Short, clear, concise yet full of atmosphere, description, and mood is how I might describe Anton Chekhov's short story The
Black Monk. The story details the psychological make up of a man who seeks old friends out due to a nervous disorder. While visiting with these friends he witnesses an apparition. A black monk with whom he later has conversations. The result of these conversations is that this individual becomes convinced that he is truly the wisest and happiest individual in the world. So strong is his Megalomania that when it is pointed out to him that this Black Monk is indeed just an apparition he resents those who try to help him realise that he is in delusion. It is a classical tale of man's need to feel important and the lengths to which a man may go in order to fulfill that need.