Origins
The Tolstoys were a well-known family of oldLife and career
Personal life
The death of his brother Nikolay in 1860 had an impact on Tolstoy, and led him to a desire to marry. On 23 September 1862, Tolstoy married Sophia Andreevna Behrs, who was sixteen years his junior and the daughter of a court physician. She was called Sonya, the Russian diminutive of Sofia, by her family and friends. They had 13 children, eight of whom survived childhood:Novels and fictional works
Critical appraisal by other authors
Religious and political beliefs
But this very necessity of involuntary suffering (by poor people) for eternal salvation is also expressed by that utterance of the Savior ( Matthew 19:24): "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God." Therefore, those who were greatly in earnest about their eternal salvation, chosevoluntary poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or littleincome< ...when fate had denied this to them and they had been born in wealth. Thus BuddhaSakyamuni Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...was born a prince, but voluntarily took to the mendicant's staff; andFrancis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christiani ..., the founder of the mendicant orders who, as a youngster at a ball, where the daughters of all the notabilities were sitting together, was asked: "Now Francis, will you not soon make your choice from these beauties?" and who replied: "I have made a far more beautiful choice!" "Whom?" "''La povertà'' (poverty)": whereupon he abandoned every thing shortly afterwards and wandered through the land as a mendicant. In 1884, Tolstoy wrote a book called ''What I Believe'', in which he openly confessed his Christian beliefs. He affirmed his belief in Jesus Christ's teachings and was particularly influenced by theSermon on the Mount The Sermon on the Mount (anglicized from the Matthean Vulgate Latin section title: ) is a collection of sayings attributed to Jesus of Nazareth found in the Gospel of Matthew (chapters 5, 6, and 7). that emphasizes his moral teachings. It is ..., and the injunction to turn the other cheek, which he understood as a "commandment of non-resistance to evil by force" and a doctrine ofpacifism Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaig ...andnonviolence Nonviolence is the personal practice of not causing harm to others under any condition. It may come from the belief that hurting people, animals and/or the environment is unnecessary to achieve an outcome and it may refer to a general philosoph .... In his work ''The Kingdom of God Is Within You'', he explains that he considered mistaken the Church's doctrine because they had made a "perversion" of Christ's teachings. Tolstoy also received letters from AmericanQuakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...who introduced him to the non-violence writings of Quaker Christians such asGeorge Fox George Fox (July 1624 – 13 January 1691) was an English Dissenter, who was a founder of the Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as the Quakers or Friends. The son of a Leicestershire weaver, he lived in times of social upheaval and ...,William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy an ..., andJonathan Dymond Jonathan Dymond (1796–1828) was an English Quaker and an ethical philosopher who is known for his monograph ''An Enquiry into the Accordancy of War with the Principles of Christianity''. Life Jonathan Dymond was the son of a Quaker linen-drap .... Tolstoy believed being a Christian required him to be a pacifist; the apparently inevitable waging of war by governments is why he is considered a philosophical anarchist. Later, various versions of "Tolstoy's Bible" were published, indicating the passages Tolstoy most relied on, specifically, the reported words of Jesus himself.Tolstoy believed that a true Christian could find lasting happiness by striving for inner perfection through following the
Great Commandment The Great Commandment (or Greatest Commandment) is a name used in the New Testament to describe the first of two commandments cited by Jesus in , , and in answer to him in : Most Christian denominations consider these two commandments as, tog ...of loving one's neighbor and God, rather than guidance from the Church or state. Another distinct attribute of his philosophy based on Christ's teachings isnonresistance Nonresistance (or non-resistance) is "the practice or principle of not resisting authority, even when it is unjustly exercised". At its core is discouragement of, even opposition to, physical resistance to an enemy. It is considered as a form of pri ...during conflict. This idea in Tolstoy's book ''The Kingdom of God Is Within You ''The Kingdom of God Is Within You'' ( pre-reform Russian: ; post-reform rus, Царство Божие внутри вас, Tsárstvo Bózhiye vnutrí vas) is a non-fiction book written by Leo Tolstoy. A Christian anarchist philosophical trea ...'' directly influencedMahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, Anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure ...and therefore also nonviolent resistance movements to this day. Tolstoy believed that the aristocracy was a burden on the poor. He opposedprivate Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...land ownership and the institution of marriage, and valued chastity and sexual abstinence (discussed in ''Father Sergius "Father Sergius" (russian: Отец Сергий, Otets Sergiy) is a short story written by Leo Tolstoy between 1890 and 1898 and first published (posthumously) in 1911.Julian Connolly in Charles A. Moser (ed.), ''The Cambridge History of Russian ...'' and his preface to ''The Kreutzer Sonata''), ideals also held by the young Gandhi. Tolstoy's passion from the depth of his austere moral views is reflected in his later work. One example is the sequence of the temptation of Sergius in ''Father Sergius''.Maxim Gorky Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (russian: link=no, Алексе́й Макси́мович Пешко́в; – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (russian: Макси́м Го́рький, link=no), was a Russian writer and social ...relates how Tolstoy once read this passage before him and Chekhov, and Tolstoy was moved to tears by the end of the reading. Later passages of rare power include the personal crises faced by the protagonists of ''The Death of Ivan Ilyich'', and of '' Master and Man'', where the main character in the former and the reader in the latter are made aware of the foolishness of the protagonists' lives. In 1886, Tolstoy wrote to the Russianexplorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...and anthropologistNicholas Miklouho-Maclay Nicholas Miklouho-Maclay (russian: Никола́й Никола́евич Миклу́хо-Макла́й; 1846 – 1888) was a Russian Imperial explorer. He worked as an ethnologist, anthropologist and biologist who became famous as one o ..., who was one of the first anthropologists to refutepolygenism Polygenism is a theory of human origins which posits the view that the human races are of different origins (''polygenesis''). This view is opposite to the idea of monogenism, which posits a single origin of humanity. Modern scientific views no ..., the view that the different races of mankind belonged to different species: "You were the first to demonstrate beyond question by your experience that man is man everywhere, that is, a kind, sociable being with whom communication can and should be established through kindness and truth, not guns and spirits." Tolstoy had a profound influence on the development of Christian anarchist thought. TheTolstoyan The Tolstoyan movement is a social movement based on the philosophical and religious views of Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910). Tolstoy's views were formed by rigorous study of the ministry of Jesus, particularly the Sermon on the Mo ...s were a small Christian anarchist group formed by Tolstoy's companion,Vladimir Chertkov Vladimir Grigoryevich Chertkov (russian: Влади́мир Григо́рьевич Чертко́в; also transliterated as Chertkoff, Tchertkoff, or Tschertkow ( – November 9, 1936) was the editor of the works of Leo Tolstoy, and one of the mo ...(1854–1936), to spread Tolstoy's religious teachings. From 1892 he regularly met with the student-activistVasily Maklakov Vasily Alekseyevich Maklakov ( Russian: Васи́лий Алексе́евич Маклако́в; , Moscow – July 15, 1957, Baden, Switzerland) was a Russian student activist, a trial lawyer and liberal parliamentary deputy, an orator, an ...who would defend several Tolstoyans; they discussed the fate of theDoukhobors The Doukhobours or Dukhobors (russian: духоборы / духоборцы, dukhobory / dukhobortsy; ) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin. They are one of many non-Orthodox ethno-confessional faiths in Russia .... PhilosopherPeter Kropotkin Pyotr Alexeyevich Kropotkin (; russian: link=no, Пётр Алексе́евич Кропо́ткин ; 9 December 1842 – 8 February 1921) was a Russian anarchist, socialist, revolutionary, historian, scientist, philosopher, and activ ...wrote of Tolstoy in the article on anarchism in the ''1911 Encyclopædia Britannica A notable ongoing event was the race for the South Pole. Events January * January 1 – A decade after federation, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory are added to the Commonwealth of Australia. * Ja ...'':Without naming himself an anarchist, Leo Tolstoy, like his predecessors in the popular religious movements of the 15th and 16th centuries, Chojecki,Denk Denk may refer to: People *Jeremy Denk (born 1970), American classical pianist * Michael K. Denk, Canadian professor of chemistry * Paula Denk (1908–1978), German actress * Ralph Denk (born 1973), German cyclist and cycling manager *Ulrike Denk ...and many others, took the anarchist position as regards thestate State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * '' Our ...andproperty right The right to property, or the right to