Anton Chekhov was born in 1860 in Taganrog, Russia. The son of a grocer, he was one of six children; since his father frequently struggled financially, Chekhov needed to help support his family, even while he was a young adult in medical school. He did this through writing and publishing short fiction and humor pieces as a freelance author. Over the course of his time in medical school, he began to earn recognition as well as money for his stories. Throughout his life, he was a practicing physician, a well-known writer, and a philanthropist, often caring for peasants free of charge and supporting the education of young writers and medical students.
Chekhov was a naturalistic writer in...