Rethinking Hoffmann’s Traditions in Chekhov’s Early Stories

This article examines the refraction of the Romantic tradition, dating back to the work of E. T. A. Hoffmann, in the early stories of A. P. Chekhov from the 1880s. Hoffmannian intertext in Chekhov’s works is identified using the methodology of the “Hoffmann complex”, which is characterized by the unity of subject matter, imagery, and style. Chekhov uses Hoffmannian intertext not so much to parody classical literary images and plots as to expose the falsehood of life, demonstrating the impoverishment of personality, voluntary slavery, and the descent into vulgarity under the influence of others and the environment.