Part One: A. P. Chekhov
From the preface to Part One
“... at that time Chekhov was among the living—watching, understanding, and unable to come to terms with the humiliating vulgarity and baseness of the surrounding way of life. With laughter and subtle irony, he seemed to turn this outwardly well-ordered, self-satisfied life inside out, exposing its bitter underside. With a gentle smile, delicately yet firmly and mercilessly, he again and again reminded: a person needs a conscience—conscience must be...”