Anton Pavlovich Chekhov Quotes on Art (4 Quotes)

In my opinion it is not the writer's job to solve such problems as God, pessimism, etc his job is merely to record who, under what conditions, said or thought what about God or pessimism. The artist is not meant to be a judge of his characters and what they say his only job is to be an impartial witness. I heard two Russians in a muddled conversation about pessimism, a conversation that solved nothing all I am bound to do is reproduce that conversation exactly as I heard it. Drawing conclusions is up to the jury, that is, the readers. My only job is to be talented, that is, to know how to distinguish important testimony from unimportant, to place my characters in the proper light and speak their language.

You are right in demanding that an artist approach his work consciously, but you are confusing two concepts the solution of a problem and the correct formulation of a problem. Only the second is required of the artist.

It is time for writers to admit that nothing in this world makes sense. Only fools and charlatans think they know and understand everything. The stupider they are, the wider they conceive their horizons to be. And if an artist decides to declare that he understands nothing of what he sees this in itself constitutes a considerable clarity in the realm of thought, and a great step forward.

The time has come for writers, especially those who are artists, to admit that in this world one cannot make anything out, just as Socrates once admitted it, just as Voltaire admitted it.