Despite the length of Chekhov's stories and the intricate details he gives as he builds plot, there is a flawlessness in his manner of captivating the reader into feeling he/she understands exactly what's going on with the characters. There is an almost gossipy tone, or cattiness in the telling, so subtle yet the reader cannot miss it. It is tongue-in-cheek; truth hidden behind a mask of polite story.
"Look at him" she said to her friends, pointing to her husband, seeming to wish to explain why she had married an ordinary man, who had nothing about him. (p. 16)
It's amazing. With that simple opening we are already aware of the main character and the possible conflicts: Olga married someone she doesn't feel measures up to the standards of her friends; their opinions are very important to her; she is likely a petty, silly woman.
Chekhov then goes on to describe some of those friends, all are "considered celebrities" in some artistic field, artists, writers, musicians, singers, who in Olga's mind are of higher social importance than her husband, a well known doctor. Chekhov gives us insight into these people in a simple statement:
How skillfully Chekhov shows us that the husband Dymov understands his wife's friends' opinions and is a bit intimidated but still remains a gracious host, and where the group's concerns are with their self-centered egos and phony values.
Chekhov's female protagonists are very often a narcissistic fluff of a woman, over-dramatic and useless yet so passionate about their whims that they self-righteously believe that whomever is damaged in their efforts are fair wages of war. They recognize their selfishness, their blindness to the "good" man they have treated so horribly, but with a twist of the knife, Chekhov likes to make it just a few minutes too late for any redemption.
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology
I really don’t know. A quick check of translation doesn’t give me an answer, and I don’t have time to go back and reread the story right now.