In 1869, Leo Tolstoy completed his work "War and Peace". The epilogue, a summary of which we will describe in this article, is divided into two parts.
First part
The first part tells about the following events. 7 years have passed since the war of 1812, described in the work "War and Peace". The heroes of the novel have changed both externally and internally. We will talk about this by analyzing the epilogue. In the 13th year, Natasha married Pierre Bezukhov. Ilya Andreevich, Count, died at the same time. The old family fell apart with his death. The money affairs of the Rostovs are completely upset. However, Nikolai does not refuse the inheritance, as he sees an expression of reproach to the memory of his father in this.
The ruin of the Rostovs
The ruin of the Rostovs is described at the end of the work "War and Peace" (epilogue). Summary The events that make up this episode are as follows. For half the price, the estate was sold at auction, which covered only half of the debts. Rostov, in order not to end up in a debt hole, enters the soldier's service in St. Petersburg. He lives here in a small apartment with Sonya and his mother. Nikolai Sonya appreciates it very much, he believes that he is in unpaid debt to her, but he understands that he could not love this girl. The position of Nikolai is getting worse. However, he is disgusted by the thought of marrying a rich woman.
Meeting of Nikolai Rostov with Princess Marya
Princess Marya visits the Rostovs. Nikolai greets her coldly, showing with all his appearance that he does not need anything from her. After this meeting, the princess feels in an uncertain position. She wants to understand what Nikolai is covering up with such a tone.
He makes a return visit to the princess under the influence of his mother. Their conversation turns out to be strained and dry, but Marya feels that this is only an outer shell. The soul of Rostov is still beautiful.
Marriage of Nicholas, management of the estate
The princess finds out that he behaves this way out of pride, since he is poor, and Marya is rich. In the fall of 1814, Nikolai married the princess and together with her, Sonya and his mother went to live in the Bald Mountains estate. He devoted himself entirely to the household, in which the main thing is the male worker. Having become related to the peasants, Nikolai begins to skillfully manage the economy, which brings brilliant results. Men come from other estates with a request to buy them. Even after the death of Nicholas, the people keep the memory of his administration for a long time. Rostov is getting closer and closer to his wife, discovering new treasures of her soul every day.
Sonya is in Nikolai's house. For some reason, Marya cannot suppress her evil feelings towards this girl. Somehow Natasha explains to her why Sonya's fate is as follows: she is a "barren flower", something is missing in her.
How has Natasha Rostova changed?
The work "War and Peace" (epilogue) continues. A summary of his subsequent events is as follows. There are three children in the Rostovs' house, and Marya is waiting for another addition. Natasha is staying with her brother with four children. The return of Bezukhov, who left for St. Petersburg two months ago, is expected. Natasha has gained weight, it is now difficult to recognize her former girl in her.
Her face has an expression of calm "clarity" and "softness". All who knew Natasha before marriage are surprised at the change that has taken place in her. Only the old countess, who understood with a maternal instinct that all the impulses of this girl pursued the goal only of getting married, starting a family, wonders why others do not understand this. Natasha does not take care of herself, she does not follow her manners. For her, the main thing is serving the house, children, and husband. Very demanding of her husband, this girl is jealous. Bezukhov submits completely to the requirements of his wife. He has the whole family in return. Natasha Rostova not only fulfills her husband's wishes, but also guesses them. She always shares the mindset of her husband.
Bezukhov's conversation with Nikolai Rostov
Pierre feels happy in marriage, seeing himself reflected in own family. Natasha misses her husband, and now he arrives. Bezukhov tells Nikolai about the latest political news, says that the sovereign does not delve into any matters, the situation in the country is tense to the limit: a coup is being prepared. Pierre believes that it is required to organize a society, possibly illegal, in order to benefit people. Nicholas disagrees. He says he took an oath. Different opinions are expressed about further way development of the country in the work "War and Peace" heroes Nikolai Rostov and Pierre Bezukhov.
