Page:Chekhov - The Darling and other Stories (Macmillan, 1917).djvu/9

 INTRODUCTION range of subject, scene, and situation is so varied that it will be convenient here to classify his Tales as follows:

(a) The short humorous sketches, of which the author wrote many hundreds, chiefly in early life.

(b) Stories of the life of the town "Intelligentsia"; family and domestic pieces, of which "The Duel" and "Three Years"—a study of Moscow atmosphere and environment—are the longest.

(c) Stories of provincial life, in which a great variety of types—landowners, officials, doctors, clergy, school-teachers, merchants, inn-keepers, etc.—appear.

(d) Stories of peasant life—settled types.

(e) Stories of unconventional and lawless types—roving characters.

(f) Psychological studies, such as "The Black Monk," "Ward No. 6."

One must recall here, also, Chekhov's plays, his short farces, and his descriptive account of life.