“The Fat and the Thin” (1883) — a satirical short story by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov about a chance meeting at a railway station between two former high school friends. The author mocks rank-worship and a servile mentality: the “thin” one (Porfiry) obsequiously changes his manner of speaking after learning about the high rank of Privy Councillor held by the “fat” one (Misha), which causes disgust in the latter.