Nikolay discusses this conversation with his wife. He considers Bezukhov a dreamer. Nicholas has enough of his own problems. Marya notices some limitations of her husband, knows that he will never understand what she understands. From this, the princess loves him more, with a touch of passionate tenderness. Rostov, on the other hand, admires his wife's desire for the perfect, eternal and infinite.
Bezukhov is talking to Natasha about important things ahead of him. According to Pierre, Platon Karataev would approve of him and not his career, because he wanted to see peace, happiness and good looks in everything.
Dream of Nikolenka Bolkonsky
During the conversation between Pierre and Nikolai, Nikolenka Bolkonsky was present. The conversation made a deep impression on him. The boy adores Bezukhov, idolizes him. He also considers his father a kind of deity. Nikolenka sees a dream. He goes with Bezukhov in front of a large army and approaches the goal. Uncle Nikolai suddenly appears in front of them in a formidable pose, ready to kill anyone who moves forward. The boy turns around and notices that next to him is no longer Pierre, but Prince Andrei, his father, who caresses him. Nikolenka decides that his father was affectionate with him, approved of him and Pierre. They all want the boy to study and he will do it. And one day everyone will admire him.
Second part
Once again, Tolstoy talks about historical process. Kutuzov and Napoleon ("War and Peace") are two key historical figures in the work. The author says that history is not made by a person, but by the masses, who are subject to common interests. This was understood by the Commander-in-Chief Kutuzov ("War and Peace") described earlier in the work, who preferred the strategy of non-intervention to active actions. It was thanks to his wise command that the Russians won. In history, a person is important only to the extent that he accepts and understands popular interests. Therefore, Kutuzov ("War and Peace") is a significant person in history.
The role of the epilogue in the composition of the work
In the composition of the novel, the epilogue is the most important element in the ideological understanding. It is he who carries the great semantic load in the intention of the work. Lev Nikolaevich sums up, touching on pressing topics such as family.
Family thought
The idea of the spiritual foundations of the family as an external form of uniting people received a special expression in this part of the work. As if the differences between spouses are erased in it, the limitations of souls are complemented in communication between them. The epilogue of the novel develops this idea. Such, for example, is the family of Marya and Nikolai Rostov. In it, in a higher synthesis, the principles of the Bolkonskys and the Rostovs are combined.
In the epilogue of the novel is going new family, which combines Bolkon, Rostov, heterogeneous in the past, and through Bezukhov also Karataev features. As the author writes, several different worlds lived under one roof, which merged into a harmonious whole.
It is no coincidence that this new family, which includes such interesting and different images("War and Peace"). It was the result of national unity born of the Patriotic War. In this part of the work, the connection between the general and the individual is affirmed in a new way. 1812 in the history of Russia brought more high level communication between people, having removed many class restrictions and barriers, led to the emergence of broader and more complex family worlds. In the Bald Mountain family, as in any other, disputes and conflicts sometimes arise. But they only strengthen relations, have a peaceful character. Women, Marya and Natasha, are the guardians of its foundations.
Folk thought
At the end of the epilogue are philosophical reflections the author, in which Lev Nikolaevich again discusses the historical process. In his opinion, history is not made by a person, but by the masses, who express common interests. Napoleon ("War and Peace") did not understand this, and therefore lost the war. This is what Leo Tolstoy thinks.
The last part of the work "War and Peace" - the epilogue - ends. We have tried to make it brief and concise. This part of the work sums up the entire large-scale creation of Leo Tolstoy. "War and Peace", the characteristics of the epilogue of which we have presented, is a grandiose epic, which was created by the author from 1863 to 1869.
At the heart of the composition "War and Peace" - narration about events and characters. According to the classification proposed by A. A. Saburov, it has several varieties. This is a historical-documentary narrative; storytelling based on fiction; storytelling that recreates processes mental life heroes in particular. epistolary(for example, Marya Bolkonskaya's correspondence with Julie Karagina) and diary(diary of Pierre Bezukhov, diary of Countess Marya Rostova). important place in "War and Peace" are copyrighted descriptions And reasoning.
