What is Chekov’s gun?

Power of a story

Weapons are usually made to destroy, but the gun of literary Chekov is used to bring the story together. It is a narrative element that emphasizes that each element of the story must have relevance and purpose to pursue the plot. If any part or component seems irrelevant, it should be removed.

The story should have a reason for each element. If there is a pen in the scene, there should be a reason for this, whether the character is going to use it to write a letter or is going to sign a document that can change their fate. The real power of the story is displayed when each individual element comes together to connect the growing action of the story to the end, which is the last part of the story that combines aspects of the plot together. Let’s take a simple example from the Harry Potter series. How different the story would be if the lightning mark on Harry was just a birth mark and not the mark that he got while escaping from the Voldemort attack when he was a child? Here, the scar is a small element which is very important.

Man behind gun

The last name of this playwright is automatically clear with the name of this theory. Anton Chekhav was a famous Russian playwright and writer, considered one of the great authors all -time. Chekov has included the principle of element importance in many of his actions.

He had advised the young playwrights in letters how to prepare better plot. He said, “Remove all the things that have nothing to do with the story. If you say in the first chapter that a rifle is hanging on the wall, then it must be closed in the second or third chapter. If it is not being run, it should not be hanged there.” His advice given can be seen in his play Seagal, Bringing the meaning in the context of the gun, where in a scene, the eligible Constantin Gavarilovich keeps a gun at the beginning of the traplevic play, which is fired in the final task.

Gun vs herring

Chekov’s gun is actually a valuable element for writers when he is in the process of making a book or script. But there is another literary component that adversely affects the plot. Readers can learn it as ‘red herring’, which is a fast, sudden wrong direction. Although it can be taken negatively in the real world, simple wrong direction on the pages of a book (possibly a mysterious book) can take readers on the path where they will have no preparation for the wonder or twist that they are facing. Chekovs wants to make every small element of the gun story useful and finally help. On the other hand, the goal of red hering is to vice versa. While the attention of the audience focuses on a certain object or clue that they believe that it will be very important in the end, instead they have to face a shocking turn of events that they did not see. Incidents where that one object did not play any role at all. Regardless, Chekov’s gun still holds incredible importance. This not only gives the story more reader and interest, but it also strengthens the bond between the reader, the text and the author.