A quick sketch of the life of a lowly clerk, bitter to be working on Easter–bitter even though he actually agreed to take the extra shift for some overtime pay.
But now the measly two rubles he will earn seems hardly worth it. He wonders how he might escape the bonds of his mean existence – theft? False accusations that would bring him notoriety?
Nothing seems possible, so he kills a cockroach instead.
READ THIS? READ THAT!
For another portrait of a lowly clerk, try another early tale: “The Death of a Government Clerk.” Just be warned, this story, as the title telegraphs, ends in death. And it’s not a cockroach dying this time, either.
A Chekhov Circus 