own property (cf. ownership) is often classified as a human right for natural persons regarding their possessions. A general recognition of a right to private property is found more rarely and is typically ...s, deducing his conclusions from the general spirit of the teachings of Jesus and from the necessary dictates of reason. With all the might of his talent, Tolstoy made (especially in ''The Kingdom of God Is Within You'') a powerful criticism of the church, the state and law altogether, and especially of the present property laws. He describes the state as the domination of the wicked ones, supported by brutal force. Robbers, he says, are far less dangerous than a well-organized government. He makes a searching criticism of the prejudices which are current now concerning the benefits conferred upon men by the church, the state, and the existing distribution of property, and from the teachings of Jesus he deduces the rule of non-resistance and the absolute condemnation of all wars. His religious arguments are, however, so well combined with arguments borrowed from a dispassionate observation of the present evils, that the anarchist portions of his works appeal to the religious and the non-religious reader alike.Tolstoy denounced the intervention by the
Eight-Nation Alliance The Eight-Nation Alliance was a multinational military coalition that invaded northern China in 1900 with the stated aim of relieving the foreign legations in Beijing, then besieged by the popular Boxer militia, who were determined to remove f ...in theBoxer Rebellion The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, the Boxer Insurrection, or the Yihetuan Movement, was an anti-foreign, anti-colonial, and anti-Christian uprising in China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, b ...in China, theFilipino-American War Filipino Americans ( fil, Mga Pilipinong Amerikano) are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos and other Asian ethnicities in North America were first documented in the 16th century as slaves and prisoners on ships sailing to and from New S ..., and theSecond Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the South .... Tolstoy praised the Boxer Rebellion and harshly criticized the atrocities of the Russian, German, American, Japanese, and other troops of the Eight-Nation alliance. He heard about the looting, rapes, and murders, and accused the troops of slaughter and "Christian brutality." He named the monarchs most responsible for the atrocities asTsar Nicholas II Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Polan ...andKaiser Wilhelm II Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (german: Kaiser) and King of Prussia, reigning from 15 June 1888 until his abdication on 9 November 1918. Despite strengthening the German Emp .... He described the intervention as "terrible for its injustice and cruelty". The war was also criticized by other intellectuals such asLeonid Andreyev Leonid Nikolaievich Andreyev (russian: Леони́д Никола́евич Андре́ев, – 12 September 1919) was a Russian playwright, novelist and short-story writer, who is considered to be a father of Expressionism in Russian lite ...and Gorky. As part of the criticism, Tolstoy wrote an epistle called ''To the Chinese people''. In 1902, he wrote an open letter describing and denouncing Nicholas II's activities in China. The Boxer Rebellion stirred Tolstoy's interest in Chinese philosophy. He was a famoussinophile A Sinophile is a person who demonstrates a strong interest for China, Chinese culture, Chinese language, Chinese history, and/or Chinese people. Those with professional training and practice in the study of China are referred to as Sinolog ..., and read the works ofConfucius Confucius ( ; zh, s=, p=Kǒng Fūzǐ, "Master Kǒng"; or commonly zh, s=, p=Kǒngzǐ, labels=no; – ) was a Chinese philosopher and politician of the Spring and Autumn period who is traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages. C ...and Lao Zi. Tolstoy wrote ''Chinese Wisdom'' and other texts about China. Tolstoy corresponded with the Chinese intellectualGu Hongming Gu Hongming in his time known as Ku Hung-ming (; Wade-Giles: Ku Hung-ming; Pinyin: Gū Hóngmíng; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Ko͘ Hông-bêng; courtesy name: Hongming; ordinary name: 湯生 in Chinese or Tomson in English) (18 July 185730 April 1928) was a ...and recommended that China remain an agrarian nation, and not reform like Japan. Tolstoy and Gu opposed theHundred Day's Reform The Hundred Days' Reform or Wuxu Reform () was a failed 103-day national, cultural, political, and educational reform movement that occurred from 11 June to 22 September 1898 during the late Qing dynasty. It was undertaken by the young Guangxu E ...byKang Youwei Kang Youwei (; Cantonese: ''Hōng Yáuh-wàih''; 19March 185831March 1927) was a prominent political thinker and reformer in China of the late Qing dynasty. His increasing closeness to and influence