Story Title: Hush Page Number: 142-144
General discussion of the Story: The short story Hush is a story about a writer and his emotions and how it affects the people around him. The story begins with the speaker Ivan Krasnukin, a mediocre newspaper writer, returning home late in the evening looking completely drained of energy and as if he was contemplating suicide. After a sufficient amount of complaining, he proceeds to wake his sleeping wife to inform her that he needs his tea and a beefsteak so he can begin to write. He enters his room and begins to think about his subject. Shortly after he hears his wife, still half asleep, preparing his tea in the kitchen. He then goes into the kitchen and begins lamenting to his wife. His wife then brings him his tea, making sure to tiptoe so she doesn’t disturb him. Although he sees her he pretends to be oblivious to her presence. After careful consideration he finally begins to write. It is as if he has been taken over, he does not stop writing, barely having time to turn the page. His sons cries are shushed by the mother; “Papa is writing! Hush!” Time passes quickly, and before he knows it it’s already three O’clock. Feelings slightly weak, he wakes his wife up once more demanding tea. He writes till four, then goes to sleep. No one dares to wake him from his sleep, and whoever does will pay dearly. The setting of this story is as mediocre as the main character, and slightly gloomy. There is an overall depressed and unhappy tone throughout the story. Although the mood is quite low-spirited, I find it slightly humorous how Chekhov shows how when the writer is suffering, it is actually his wife and those around him that suffer most. This can be seen when he forces his wife to awaken from her sleep for the sole purpose of making him a cup of tea. It is quite selfish in a way, but it helps to convey the central theme for the short story, which is the emotions of a writer and the dramatic lifestyle that they endure to put words on paper.
Literary discussion of the story: From the very beginning of the short story, Anton Chekhov grabs the reader’s attention by a contradictory description of the main character. He is described as both “contemplating suicide” and “tremendously concentrated”. The dramatic outburst made by Ivan gives the reader a mental image of his character. Chekhov uses immensely descriptive language to describe the work are of the main character. “Here are little busts and pictures of famous