The main element of the composition of "War and Peace" is a stage episode, consisting of stage dialogue And copyright remarks. Stage episodes in their sequence and form narrative flow.
In "War and Peace" many storylines.
The very title of the novel defines two main storylines. The first part of the first volume is devoted mainly to the theme of the world. It serves as an exposition of the main storylines of the work. Here pictures are drawn of the life of the social circles to which they belong. the most important heroes. Tolstoy depicts the salon of Anna Pavlovna Scherer, introduces the reader to Andrei Bolkonsky and Pierre Bezukhov, shows the life of Moscow, the Rostov family, the dying Count Bezukhov, then takes the reader to Lysy Gory. The first transition from peace to war is marked by the line between the first and second parts of the first volume of the novel. In the second part of the first volume, it is planned heroic theme people, which will be developed in the third and fourth volumes.
The second volume is almost entirely devoted to peace, the third volume - mainly to the war. Starting from the third volume, the themes of war and peace are constantly intertwined. The personal life of the heroes is included in the flow of events in 1812. In the fourth volume, the theme war is coming on the wane, the theme of peace again begins to prevail.
Within the two main lines - war and peace - in the novel, private story lines. Let's call some of them. This is the theme Petersburg nobility, in particular, the salon of Anna Pavlovna Scherer, the circle of Prince Vasily Kuragin and Helen, the circle of Anatole Kuragin and Dolokhov. In addition, storylines related to the fates are tied here. Andrei Bolkonsky And Pierre Bezukhov, with life the Rostov family.
Separate story lines reflect the fate Natasha Rostova And Nicholas Rostov. Let's also call the storyline associated with life in the Bald Mountains, the history of the old Prince Bolkonsky, the fate of Princess Marya. In addition, we note lines of Kutuzov and Bagration, Napoleon and the French, and freemasonry theme.
Transition from one storyline to the other is carried out, as a rule, according to principle of antithesis. Antithesis – the most important compositional technique in War and Peace.
important in Tolstoy's novel acquires scenery. Landscape in Tolstoy is always an element of a large and whole picture life.
An important place in the composition of "War and Peace" is occupied by author's digressions - historical, journalistic, philosophical. So, at the beginning of the third volume, Tolstoy considers the question of the role of the individual in history. Important role play the author's thoughts before the description of the Battle of Borodino. At the beginning of the third part of the fourth volume special interest presents a digression on the peculiarities of guerrilla warfare. A significant part of the epilogue is occupied by the philosophical digressions of the author. Copyright digressions enhance the epic beginning"War and Peace".
"Dialectics of the soul" (principles and means psychological analysis)
The term "dialectic of the soul" was introduced into Russian criticism by N. G. Chernyshevsky. In a review of early works Tolstoy Chernyshevsky noted that the writer is most interested in “the mental process itself, its forms, its laws, dialectics of the soul to be expressed in a definitive term.
"Dialectics of the soul", according to Chernyshevsky, is direct depiction of the "mental process". In addition, there is also a broader understanding of the "dialectics of the soul": many researchers call it general principles and specific methods of psychological analysis in the works of Tolstoy.
Consider some general principles"dialectics of the soul" in "War and Peace".
Tolstoy portrays the inner world of man is in constant motion, in contradictory development.“People are rivers, man is a fluid substance,” he wrote. This thesis can be illustrated by the example of the spiritual quests of Andrei Bolkonsky and Pierre Bezukhov. Heroes are constantly looking for the meaning of life, their inner world is constantly changing. Image of the state of mind of Andrei and Pierre - important aspect"dialectics of the soul".
Let us also pay attention to Tolstoy's interest in turning points, crisis moments in a person's spiritual life. The inner world of his heroes is often revealed precisely at such moments (Pierre in Torzhok, Andrei Bolkonsky under the sky of Austerlitz).
