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War and Peace


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Translated by Louise and Aylmer Maude.

Epic historical novel by Leo Tolstoy, originally published as Voyna i mir in 1865-69. This panoramic study of early 19th-century Russian society, noted for its mastery of realistic detail and variety of psychological analysis, is generally regarded as one of the world's greatest novels. War and Peace is primarily concerned with the histories of five aristocratic families--particularly the Bezukhovs, the Bolkonskys, and the Rostovs--the members of which are portrayed against a vivid background of Russian social life during the war against Napoleon (1805-14). The theme of war, however, is subordinate to the story of family existence, which involves Tolstoy's optimistic belief in the life-asserting pattern of human existence. The heroine, Natasha Rostova, for example, reaches her greatest fulfillment through her marriage to Pierre Bezukhov and her motherhood. The novel also sets forth a theory of history, concluding that there is a minimum of free choice; all is ruled by an inexorable historical determinism.

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Recent Forum Posts on War and Peace

Book 1 - Maude Translation

In your own words, what was happening there? The soiree, the introduction of the characters, Anna, Vasily, Helene, her brother, Anatole - Andrei and Lise . . . who else? Oh yeah . . . Pierre!

Posted By WildCityWoman at Sun 26 Oct 2008, 8:13 PM in War and Peace || 1 Reply

Character List - War & Peace

I have one going at Wild City's forums . . . so far I have around 560 or so. I'm still working my way through Book 8, so I know there will be more. My list is extensive - mentions maids, soldiers, etc. It's not the neatest looking list going, but I'm shoring it up as I go along. Here's the direct url . . . http://wildcity.proboards14.com/index.cgi?board=Books&action=display&thread=3127&page=1 (Sorry I've 'locked' the thread - just don't want distractions - you can always leave a note here for me if you have any suggestions) Carly

Posted By WildCityWoman at Sun 26 Oct 2008, 5:53 PM in War and Peace || 0 Replies

Irony in W&P

I'm finding War and Peace to be surprisingly lively and entertaining, and I think a big reason is Tolstoy's irony. Pierre's involvement with the Masons is absolutely delightful: the absurd rituals, the numerology (Napoleon's "number" is 666-- given enough juggling!) Poor, likable Pierre... he's so serious about the Masonic code... while to everyone else it's just a social club! I'm now wondering about Tolstoy's treatment of the Tsar and patriotism, and his treatment of religion. At times, he seems to be treating the Tsar with true reverence. But then again, the populace's Tsar-worship seems to be absurdly over the top. And the Tsar himself seems a bit of a goofball at times. Shoving matches in the street as his majesty tosses biscuits to the crowd... old ladies trampled as the mob cries out "angel! father!" It makes the patriotic fervor of 1812 seem more than a little absurd. Religion takes its knocks also: But could not pray for the trampling of her enemies underfoot, when she had only a few minutes before been wishing she had more of them to forgive and pray for. But yet she could have no doubts of the righteousness of this prayer that had been read by the priest on his knees. This is all so absurd, contradiction on top of contradiction, it seems clearly ironical. I think at this point what I admire most about Tolstoy is his lively ridicule of human folly, which he manages while maintaining a deep sympathy for all of his characters. It's remarkable!

Posted By curlyqlink at Tue 26 Aug 2008, 6:51 PM in War and Peace || 5 Replies

War and Peace

I started reading this about a week ago, and im up to page 147 now. Frankly, I'm finding it difficult to read. I can see why it is regarded as one of the best works of literature ever written, but there's so many different characters, so many setting changes, that sometimes I just can't understand what's going on or what the significance of any of the conflicts are. I'm not a seasoned reader by any means. I'm 16, and while i have read my fair share of books this has got to be the most difficult of books I have read. So should I continue reading it and hope it gets a little easier? Or should I read it another time? I don't hate reading it. I actually enjoy some of the parts. It just feels a little off-putting at times.

Posted By JacobF at Tue 19 Aug 2008, 1:06 AM in War and Peace || 27 Replies

Funny jokes to lighten the forum

I've been thinking : perhaps we should try posting some cute jokes related to the works of Tolstoy, just to lighten the mood of the forum : just for FUN ?? Can anyone come up with something ? Regards, Swanduckling.

Posted By Swanduckling at Mon 16 Jun 2008, 2:25 PM in War and Peace || 1 Reply

War & Peace - The Journey Begins...

