Gooseberries

Born on January 29, 1860, in Taganrog, Russia, Chekhov came from a modest background. He initially pursued a medical career and became a physician, but he devoted himself to writing throughout his life. Chekhov’s literary career began with humorous sketches and stories published in various magazines. However, his breakthrough came in the late 1880s when he started writing more serious, realistic stories and plays that explored the complexities of human nature and captured the lives of ordinary people in provincial Russian society.

He created many masterpieces, including the play “The Cherry Orchard” (1904), the novelette “Ward No. 6” (1892), and the short stories “The Lady with the Dog” (1903). In 1904, he died at age 44 of tuberculosis.

Chekhov’s writing style is characterized by its subtlety, understatement, and close observation of human behavior. Instead of expressing his own sociopolitical ideas through his stories, Chekhov foregrounds his characters’ everyday struggles, disappointments, and moral dilemmas. His stories often close with irony and ambiguity, leaving the readers to ponder the deeper meanings.

The Little Trilogy (1898) is a series of stories told by three friends: Bourkin, Aliokhin, and Ivan Ivanich. The first story, “The Man in the Case,” told by Bourkin, showcases the tragedy of a schoolteacher named Belikov. His conventional adherence to rules and strictness repels his crush, Varinka, who is a modern, carefree woman. Devastated by her rejection, Belikov withdraws further into his reclusive shell. In “Gooseberries,” Ivan tells a story about his younger brother, Nicholai, who fulfills his dreams of moving up the social ladder through material success and at the expense of others’ suffering. In the third story, “About Love,” Aliokhin shares his own love story. He falls in love with a married woman named Anna, but despite their mutual attraction, which lasts many years, Anna finally walks away due to social pressure and financial instability.