The most important feature of Tolstoy's psychologism is close connection of external events with inner life characters. Let us point out, for example, the significance of such events as the birth of a child and the death of his wife for Andrei Bolkonsky. Let us recall the role of the Patriotic War of 1812 in the spiritual life of the heroes.
We also note some specific techniques psychological analysis in Tolstoy.
The main means of depicting the internal state of the hero in Tolstoy's novel is internal monologue. Let's give examples.
After a break with his wife and a duel with Dolokhov, being in a difficult state of mind, Pierre leaves Moscow and goes to St. Petersburg. Stopping at the post station in Torzhok, the hero sadly reflects on his life: “What's wrong? What well? What should you love, what should you hate? Why live, and what am I? What is life, what is death? What power governs everything?
Carried away by Anatole Kuragin, Natasha is in a state of mental confusion. "My God! I died! she said to herself. How could I let this happen?
Being seriously wounded, Andrei Bolkonsky reflects on his new view of the world. “Yes, a new happiness has opened up to me, inalienable from a person,” he thought, lying in a half-dark, quiet hut and looking ahead with feverishly open, stopped eyes. “Happiness, which is outside the material forces, outside the material external influences on a person, the happiness of one soul, the happiness of love!”
Sometimes the character's internal monologue turns into "mindflow", that is a chain of memories, impressions, logically unrelated to each other. For example, Tolstoy conveys the inner state of Nikolai Rostov during his first battle on the Enns River: “There is so much happiness in me alone and in this sun, and here ... groans, suffering, fear and this ambiguity, this haste ... Here again shouting something, and again everyone ran somewhere back, and I run with them, and here it is, here it is, death, above me, around me ... A moment - and I will never see this sun, this water , this gorge.<...>“And the fear of death and a stretcher, and the love of the sun and life - everything merged into one painfully disturbing impression.” Another example is the drowsy state of Nikolai Rostov in the flanker chain on the eve of Austerlitz: “Yes, I mean, what was I thinking? - not forget. How will I speak with the sovereign? No, not that - it's tomorrow. Yes Yes! Step on a tashka ... blunt us - who? Gusarov. And the hussars and the mustaches... This hussar with the mustache was riding along Tverskaya, I also thought of him, opposite Guryev's house... Old man Guryev... Oh, glorious little Denisov! Yes, it's all bullshit..."
An important means of psychological analysis in Tolstoy is monologues And dialogues heroes. Communicating with each other, Tolstoy's heroes often share their innermost thoughts. For example, the words of Andrei Bolkonsky, addressed to Pierre, sometimes take on the character confessions. At the beginning of the novel, Andrei Bolkonsky explains to his friend why he goes to war: “For what? I don't know. So it is necessary. Besides, I'm going... I'm going because this life I'm leading here, this life, is not for me!”
Let's take another example. In a conversation with Andrey on the ferry, Pierre expresses his opinion about the meaning of life: “This is what I know, and I know for sure, that the pleasure of doing good is the only true happiness of life.”
An important means of psychological analysis are also letters heroes. Let us cite as an example the correspondence between Princess Marya Bolkonskaya and Julie Karagina. Princess Marya's letter reveals spiritual world Christian, her sincere faith in God and selfless love to the neighbor. On the other hand, the discussions about the newfangled mystical teachings that we find in Julie's letter seem empty and full of secular mannerisms.
An essential means of disclosure inner peace the hero can also be called diary. A striking example- a diary that Pierre kept during the period of passion for Freemasonry. In the diary entries of the hero, we find his innermost thoughts about life and death. It reflects his emotional experiences, dreams, memories. We also note diary Countess Marya Rostova, fragments of which are given at the end of the work.
Dream- a special means of psychological analysis in the novel "War and Peace". Of particular note Pierre's two dreams. One of them he saw in Mozhaisk after the Battle of Borodino, the other - in captivity. These dreams have a symbolic meaning.
