Many stories by Anton Chekhov involve grief and suffering. In Misery, sledge driver Iona Potapov is distraught because his son has died and he feels alone in the world. Another translation of the title is “The Lament” (a show or expression of sorrow, etc. for someone who has died or something that is gone). The story addresses the question: What could be worse than the sadness associated with losing a loved one? Chekhov’s answer: To feel so lonely and cut off from the world that you have no one to talk to about it.
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