over the young Guangxu Emperor spar ...and believed that the reform movement was perilous. Tolstoy's ideology of non-violence shaped the thought of the Chinese anarchist group Society for the Study of Socialism. In hundreds of essays over the last 20 years of his life, Tolstoy reiterated the anarchist critique of the state and recommended books byKropotkin Pyotr Alexeyevich Kropotkin (; russian: link=no, Пётр Алексе́евич Кропо́ткин ; 9 December 1842 – 8 February 1921) was a Russian anarchist, socialist, revolutionary, historian, scientist, philosopher, and activist ...andProudhon Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (, , ; 15 January 1809, Besançon – 19 January 1865, Paris) was a French socialist,Landauer, Carl; Landauer, Hilde Stein; Valkenier, Elizabeth Kridl (1979) 959 "The Three Anticapitalistic Movements". ''European Socia ...to his readers, while rejecting anarchism's espousal of violent revolutionary means. In the 1900 essay, "On Anarchy,” he wrote: "The Anarchists are right in everything; in the negation of the existing order, and in the assertion that, without Authority, there could not be worse violence than that of Authority under existing conditions. They are mistaken only in thinking that Anarchy can be instituted by a revolution. But it will be instituted only by there being more and more people who do not require the protection of governmental power ... There can be only one permanent revolutiona moral one: the regeneration of the inner man." Despite his misgivings aboutanarchist violence Anarchism and violence have been linked together by events in anarchist history such as Revolution, violent revolution, terrorism, assassination attempts and propaganda of the deed. Propaganda of the deed, or ''attentát'', was espoused by leadin ..., Tolstoy took risks to circulate the prohibited publications of anarchist thinkers in Russia, and corrected the proofs of Kropotkin's "Words of a Rebel", illegally published in St Petersburg in 1906.In 1908, Tolstoy wrote ''
A Letter to a Hindu "A Letter to a Hindu" (also known as "A Letter to a Hindoo") was a letter written by Leo Tolstoy to Tarak Nath Das on 14 December 1908. The letter was written in response to two letters sent by Das, seeking support from the Russian author and th ...'' outlining his belief in non-violence as a means for India to gainindependence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the s ...fromcolonial rule Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose their relig .... In 1909, Gandhi read a copy of the letter when he was becoming an activist in South Africa. He wrote to Tolstoy seeking proof that he was the author, which led to further correspondence. Tolstoy's ''The Kingdom of God Is Within You'' also helped to convince Gandhi of nonviolent resistance, a debt Gandhi acknowledged in his autobiography, calling Tolstoy "the greatest apostle of non-violence that the present age has produced". Their correspondence lasted only a year, from October 1909 until Tolstoy's death in November 1910, but led Gandhi to give the name Tolstoy Colony to his secondashram An ashram ( sa, आश्रम, ) is a spiritual hermitage or a monastery in Indian religions. Etymology The Sanskrit noun is a thematic nominal derivative from the root 'toil' (< vegetarianism Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat ( red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetaria ..., the subject of several of Tolstoy's essays. Tolstoy also became a major supporter of theEsperanto Esperanto ( or ) is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by the Warsaw-based ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it was intended to be a universal second language for international communi ...movement. He was impressed by the pacifist beliefs of theDoukhobors The Doukhobours or Dukhobors (russian: духоборы / духоборцы, dukhobory / dukhobortsy; ) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin. They are one of many non-Orthodox ethno-confessional faiths in Russia ...and brought their persecution to the attention of the international community, after they burned their weapons in peaceful protest in 1895. He aided the Doukhobors to migrate to Canada. He also provided inspiration to theMennonites Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Ra ..., another religious group with anti-government and anti-war sentiments. In 1904, Tolstoy condemned the ensuingRusso-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...and wrote to the Japanese Buddhist priestSoyen Shaku Soyen Shaku (, January 10, 1860 – October 29, 1919; written in modern Japanese ''Shaku Sōen'' or ''Kōgaku Shaku Sōen'') was the first Zen Buddhist master to teach in the United States. He was a rōshi of the Rinzai school and was abbot of both ...in a failed attempt to make a joint pacifist statement. Towards the end of his life, Tolstoy become occupied with the economic theory and social philosophy ofGeorgism Georgism, also called in