The tragic fate of the heroine of the Greek myth Niobe and her children has inspired many artists since ancient times. Olga Kobylyanska explained her interest in this story as follows: “... the “Niobe” I described really existed, and all her children were unhappy… My mother knew Niobe personally, and I also knew several of her children.” In her story, she depicts grief and suffering through the image of Anna Yakhnovich, the priest’s wife. Anna is constantly wondering why her twelve children are unhappy. In the end, she comes to the conclusion that everything is due to inevitable fate. However, the reader is free to draw their own conclusions.
