Leo Tolstoy 
The Death of Ivan Ilyich 

Ivan Ilyich, a high court judge, becomes seriously ill and faces a long and gruelling battle with death. The Death of Ivan Ilyich is more than a story about death, however. It leads the reader through a pensive, metaphysical exploration of the reason for death and what it means to truly live. German philosopher Martin Heidegger refers to the novella as an illustration of Being towards death.