[1][2][3] First published in Novoye Vremya, the story concerns Sofya Petrovna, the young wife of a country notary, whose attempts to turn away a suitor only expose her own desire for him and drive her toward an affair.
[5] Chekhov's association with Novoye Vremya gave him new freedom in his writing, opening him up to new influences and enabling him to increase both his productivity and the quality of his work.
Sofya asks Ilyin to cease his advances and agree to remain friends, as her love for her husband and her respect for the "sanctity of marriage" ensure that nothing will come of his desires.
[8] Whereas some of the stories cast "desiring women" in a sympathetic or positive light, "A Misfortune" focuses on the destructive and tragic aspect of female sexual power.
[9][10] Critics note the influence of Leo Tolstoy on "A Misfortune", especially the novel Anna Karenina, a classic Russian work revolving around adultery.
[13] Rayfield writes that Sofya's "half-teasing, half-reproaching" conversation with her would-be lover prefigure the dialogue between Elena and Vania in Chekhov's play The Seagull.
[10] "A Misfortune" may have influenced Andrei Bely's modernist novel Petersburg, which also features a character named Sofia Petrovna, who is likewise a married woman pursued by suitors.