivan Ivanovitch Tolkachov asks to borrow a revolver from his friend, Alexey Alexeyevitch Murashkin. Murashkin inquires to the reason, and Tolkachov complains bitterly about the bad events in his life. Murashkin expresses his sympathy, and then asks Tolkachov to take a sewing machine and a caged canary to Olga Pavlovna, a mutual acquaintance. On hearing Murashkin's request, Tolkachov snaps and begins chasing Murashkin around the room, screaming that he wants blood.

External links

Text of the play

Anton Chekhov

Bibliography

Plays

Platonov (1881)
On the Harmful Effects of Tobacco (1886, 1902)
Swansong (1887)
Ivanov (1887)
The Bear (1888)
A Tragedian in Spite of Himself (1889)
The Wedding (1889)
Tatiana Repina (1889)
The Wood Demon (1889)
A Marriage Proposal (1890)
The Festivities (1891)
The Seagull (1896)
Uncle Vanya (1897)
Three Sisters (1901)
The Cherry Orchard (1904)

Novel

The Shooting Party (1884)

Novellas

The Steppe (1888)
The Duel (1891)
The Story of an Unknown Man (1893)
Three Years (1895)
My Life (1896)

Short stories

Motley Stories (1886)	"An Enigmatic Nature" (1883) "The Death of a Government Clerk" (1883) "Fat and Thin" (1883) "Surgery" (1884) "The Chameleon (1884) "Oysters" (1884) "A Living Chronology" (1885) "Small Fry" (1885) "The Fish" (1885) "The Huntsman" (1885) "A Malefactor" (1885) "Children" (1886) "Misery" (1886) "Anyuta" (1886) "Ivan Matveyich" (1886)
In the Twilight (1887)	"The Requiem" (1886) "The Witch" (1886) "Agafya" (1886) "Easter Eve" (1886) "A Misfortune" (1886) "Home" (1887)
Stories (1888)	"The Privy Councillor" (1886) "Mire" (1886) "Vanka" (1886) "Happiness" (1887)
Gloomy People (1890)	"The Cattle-Dealers" (1887) "Sleepy" (1888) "A Dreary Story" (1889) "A Nervous Breakdown" (1889)
Ward No. 6 (1893)	"Gusev" (1890) "Peasant Wives" (1891) "Ward No. 6" (1892)
Novellas and Stories (1894)	"The Grasshopper" (1892) "In Exile" (1892) "The Black Monk" (1894) "Rothschild's Violin" (1894) "The Student" (1894) "The Teacher of Literature" (1894)
Little Trilogy (1898)	"The Man in the Case" (1898) "Gooseberries" (1898) "About Love" (1898)
Stories (1901)	"Anna on the Neck" (1895) "Ariadne" (1895) "The House with the Mezzanine" (1895) "Peasants" (1897) "The Petcheneg" (1897) "At Home" (1897) "In the Cart" (1897) "Ionych" (1898) "A Doctor's Visit" (1898) "On Official Duty" (1899) "The Darling" (1899)
Other stories	"The Complaints Book" (1884) "A Horsey Name" (1885) "Sergeant Prishibeyev" (1885) "Grisha" (1886) "A Gentleman Friend" (1886) "The Chorus Girl" (1886) "Shrove Tuesday" (1886) "First Aid" (1887) "The Runaway" (1887) "The Siren" (1887) "Boys" (1887) "Kashtanka" (1887) "A Story Without a Title" (1888) "The Bet" (1889) "Whitebrow" (1895) "The Lady with the Dog" (1899) "In the Ravine" (1900) "The Bishop" (1902) "Betrothed" (1903)