Reality Matters: Relevance of Ibsen’s The Wild Duck and Chekhov’s The Seagull to Daily Life

Year 2022, Volume: 9 Issue: 2, 181 - 191, 30.12.2022

Mahmut Kayaaltı

https://doi.org/10.26650/CONS2022-1148156

Abstract

Described as the pioneers of modern drama, Henrik Ibsen and Anton Chekhov shed light on the realities of daily life. Two of them, Ibsen’s The Wild Duck (1884) and Chekhov’s The Seagull (1895), defined as realistic dramas, are constantly compared with one another due to their shared and contrasting qualities. Even though these comparative studies contribute to clarifying areas such as plot, character analysis, themes, and symbols to establish a link between the two works, they do not explain the degree of their relevance to real life. Indeed, the problem is that Ibsen is regarded as the father of modern drama, and Chekhov’s implied to be inspired by Ibsen’s The Wild Duck while writing his The Seagull; because of that, the general conception is inclined to first’s literary supremacy over latter. Therefore, this study analyzes the relevance of these plays to daily life and examines which one is more realistic than the other. For such a comparison, it has been paid attention to the plots’ developments and the dialogues between the characters in both plays. 

Keywords

The Wild Duck, The Seagull, realism

Gerçeklik Meselesi: Ibsen'ın Yaban Ördeği ile Çehov’un Martı'sının Gerçek Hayata Uygunluğu

Abstract

Modern dramanın öncüleri olarak nitelendirilen Henrik Ibsen ve Anton Çehov, ürettikleri oyunlarla gündelik hayatın gerçeklerine ışık tutmuşlardır. Bunlardan ikisi olan ve gerçekçi drama olarak tanımlanan, Ibsen'in Yaban Ördeği (1884) ve Çehov'un Martısı (1895), ortak ve zıt nitelikleri nedeniyle sürekli birbirleriyle karşılaştırılır. Bu karşılaştırmalı çalışmalar olay örgüsü, karakter analizi, temalar ve semboller gibi alanların iki eser arasındaki bağlantının güçlenmesine katkı sağlasa da bu eserlerin gerçek hayatla ne derece alakalı olduklarını açıklamamaktadırlar. Aslında sorun, Ibsen'in modern dramanın babası olarak görülmesi ve Çehov'un Martıyı yazarken Ibsen'in Yaban Ördeğinden esinlendiğinin ima edilmesidir; bu nedenle, genel kanı, birincinin ikinciye edebi olarak üstün olduğu yönündedir. Buna bağlı olarak bu çalışma, bahsi geçen bu oyunların günlük yaşamla ilişkisini incelemek ve hangisinin diğerinden daha gerçekçi olduğunu çözümlemek amacıyla hazırlanmıştır. Böyle bir karşılaştırma için her iki oyundaki olay örgüsü gelişmelerine ve karakterler arası diyaloglara dikkat edilmiştir.

Keywords

Yaban Ördeği, Martı, modernizm, problem oyun

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