Uncle Vanya Quotes

“A woman can become a man's friend only in the following stages - first an acquantaince, next a mistress, and only then a friend.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“..when one has no real life, one lives by mirages. It's still better than nothing.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“SONIA: What can we do? We must live our lives. [A pause] Yes, we shall live, Uncle Vanya. We shall live through the long procession of days before us, and through the long evenings; we shall patiently bear the trials that fate imposes on us; we shall work for others without rest, both now and when we are old; and when our last hour comes we shall meet it humbly, and there, beyond the grave, we shall say that we have suffered and wept, that our life was bitter, and God will have pity on us. Ah, then dear, dear Uncle, we shall see that bright and beautiful life; we shall rejoice and look back upon our sorrow here; a tender smile—and—we shall rest. I have faith, Uncle, fervent, passionate faith. [SONIA kneels down before her uncle and lays her head on his hands. She speaks in a weary voice] We shall rest. [TELEGIN plays softly on the guitar] We shall rest. We shall hear the angels. We shall see heaven shining like a jewel. We shall see all evil and all our pain sink away in the great compassion that shall enfold the world. Our life will be as peaceful and tender and sweet as a caress. I have faith; I have faith. [She wipes away her tears] My poor, poor Uncle Vanya, you are crying! [Weeping] You have never known what happiness was, but wait, Uncle Vanya, wait! We shall rest. [She embraces him] We shall rest. [The WATCHMAN’S rattle is heard in the garden; TELEGIN plays softly; MME. VOITSKAYA writes something on the margin of her pamphlet; MARINA knits her stocking] We shall rest.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“What must human beings be, to destroy what they can never create?”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“This man, who for twenty-five years has been reading and writing about art, and in all that time has never understood anything about art, has for twenty-five years been hashing over other people's ideas about realism, naturalism and all that nonsense; for twenty-five years he has been reading and writing about what intelligent people already know and about what stupid people don't want to know--which means that for twenty-five years he's been taking nothing and making nothing out of it. And with it all, what conceit! What pretension!”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“One hundred years from now, the people who come after us, for whom our lives are showing the way--will they think of us kindly? Will they remember us with a kind word? I wish to God I could think so.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“There is no greater sorrow than to know another's secret when you cannot help them.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“Everything should be first-rate in a person, his face, clothes, soul and thoughts.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“When a woman is plain, people say, 'What beautiful eyes you have, beautiful hair.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“HELENA. What a fine day! Not too hot. [A pause.]

VOITSKI. A fine day to hang oneself.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“..One has to be a mindless barbarian to burn such beauty in a stove, to destroy what we can not create..”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“A woman can only become a man's friend after having first been his acquaintance and then his beloved—then she becomes his friend.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“And the existence is tedious, anyway; it is a senseless, dirty business, this life.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“he is a man of genius. Do you know what that means? It means he is brave, profound, and of clear insight. He plants a tree and his mind travels a thousand years into the future, and he sees visions of the happiness of the human race. People like him are rare and should be loved.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“Who but a stupid barbarian could burn so much beauty in his stove and destroy that which he cannot make? Man is endowed with reason and the power to create, so that he may increase that which has been given him, but until now he has not created, but demolished. The forests are disappearing, the rivers are running dry, the game is exterminated, the climate is spoiled, and the earth becomes poorer and uglier every day.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“God alone knows what a man's real calling is.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“for twenty-five years he has been reading and writing things that clever men have long known and stupid ones are not interested in;”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“An idle life cannot be pure.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“I used to think every fool was out of his senses, but now I see that lack of sense is a man's normal state, and you are perfectly normal.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“Why cannot you look calmly at a woman unless she is yours?”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“Man is endowed with reason and the power to create, so that he may increase that which has been given him, but until now he has not created, but demolished.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“If you could only see your face, your gestures! Oh, how tedious your life must be.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“But, as I was saying, life holds nothing for me; my race is run. I am old, I am tired, I am trivial; my sensibilities are dead. I could never attach myself to any one again.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“When real life is wanting one must create an illusion. It is better than nothing.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“...shallow in thought, shallow in feeling.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“In your veins flows a mermaid’s blood, so be a mermaid.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“Why cannot you look calmly at a woman unless she is yours? Because, the doctor was right, you are all possessed by a devil of destruction; you have no mercy on the woods or the birds or on women or on one another.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“My life has been a failure. I am clever and brave and strong. If I had lived a normal life I might have become another Schopenhauer or Dostoieffski. I am losing my head!”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“Ne yapabiliriz? Yaşamak gerek! Yaşayacağız Vanya Dayı. Çok uzun günler, boğucu akşamlar geçireceğiz. Alınyazımızın bütün sınavlarına sabırla katlanacağız. Bugün de, yaşlılığımızda da, dinlenmek bilmeden, başkaları için çalışıp didineceğiz. Ecel saati gelip çatınca da uysalca öleceğiz ve orda, mezarın ötesinde, çok acı çektik, gözyaşı döktük, çok acı şeyler yaşadık diyeceğiz... Tanrı da acıyacak bize ve biz seninle canım dayıcığım, parlak, güzel, sevimli bir hayata kavuşacağız ve buradaki mutsuzluklarımıza sevecenlikle, hoşgörüyle gülümseyeceğiz ve dinleneceğiz... İnanıyorum buna dayıcığım, bütün kalbimle, tutkuyla inanıyorum... Dinleneceğiz! Dinleneceğiz! Melekleri dinleyeceğiz, elmas gibi yıldızlarla kaplı gökleri göreceğiz. Dünyanın tüm kötülüklerinin, tüm acılarımızın, dünyayı baştan başa kaplayacak olan merhametin önünde silinip gittiğini göreceğiz ve hayatımız bir okşama gibi dingin, yumuşak ve tatlı olacak. İnanıyorum, inanıyorum buna! Zavallı, zavallı Vanya dayı, ağlıyorsun... Hayatında mutluluğu tadamadın, ama bekle Vanya dayı, bekle... Dinleneceğiz, Dinleneceğiz...”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya

“I am drunk. I usually only drink like this once a month. At such times my audacity and temerity know no bounds. I feel capable of anything. I attempt the most difficult operations and do them magnificently. The most brilliant plans for the future take shape in my head. I am no longer a poor fool of a doctor, but mankind's greatest benefactor. I evolve my own system of philosophy and all of you seem to crawl at my feet like so many insects or microbes.”
― Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya