Ivan Matveyitch by Anton Chekhov is an archetypal example of the Russian realist tradition, and serves as an exploration of human identity in a rapidly changing, modernizing nation. Through his depiction of the titular protagonist, a common man on the cusp of middle-agedness, Chekhov paints a vivid portrait of a character struggling to reconcile his sense of self with shifting cultural and social expectations. Read in English, unabridged.