Everyone knows a lot of sayings and proverbs. But often speech is interspersed with quotes, the origin of which not everyone knows. An example of this can be a statement that probably everyone knows: "man to man is a wolf." But few people know that it belongs to the Roman playwright of the III century BC - Plavt.
Where did the expression come from
So it is with the statement “Brevity is the sister of talent.” Who said that? But perhaps there are more people who know the answer, because the author of the phrase found the 20th century, and in the Soviet school it was necessary to know it. This is Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, whose years of life are 1860–1904. The phrase is “winged”, it is often used. She was taken from a letter to her elder brother Alexander Chekhov, also a writer and playwright. This is a professional conversation between two people creating plays. It is with respect to drama that the phrase “brevity is the sister of talent” is appropriate. Who said that she can be guided in describing feelings, nature, and a portrait of a hero? But what about the “War and Peace” of Leo Tolstoy?
Does all genres fit
It is not very appropriate when writing historical works, where every detail of the past era is important, when creating memoirs, too. Does she have a place in the epistolary genre ? The complete works of Ivan Turgenev totals 28 volumes, of which the letters are 13. And it is interesting to read them. Most of them contain letters to Pauline Viardot, the woman who replaced the whole world with him. There were many letters, but in all collections of statements about the love of great people, one phrase is always given - about the day that is lost for him if Viardo’s eyes did not shine towards him. What else can be added to convey the power of love? So, here you can be guided by the phrase "Brevity is the sister of talent." Who said that it is necessary to twist long and tedious in order to declare love? It turns out that there are moments when brevity is important, and the ability to express lapidary and accurately testifies to the unconditional talent of the author, and there are times, and there are many of them when laconicism is undesirable.
Chekhov's phrase - the essence of drama
Having written the phrase “Brevity is the sister of talent” to his brother, Chekhov talked about drama. Indeed, here, as nowhere else, it is important to keep the viewer's attention. A long monologue to do this is quite difficult. The great writer himself possessed this talent to the highest degree. He is not only a great playwright, but also a short story master. His works are capacious and accurate, despite their short duration. A.P. Chekhov has been famous for his skill over the centuries. Therefore, so many people, even those far from regular reading, know the phrase “Brevity is the sister of talent”, who said it, and that it means the ability to clearly express one’s thoughts.
And it is not surprising that such a thought was expressed long before Chekhov by another brilliant playwright - William Shakespeare, he called brevity the soul of the mind.
Relevance of expression
Of course, the laconicism of speech, the ability to clearly express the very essence has always been extolled. Legends tell of the Spartans, famous for centuries for their ability to express thoughts briefly, like no other. It is said that the father of Alexander the Great, Philip II, also a well-known conqueror, approached the walls of Sparta, began, pretending to call on the defenders of the city to open the gates. His speech was full of the union “if”. He talked about the fact that if the townspeople did not obey him, if he would be forced to take the city by force, and if he punched the passage with a ram, and so on ... He threatened, admiring himself. The Spartans gave him an answer in which there was only one word, "If."
Synonyms do not belong in this phrase.
A.P. Chekhov could not know this beautiful legend. When pronouncing his famous phrase “Brevity is the sister of talent,” the author had in mind precisely the genius ability of the Spartans to clearly and clearly express the very essence of the issue.
The word "brevity" itself has a number of synonyms: "conciseness", "laconicism", "squeeze", "lapidarity" and several more, among which there is even a "shortness". The last word expresses rather a disregard for the manner of speaking briefly. The synonyms “laconicism” and “lapidarity” are most suitable, but you can’t insert them into the studied phrase, because its beauty and accuracy are lost.