An Inadvertence

An Inadvertence by Anton Chekhov tells the story of Pyotr Petrovitch Strizhin, who returns home from a christening party after drinking several glasses of alcohol. Desperately craving another drink, he finds what he believes is a bottle of vodka in the cupboard, but it turns out to be paraffin. Upon drinking it, he experiences intense pain and believes he is dying. He goes to his sister-in-law, Dashenka, to say goodbye and confess his mistake. However, instead of offering sympathy, she scolds him for touching the paraffin and being careless with money. In the end, Strizhin realizes that Dashenka cares more about her possessions than his well-being. Read in English, unabridged.