The Black Monk

The Black Monk was written in the summer of 1893 and published in January 1894. It thus predates many of Chekhov's later tales dealing with "nerves" and mental health, such as On Official Duty. However, as opposed to the later story where the central character's "nerves" are symptomatic of his troubled conscience and social aspirations, this tale introduces a protagonist who thinks madness validates his own genius. In this tale, Donald Rayfield notes that Chekhov "deals with insanity as inspiration" and that he "subtly combines the symptoms of mental derangement with those of physical illness." It is difficult for readers to determine if Kovrin is killed by tuberculosis or destroyed by his own lunacy.