modern times Geoism, and known historically as the single tax movement, is an economic ideology holding that, although people should own the value they produce themselves, the economic rent derived from land—includi .... He incorporated it approvingly into works such as ''Resurrection Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, whic ...'' (1899), the book that was a major cause for his excommunication. He spoke with great admiration ofHenry George Henry George (September 2, 1839 – October 29, 1897) was an American political economist and journalist. His writing was immensely popular in 19th-century America and sparked several reform movements of the Progressive Era. He inspired the ec ..., stating once that "People do not argue with the teaching of George; they simply do not know it. And it is impossible to do otherwise with his teaching, for he who becomes acquainted with it cannot but agree." He also wrote a preface to George's journal ''Social Problems A social issue is a problem that affects many people within a society. It is a group of common problems in present-day society and ones that many people strive to solve. It is often the consequence of factors extending beyond an individual's cont ...''. Tolstoy and George both rejected private property in land (the most important source of income for Russian aristocracy that Tolstoy heavily criticized). They also rejected a centrally plannedsocialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...economy. Because Georgism requires an administration to collectland rent In economics, economic rent is any payment (in the context of a market transaction) to the owner of a factor of production in excess of the cost needed to bring that factor into production. In classical economics, economic rent is any payment m ...and spend it on infrastructure, some assume that this embrace moved Tolstoy away from hisanarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessari ...views. However, anarchist versions of Georgism have been proposed since then. Tolstoy's 1899 novel ''Resurrection'' explores his thoughts on Georgism and hints that Tolstoy had such a view. It suggests small communities with local governance to manage the collective land rents for common goods, while still heavily criticisingstate State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * '' Our ...institutions such as thejustice system The contemporary national legal systems are generally based on one of four basic systems: civil law, common law, statutory law, religious law or combinations of these. However, the legal system of each country is shaped by its unique history an ....
Death
Tolstoy died on 20 November, 1910 at the age of 82. Just before his death, his health was a concern of his family, who cared for him daily. In his last days, he spoke and wrote about dying. Renouncing his aristocratic lifestyle, he left home one winter night. His secretive departure was an apparent attempt to escape from his wife's tirades. She spoke out against many of his teachings, and in recent years had grown envious of his attention to
Tolstoyan The Tolstoyan movement is a social movement based on the philosophical and religious views of Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910). Tolstoy's views were formed by rigorous study of the ministry of Jesus, particularly the Sermon on the Mo ..."disciples". Tolstoy died ofpneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...atAstapovo Lev Tolstoy (russian: Лев Толсто́й) is a rural locality (a settlement) and the administrative center of Lev-Tolstovsky District Lev-Tolstovsky District (russian: Лев-Толсто́вский райо́н) is an administrativeLa ...railway station, after a day's train journey south. The station master took Tolstoy to his apartment, and his personal doctors arrived and gave him injections ofmorphine Morphine is a strong opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin in poppies ('' Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as a pain medication, and is also commonly used recreationally, or to make other illicit opioids. Ther ...andcamphor Camphor () is a waxy, colorless solid with a strong aroma. It is classified as a terpenoid and a cyclic ketone. It is found in the wood of the camphor laurel ('' Cinnamomum camphora''), a large evergreen tree found in East Asia; and in the k .... The police tried to limit access to his funeral procession, but thousands of peasants lined the streets. Still, some were heard to say that, other than knowing that "some nobleman had died", they knew little else about Tolstoy. According to some sources, Tolstoy spent the last hours of his life preaching love, non-violence, andGeorgism Georgism, also called in modern times Geoism, and known historically as the single tax movement, is an economic ideology holding that, although people should own the value they produce themselves, the economic rent derived from land—includi ...to fellow passengers on the train.