Dream seen by Pierre in Mozhaisk conveys a sense of belonging common life”, consciousness of the need to subordinate one’s freedom to the Divine will. Pierre is seized by the idea of conjugation of everything that exists in the moral being of man.
An important point in the spiritual life of Pierre becomes another dream - about the globe, seen by the hero in captivity. In this dream, Pierre comes to feel that life is God. Meaning human existence is to love life, to love God.
We also note dream of Nikolenka Bolkonsky at the end of the novel.
An important means of psychological analysis in the novel "War and Peace" is the image inconsistencies between internal state hero and the external manifestation of this state.
For example, Nikolai Rostov, having lost a huge amount of money in cards to Dolokhov, cheekily informs his father about this, although in his heart he feels like the last scoundrel and then asks his father for forgiveness.
Let's take another example. After the break with Natasha, Andrei Bolkonsky talks with Pierre about politics, but in his heart he continues to experience this gap. At the same time, Pierre feels that his friend’s thoughts are about something completely different.
Tolstoy in his work, as a rule, does not give detailed psychological portraits heroes. From here - special meaning psychological detail. Usually, it's a recurring detail(Princess Marya's radiant eyes, Dolokhov's cold gaze, Helen's bare shoulders).
Often the internal state of the hero is transmitted through description of nature. For example, sky Austerlitz- a symbol of eternity, against which Andrei Bolkonsky becomes clear the vanity of his dreams of glory. Two meetings with an old oak transmit state of mind Andrei before and after his first meeting with Natasha Rostova. IN spring night in Otradnoye, the hero involuntarily overheard Natasha's conversation with Sonya, imbued with the joy of life, the optimism emanating from Natasha.
Let's draw conclusions.
Tolstoy appears in the novel "War and Peace" as a writer-psychologist. The image of the inner world of a person in constant motion, contradictory development, interest in turning points, crises in the spiritual life of a person, the close connection of external events with the inner life of the characters are the most important principles of the “dialectic of the soul”.
Tolstoy uses in his work such means of psychological analysis as internal monologue, monologue-confession, dialogue, letters, dreams, diary entries. The writer depicts the discrepancy between the internal state of the hero and the external manifestation of this state, conveys the movements of the hero's soul through descriptions of nature. An important role in psychological characteristics characters are played by a recurring detail.
When preparing materials on the work of L. N. Tolstoy, fragments of the monograph by A. A. Saburov “War and Peace” by L. N. Tolstoy were used. Problematics and Poetics. - M, 1959. In addition, the studies of such authors as S. G. Bocharov, N. K. Gudziy, L. D. Opulskaya, A. P. Skaftymov are taken into account.
The material of this section is presented in accordance with the concept of A. P. Skaftymov.
2 The issue of Tolstoy's fatalism continues to be controversial. See, for example, the studies of Ya. S. Lurie.
N. G. Chernyshevsky. Childhood and Adolescence. The writings of Count Tolstoy. Military stories of Count Tolstoy.
Tolstoy used in his novel the real diary of the freemason Ya. P. Titov - almost verbatim. In addition, there is an autobiographical moment here: as already noted, from 1847 until the end of his days, Tolstoy himself kept a diary, which became creative laboratory writer.
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And suddenly Pierre introduced himself as a living, long-forgotten, meek old man who taught geography to Pierre in Switzerland. "Wait," said the old man. And he showed Pierre the globe. This globe was a living, oscillating ball without dimensions. The entire surface of the sphere consisted of drops tightly compressed together. And these drops all moved, moved, and then merged from several into one, then from one they were divided into many. Each drop strove to spill out, to capture the greatest space, but others, striving for the same, squeezed it, sometimes destroyed it, sometimes merged with it. That's life, said the old teacher. “How simple and clear it is,” thought Pierre. How could I not have known this before." God is in the middle, and each drop seeks to expand in order to largest sizes reflect it. And it grows, merges, and shrinks, and is destroyed on the surface, goes into the depths and emerges again. Here he is, Karataev, here he spilled and disappeared. Vous avez compris, mon enfant (You understand), said the teacher. Vous avez compris, sacré nom (You understand, damn you), a voice shouted, and Pierre woke up. Dream of Pierre. Globe.