Hello everyone. I'm about to embark on reading War and Peace for the first time and was wondering if anyone would like to join me! I've read some reviews and opinions of it and a lot of people seem to agree that it's hard work but ultimately worth it. I got a great sense of achievement on finishing Crime & Punishment and found the whole experience incredibly rewarding, so this seems like the next logical step!! A suggestion that I read somewhere was to join a group or forum of other people reading it and discuss it as you go along. I think this sounds like a good idea and might make it easier and more enjoyable to get through the whole thing without giving up - a sort of War and Peace support group as it were. I realise I'm not making it sound very appealing, but hopefully I'll find a few people who will relish such a challenge!! I'm not quite sure how it'll work but perhaps we could set targets of a certain number of chapters at a time and share our thoughts as it unfolds. I'll be reading the penguin classics edition translated by Rosemary Edmonds. I'm not going to buy another translation but I don't suppose it's entirely necessary we all read the same one. Any takers?...

Posted By Rexel Matador at Mon 16 Jun 2008, 3:34 AM in War and Peace || 7 Replies

War and Peace Translations?

There's several out there and it's very difficult discerning from reviews which is preferred. I would love to hear some thoughts on the the different translations and maybe even some comparisons. Right now I'm looking at translations by Peavear, Garnette, Briggs, Maude, and Unknown Signet Version. Right now I'm leaning towards the Peavear or Garnette just based on reviews.

Posted By MorpheusSandman at Wed 11 Jun 2008, 10:42 PM in War and Peace || 3 Replies

Opening of Book Six

I just read the opening pages of book six: Prince Andrew (or Andrey) and the stripped oak, spring, Natasha, rebirth. Just totally masterful. What they meant when they said this book was "written in sunlight.

Posted By Hack Attack at Wed 16 Jan 2008, 6:23 PM in War and Peace || 3 Replies

An Unmentioned Influence of W&P

Attending a couple of performances of Prokofiev's magnificent opera, War and Peace, at the Metropolitan recently, and thinking of all the plot lines he did not choose to set (the piece is nearly five hours long as it is, and doesn't include three-quarters of Tolstoy's characters), I began to think of Tolstoy's masterful construction: the two or three aristocratic families (Bolkonskys, Rostovs, Kuragins-and-Bezukhovs), the pettiness of their romantic and other involvements when the great tidal wave of national disaster rolls over them, the way the characters show their mettle in meeting it, the way their personal destinies work themselves out in a more peaceable aftermath -- and the resemblance to another work in an entirely different medium occurred to me. Can it be that no one has noticed this? Griffith's "The Birth of a Nation." Like Tolstoy, he examines a couple of aristocratic families, their loyal underlings, their intertwining romances, and then hits them in the head with a shattering cataclysm that kills quite a few of them and transforms the lives and social circumstances of the rest. His very neutrality on the Civil War (and his determination to see blacks who attempt to break out of their class as contrary to the "natural") seem to grow also from Tolstoy's belief in the Russian-ness that links the class system of pre-Revolutionary Russia to a proper devotion to the Russian earth. (His racism could almost be a dreadful parody of Tolstoy's religion.) Even to the happy endings tacked on in both works after the upheavals, the story told in the American work seems to be an attempt to create the effect -- in a transAtlantic milieu -- of national epic in the manner and on the level of Tolstoy's. For the fledgling film industry, it was an important attempt, and he chose (I believe) a significant model. But Griffith's own blindness to the evils of racism and the reality of American culture (not that Tolstoy was seeing Russia 20/20) make us uncomfortable with this relationship.

Posted By ATsarIsBorn at Sat 5 Jan 2008, 2:22 AM in War and Peace || 3 Replies

Is Dohokhov more than a scalawag in Persian dress?

I'm glad there are so many of you who love War and Peace as much as I do. Ths last time I read it, I was struck by how often Tolstoy used Dohokhov whenever he need an antagonist: Dohokhov goads Pierre into a duel, entices Nikolay Rostov into a huge gambling debt, helps Anatole Kuragin in his attempt to abduct Natasha and carelesly leads the naive Petya Rostov behind enemy lines. Dolokhov has no Christian name or patronymic. What do you all think? Did Tolstoy pull it off? Is Dolokhov a contrivance or a believable character?

Posted By Bleakhills at Tue 6 Nov 2007, 7:15 PM in War and Peace || 18 Replies

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