> Skip to content
  • Published: 2 February 2004
  • ISBN: 9780812970081
  • Imprint: Random House US Group
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 128
  • RRP: $34.00

The Duel



First published in 1891, this morality tale pits a scientist, a government worker, his mistress, a deacon, and a physician against one another in a verbal battle of wits and ethics that explodes into a violent contest: the duel. When Laevsky, a lazy youth who works for the government, tires of his dependent mistress, Nadyezhda Fyodorovna, Von Koren, the scientist, delivers a scathing critique of Loevsky’s egotism, forcing the young man to examine his soul. The Duel is a tale of human weakness, the possibility of forgiveness, and a man’s ultimate ability to change his ways. It is classic Chekhov, revealing the multifaceted essence of human nature.

  • Published: 2 February 2004
  • ISBN: 9780812970081
  • Imprint: Random House US Group
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 128
  • RRP: $34.00

About the author

Anton Chekhov

Anton Chekhov was a Russian author and playwright who has been hailed as the master of the modern short story. Born in 1860 in Taganov, he studied at medical school before becoming a writer. Among his best known short tales are 'The Steppe' (which won him the Pushkin Prize in 1888), 'Ward No. 6' (1892) and 'The Lady with the Dog' (1889), while his plays include The Seagull (1895), Uncle Vanya (1897), The Three Sisters (1901) and The Cherry Orchard (1904), all of which are widely acclaimed as masterpieces. He died in July 1904 in Badenweiler, Germany.

Also by Anton Chekhov

See all