Taking a general look at Tolstoy's cosmos in War and Peace, we see the universe with some kind of invisible center, which is equally in the sky and in the soul of every person. Earth is one of the most important corners of the universe, where the most important space events. The personal, fleeting being of a person, with all its significance, is only a reflection of eternal, universal life, where the past, future and present always exist. “It's hard to imagine eternity... Why? Natasha answers. Yesterday it was, today it is, tomorrow it will be...” visible world and loses interest in individual, "personal" love. But universal love, life and death for others, illuminates a person with a universal meaning, reveals to him here, on earth, the most important law, the secret of the entire visible and invisible, visible and invisible universe. Of course, this is only general outline world of Tolstoy, where the life of every person is woven with transparent cobweb threads with all people, and through them with the whole universe.
1. "War and Peace" as a work of the 60s of the XIX century
60s XIX years centuries in Russia became the period of the highest activity of the peasant masses, the rise of the social movement. The theme of the people became the central theme of the literature of the 1960s. This topic, as well as contemporary problems of Tolstoy, are considered by the writer through the prism of history. Researchers of Tolstoy's work disagree on the question of what, in fact, Tolstoy meant by the word "people" - the peasants, the nation as a whole, the merchants, the bourgeoisie, the patriotic patriarchal nobility. Of course, all these layers are included in Tolstoy's understanding of the word "people", but only when they are the bearers of morality. Everything that is immoral is excluded by Tolstoy from the concept of "people".
2. Philosophy of history, images of Kutuzov and Napoleon
Tolstoy, in his work, affirms the decisive role of the masses in history. In his opinion, the actions of the so-called "great people" do not have a decisive influence on the course of historical events. The question of the role of the individual in history is raised at the beginning of the third volume (Part One, Chapter One):
- As applied to history, the individual acts more unconsciously than consciously;
- A person is more free in his personal life than in public;
- The higher a person stands on the steps of the social ladder, the more obvious is the predestination and inevitability in his fate;
Tolstoy concludes that "The Tsar is the slave of history." Tolstoy's contemporary historian Bogdanovich first of all pointed out the decisive role of Alexander the Great in the victory over Napoleon, and generally discounted the role of the people and Kutuzov. Tolstoy, on the other hand, set himself the task of debunking the role of the tsars and showing the role of the masses of the people and the popular commander Kutuzov. The writer reflects in the novel the moments of Kutuzov's inactivity. This is due to the fact that Kutuzov cannot voluntarily dispose of historical events. On the other hand, it is given to him to realize the actual course of events in the implementation of which he participates. Kutuzov cannot understand the world-historical meaning of the war of 1812, but he is aware of the significance of this event for his people, that is, he can be a conscious conductor of the course of history. Kutuzov himself is close to the people, he feels the spirit of the army and can manage this great power (the main task Kutuzov during the battle of Borodino - to raise the spirit of the army). Napoleon is devoid of understanding of current events, he is a pawn in the hands of history. The image of Napoleon personifies extreme individualism and selfishness. The selfish Napoleon acts like a blind man. He is not great person he cannot determine moral sense events due to their own limitations. Tolstoy's innovation was that he introduced into history moral criterion(controversy with Hegel).