Legacy
Although Leo Tolstoy was regarded as a Christian anarchist and not a socialist, his ideas and works still influenced socialist thinkers throughout history. He held an unromantic view of governments as being essentially violent forces held together by intimidation from state authority, corruption on behalf of officials, and the indoctrination of people from a young age. In regard to his view of economics, he advocated for a return to
subsistence agriculture Subsistence agriculture occurs when farmers grow food crops to meet the needs of themselves and their families on smallholdings. Subsistence agriculturalists target farm output for survival and for mostly local requirements, with little or no s .... In his view, a simplified economy would afford a lesser need for the exchange of goods, and as such, factories and cities – the centers of industry – would become obsolete. In 1944, literary historian and Soviet medievalist Nikolai Gudzii wrote a biography of Tolstoy that spanned 80 pages. It was designed to show readers that Tolstoy would have revised his pacifistic and anti-patriotic sentiments if he were alive amid World War II. At around the same time, literary scholar and historianBoris Eikhenbaum Boris Mikhailovich Eikhenbaum ( rus, Борис Михайлович Эйхенбаум, p=ɨjxʲɪnˈbaʊm; 16 October 1886 – 2 November 1959) was a Russian Empire and Soviet literary scholar and historian of Russian literature. He is a repres ...– in a stark contrast from his earlier works on Tolstoy – portrayed the Russian novelist as someone whose ideas aligned with those of early utopian socialists such asRobert Owen Robert Owen (; 14 May 1771 – 17 November 1858) was a Welsh textile manufacturer, philanthropist and social reformer, and a founder of utopian socialism and the cooperative movement. He strove to improve factory working conditions, promoted e ...and Henri Saint-Simon. Eikenbaum suggested that these influences can be seen in Tolstoy's emphases on individual happiness and peasant welfare. The discrepancies in Eikenbaum's portrayals of Tolstoy can be attributed to the political pressure in Soviet Russia at the time: public officials pressured literary scholars to conform with party doctrine.
In Soviet Russia
From Tolstoy's writings theTolstoyan movement The Tolstoyan movement is a social movement based on the philosophical and religious views of Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910). Tolstoy's views were formed by rigorous study of the ministry of Jesus, particularly the Sermon on the Mo ...was birthed, and its members used his works to promote non-violence, anti-urbanism and opposition to the state. While Tolstoy himself never associated with the movement, as he was opposed to joining any organization or group, he named his thirteenth daughter Alexandra (Sasha) L'vovna Tolstaya the heir to his works with the intention that she would publish them for the Russian people. Meanwhile, Tolstoy designatedVladimir Chertkov Vladimir Grigoryevich Chertkov (russian: Влади́мир Григо́рьевич Чертко́в; also transliterated as Chertkoff, Tchertkoff, or Tschertkow ( – November 9, 1936) was the editor of the works of Leo Tolstoy, and one of the mo ...– who kept many of Tolstoy's manuscripts – as the editor of his works. Originally Tolstoy wanted to make the Russian people the heirs to his writings, but Russian law at the time decreed that property could only be inherited by one individual. Following theRussian Civil War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Russian Civil War , partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I , image = , caption = Clockwise from top left: {{flatlist, *Soldiers ...in 1917, writings that were formerly censored could now be published, since the all literary works were nationalized in November 1918. Alexandra worked during these years to publish sets of Tolstoy's works: from 1917 to 1919, she worked with Zadruga Publishing House to publish thirteen booklets on Tolstoy's writings, which had previously been censored under Russia's imperial rule. However, publishing a complete collection of Tolstoy's works proved to be more difficult. In December 1918, the Commissariat of Education granted Chertkov a 10 million rouble subsidy to publish a complete edition of his works, but it never materialized due to government control of publication rights. Cooperatives were additionally made illegal in Russia in 1921, creating another obstacle for Alexandra and Chertkov. In the 1920s, Tolstoy's estate,Yasnaya Polyana Yasnaya Polyana ( rus, Я́сная Поля́на, p=ˈjasnəjə pɐˈlʲanə, literally: "Bright Glade") is a writer's house museum, the former home of the writer Leo Tolstoy.Bartlett, p. 25 It is southwest of Tula, Russia, and from Moscow ..., was sanctioned by the Soviet state to exist as a commune for Tolstoyans. The government permitted this Christian-oriented community because they felt as if religious sects like the Tolstoyans were models for the Russian peasantry. The Soviet government owned the estate, which was deemed a memorial for the late Russian writer, but Alexandra had jurisdiction over the education offered at Yasnaya Polyana. Unlike most Soviet