Chekhov's gun

English Etymology en ru Чеховское ружьё. The principle was articulated by Russian playwright Anton Chekhov and reported in various forms. Pronunciation en /t͡ʃɛ.kɔfs ɡʌn/ Proper noun en literature A dramatic principle that states that every element in a story must be necessary, and irrelevant elements should be removed. en https://archive.nytimes.com/artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/03/19/tv-review-empire-ends-its-perfect-first-season-with-a-fervid-finale/ 'Empire' Finale Review: A Sizzling End to Season One New York Times 2015-03-19 Alessandra Stanley It seems like a violation of Chekhov’s gun rule to put Naomi Campbell in the first act and not have her throw a phone at someone in the third. (She tore up a check instead.) https://web.archive.org/web/20250903015813/https://archive.nytimes.com/artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/03/19/tv-review-empire-ends-its-perfect-first-season-with-a-fervid-finale/ 3 September 2025 en https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2023/05/movie-characters-pill-taking-styles/673919/ No One in Movies Knows How to Swallow a Pill The Atlantic 2023-05-01 Daniel Engber An on-screen pill bottle works like Chekhov’s gun: Eventually, its contents will be fired at an actor’s mouth, or smashed between his lips, or hurled into his gullet. https://web.archive.org/web/20250504081445/https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2023/05/movie-characters-pill-taking-styles/673919/ 4 May 2025 An element that is introduced early in the story whose significance to the plot does not become clear until later. en A companion to ancient epic 324 John Miles Foley 2005 The episode of the sun-god's island is the Odyssey's equivalent of Chekhov's gun, announced in the poem's earliest lines as the occasion of the companions' downfall and anticipated ever since. http://books.google.com/books?id=aGkH8j3GKg8C 9781405105248 en Due considerations: essays and criticism 336 John Updike 2007 He is Chekhov's gun on the wall, destined to go off at the crucial moment. http://books.google.com/books?id=lQiJ50EhhUEC 9780307266408 Translations dramatic principle Finnish: fi Tšehovin ase element Esperanto: eo fusilo de Ĉeĥov Finnish: fi Tšehovin ase French: fr fusil de Tchekhov m Japanese: ja チェーホフの銃 Chēhofu no jū Russian: ru че́ховское ружьё n, ru ружьё Че́хова n Spanish: es arma de Chéjov See also en MacGuffin Further reading en eponyms en Plot devices