The Kiss, Anton Chekhov (1887)

July 17, 2026 · 47 min

About this episode

This episode features a reading of Anton Chekhov's short story 'The Kiss' and explores its themes and character dynamics.

I am just settling back in after walking the Camino de Santiago with my family. A new reading will be published next week. In the meatime, please enjoy a gem from the archives. Anton Chekhov’s “The Kiss” remains my favorite reading to date. If you missed these stories the first time around, now is a great time to listen or explore the archives on your own (searchable by date recorded , by author , and by theme ). The writer Anton Chekhov was also the doctor Anton Chekhov. Between these two worlds, he supported his extended family with the practice of medicine and supported his artistic passions with the pen, declaring, “ Medicine is my lawful wife and literature is my mistress. ” Anyone can guess which one he found more alluring. In his short story “The Kiss,” Chekhov aligns our attention with a rather lonely, insecure Russian officer named Ryabovitch. In today’s parlance, you could say the poor guy suffers from “low T.” Through an unorthodox chance encounter, Ryabovitch’s sleeping imagination is sparked, igniting a dormant verve. He suddenly discovers a confidence, albeit fleeting, that he may not, after all, be left out of a normal sort of life. This awakening of the spirit is…

People in this episode

Host: Ruby Love

Topics covered

Chekhov's writing
literary analysis
short stories
Russian literature
character exploration

Keywords

Anton Chekhov
The Kiss
literature
short story
Russian officer
character development
literary style

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: The Kiss