The Duel

Contents

ILLUMINATIONS FOR THE DUEL BY ANTON CHEKHOV

1. Superfluous Men: A Grand Russian Tradition

Laevsky’s Zeitgeist—Selection from Anton Chekhov’s The Duel.

In the Beginning, Lord Byron created Cain—Monologue from Lord Byron’s play, Cain.

The Rake’s Progress—Selection from Mikhail Lermontov’s A Hero of our Time.

Ivan Turgenev’s names the leitmotiv—Selection from Turgenev’s Diary of a Superfluous Man.

Oblomovismi—Selection from Ivan Goncharov’s Oblomov.

2. Reading I: “The Queen of Spades” by Alexander Pushkin

Illustration: “The Tavern Scene” by William Hogarth (1697–1764).

3. Von Koren, Superman

Von Koren thins the herd … —Selection from Anton Chekhov’s The Duel.

The Survival of the Fittest—Selection from Herbert Spencer’s The Principles of Ethics.

Give them an inch … —Selection from Anton Chekhov’s The Duel

The Savagery of the Unfurled Macaque – Selection from The Genealogy of Morals by Friedrich Nietzsche.

4. Reading II: Chapter VI from The Sea Wolf by Jack London.

Illustration: Cain Leadeth Abel to Death by James Jacques Joseph Tissot (1836–1902)

5. Vint

One thing leads to another … —Selection from Anton Chekhov’s The Duel.

… So here’s how to play vint. —Foster’s Encyclopedia of Games (1897) by R.F. Foster.

Illustration: Argument Over A Card Game by Jan Steen (1626–1679)

THE DUELIST’S SUPPLEMENT—AGAINST THE DUEL: WRITING IN PROTEST OF DUELING

1. Forever Denied Of Ecclesiastical Sepulture: The Church Against Dueling

The Official Ban—From The Canons and Decrees of the Sacred and Ecumenical Council of Trent.

No Exceptions—Selection from The Catholic Encyclopedia.

You’ll poke your eye out—Selection from Ethics for Schools: Being a Treatise on the Virtues and Their Reasons by Austin Bierbower.

The Worst of Acts—Selection from The Whole Works of the Right Reverend Jeremy Taylor.

2. Reading I: Prepare to Meet Your Maker—Anonymous sermon titled “The Duellist” published in a 1787 edition of the Newport Herald.

Illustration: Council of Trent in Santa Maria Maggiore church, Museo Diocesano Tridentino, Trento. Late 1700s. Painter unknown.

3. Justifiable Homicide?: The State Against Dueling

All the Young Dudes—Selection from The Decree of the Star-Chamber Against Duels derived from the verdict of a trial brought to court by Francis Bacon.

As the World Turns: Part I—Selection of a news-bulletin from the April 1^st, 1775 edition of the St. James Chronicle.

Sign of the Times—Special announcements from The November 28^th, 1728 Boston News-Letter.

As the World Turns: Part II—Selection of a news-bulletin from the May 18^th, 1720 edition of the Boston News-Letter.

The Anti-Duel Lobby—Selection from a 1809 pamphlet announcing of The Anti-Duelling Association of New York written by Lyman Beecher.

4. Reading II: “The Charge of Sir Francis Bacon, Knight, The King’s Attorney-General, Touching Duels.” Also known as “The Speech Against Dueling” by Francis Bacon.

Illustration: Cover of an anti-dueling pamphlet containing: “The Remedy for Dueling” by Lyman Beecher (1775–1863) alongside the Anti-Dueling Society of New York and an address to the electorate of New York.

5. Whose Feet Have Slipped In Gore: on the Remorse of Duelists

Remorse of Duelists—Selection from Notes on Duels and Duelling by Lorenzo Sabine.

Thomas Fuller’s Bird—Selection from the February 19^th, 1853 edition of Notes and Queries.

Unhappily Ever After—Selection from The Field of Honor: Being a Complete and Comprehensive History of Duelling in All Countries by Major Ben C. Truman.

6. Reading III: “Pharamond and Spinamont” by Richard Steele.

Illustration: Sohrab mourns Rustum. Illustration taken from an ancient Persian manuscript of the Shahnameh, or “Book of Kings.”

7. Honor, Vengeance and Murder: History Defines the Act

The Headman’s Axe!—Selection from The History of Duelling by J.G. Millingen.

Two More Selections from Sabine—Selection from Notes on Duels and Duelling by Lorenzo Sabine.

Shame the Duel—Selection from Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds by Charles McKay.

8. Reading IV: “Dueling” by Thomas Paine.

Illustration: Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton prepare to duel.

9. Two Sides of the Coin: A Duel of Words

The Lesser Evil—“In Defense of The Code Duello” by Senator Thomas Hart Benton.

Duelists Are Hypocrites—Selection from The Farm and the Fireside: Sketches of Domestic Life in War and in Peace by Bill Arp (Charles Henry Smith).