3. "People's thought" and the forms of its implementation
The path of ideological and moral growth leads goodies to rapprochement with the people (not a break with one's own class, but moral unity with the people). Heroes are tested patriotic war. Independence privacy from political game Verkhov emphasizes the inseparable connection of the heroes with the life of the people. The viability of each of the heroes is tested by the "thought of the people." She helps Pierre Bezukhov discover and show his best qualities; Andrei Bolkonsky is called "our prince"; Natasha Rostova takes out carts for the wounded; Marya Bolkonskaya rejects Mademoiselle Bourienne's offer to remain in Napoleon's power. Along with true nationality, Tolstoy also shows pseudo-nationality, a fake for it. This is reflected in the images of Rostopchin and Speransky (specific historical figures), who, although they try to assume the right to speak on behalf of the people, have nothing to do with it. Tolstoy did not need a large number images from the common people (one should not confuse nationality and common people). Patriotism is a property of the soul of any Russian person, and in this respect there is no difference between Andrei Bolkonsky and any soldier of his regiment. Close to the people is Captain Tushin, whose image combines "small and great", "modest and heroic". Often the participants of the campaign are not named by name at all (for example, “drummer-singer”). Subject people's war finds its vivid expression in the image of Tikhon Shcherbaty. The image is ambiguous (the murder of the "language", the "Razin" beginning). The image of Platon Karataev is also ambiguous, in the conditions of captivity he again turned to his origins (everything “superficial, soldierly” falls off him, remains peasant). Watching him, Pierre Bezukhov realizes that living life the world is beyond all philosophizing, and that happiness is in itself. However, unlike Tikhon Shcherbaty, Karataev is hardly capable of decisive action, his good looks lead to passivity.
In the scenes with Napoleon, Tolstoy uses the technique of satirical grotesque: Napoleon is overwhelmed with self-adoration, his thoughts are criminal, his patriotism is false (episodes with Lavrushka, awarding the soldier Lazarev with the Order of the Legion of Honor, a scene with a portrait of his son, a morning toilet in front of Borodin, waiting for the deputation of the "Moscow boyars") . An unconcealed irony is also imbued with the depiction of the life of other people, also far from the people - regardless of their nationality(Alexander the First, Anna Pavlovna Sherer, the Kuragin family, Bergi, Drubetsky, etc.).
The path of heroes belonging to the aristocracy to spiritual unity with the people is depicted by Tolstoy in its inconsistency and ambiguity. The writer ironically describes the delusions and self-deception of the heroes (Pierre's trip to the southern estates, idealistic fruitless attempts at innovations; the peasants' revolt in Bogucharovo, Princess Mary's attempt to distribute the master's bread, etc.).
4. Historical and philosophical digressions
In the work itself fictional storytelling at times interrupted by historical and philosophical digressions, similar in style to journalism. The pathos of Tolstoy's philosophical digressions is directed against liberal-bourgeois military historians and writers. According to Tolstoy, “the world denies war” (for example, a description of the dam that Russian soldiers see during the retreat after Austerlitz - devastated and ugly, and comparing it in peacetime - immersed in greenery, neat and rebuilt). Tolstoy raises the question of the relationship between the individual and society, the leader and the masses (Pierre’s dream after Borodin: he dreams of the deceased Bazdeev (the freemason who introduced him to the lodge), who says: “War is the most difficult subordination of human freedom to the laws of God ... Nothing a person can own while he is afraid of death, and whoever is not afraid of it, everything belongs to him ... prayed to the icon, but it seems to Pierre that no better share than to be a simple soldier and do business, and not talk like his former acquaintances, whom he also sees in a dream. Another dream - on the eve of release from captivity, after the death of Karataev. old teacher Geography shows Pierre a globe, which is a huge, oscillating ball. “The entire surface of the ball consisted of drops tightly compressed together. And all these drops moved, moved, and then merged from several into one, then from one they were divided into many. Each drop aspired ... to capture the largest space ... “Here is life, - said the old teacher ... - God is in the middle, and each drop seeks to expand in order to reflect him in the largest sizes ... *). Tolstoy is not a fatalist historian. In his work, the question of the moral responsibility of a person - a historical figure and every person - before history is especially acute. According to Tolstoy, a person is the less free, the closer he is placed to power, but also private person not single. Tolstoy emphasizes that one must be able to go bankrupt for the sake of defending the Fatherland, as the Rostovs do, to be ready to give everything, to sacrifice everything, as Pierre Bezukhov knows how, but eminent merchants and noble nobility who came to the building of the noble assembly do not know how.