schools, the schooling at Yasnaya Polyana did not offer militaristic training and did spread atheistic propaganda. Over time, though, local communists – as opposed to the state government, which financially supported the institution – often denounced the estate and called for frequent inspections. After 1928, a change in cultural policy in the Soviet regime led to a takeover of local institutions, including Tolstoy's estate. When Alexandra stepped down from her role as head of Yasnaya Poliana in 1929, the Commissariat of Education and Health took control. In 1925, the Soviet government created its first Jubilee Committee to celebrate the centennial of Tolstoy's birth, which originally consisted of 13 members but grew to 38 members after a second committee formed in 1927. Alexandra was not content with the funds provided by the government, and met with Stalin in June 1928. During the meeting, Stalin said the government could not provide the one million roubles requested by the committee. However, an agreement was reached with the State Publishing House in April 1928 for the publishing of a 92-volume collection of Tolstoy's works. During the Jubilee Celebration, Anatoly Luncharsky – the head of thePeople's Commissariat for Education The People's Commissariat for Education (or Narkompros; russian: Народный комиссариат просвещения, Наркомпрос, directly translated as the "People's Commissariat for Enlightenment") was the Soviet agency char ...– gave a speech in which he refuted reports that claimed the Soviet government was hostile towards Tolstoy and his legacy. Instead of focusing on the aspects of Tolstoy's works that pitted him against the Soviet regime, he instead focused on the unifying aspects, such as Tolstoy's love for equality and labor as well as his disdain for the state and private property. More than 400 million copies of Tolstoy's works have been printed in the Soviet Union, making him the best-selling author in Soviet Russia.New York Times
February 15, 1987
Influence
Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1 ...wrote several essays about Tolstoy, suggesting that a contradiction exists within his critique of Russian society. According to Lenin, Tolstoy – who adored the peasantry and voiced their discontent with imperial Russian society – may have been revolutionary in his critiques, but his political consciousness was not fully developed for a revolution. Lenin uses this line of thinking to suggest that the1905 Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution of 1905,. also known as the First Russian Revolution,. occurred on 22 January 1905, and was a wave of mass political and social unrest that spread through vast areas of the Russian Empire. The mass unrest was directed again ..., which he called a "peasant bourgeois revolution," failed because of its backwardness: the revolutionaries wanted to dismantle the existing medieval forms of oppression and replace them with an old and patriarchal village-commune. Tolstoy's concept of non-resistance to evil additionally hindered the 1905 revolution's success, Lenin thought, because the movement was not militant and had thus allowed the autocracy to crush them. Nevertheless, Stalin concludes in his writings that despite the many contradictions in Tolstoy's critiques, his hatred for feudalism and capitalism mark the prelude to proletarian socialism. Additionally, Tolstoy's philosophy of non-resistance to evil made an impact on Mahatma Gandhi's political thinking. Gandhi was deeply moved by Tolstoy's concept of truth, which, in his view, constitutes any doctrine that reduces suffering. For both Gandhi and Tolstoy, truth is God, and since God is universal love, truth must therefore also be universal love. The Gujarati word for Gandhi's non-violent movement is "satyagraha," derived from the word "sadagraha" – the "sat" portion translating to "truth," and the "agraha" translating to "firmness." Gandhi's conception of satyagraha was birthed from Tolstoy's understanding of Christianity, rather than from Hindu tradition.
In films
A 2009 film about Tolstoy's final year, ''The Last Station ''The Last Station'' is a 2009 English-language German biographical drama film written and directed by Michael Hoffman, and based on Jay Parini's 1990 biographical novel of the same name, which chronicled the final months of Leo Tolstoy's lif ...'', based on the 1990 novel byJay Parini Jay Parini (born April 2, 1948) is an American writer and academic. He is known for novels, poetry, biography, screenplays and criticism. He has published novels about Leo Tolstoy, Walter Benjamin, Paul the Apostle, and Herman Melville. Early l ..., was made by director Michael Hoffman withChristopher Plummer Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer (December 13, 1929 – February 5, 2021) was a Canadian actor. His career spanned seven decades, gaining him recognition for his performances in film, stage, and television. He received multiple accolades, inc ...as Tolstoy andHelen Mirren Dame Helen Mirren (born Helen Lydia Mironoff; born 26 July 1945) is an English actor. The recipient of numerous accolades, she is the only performer to have achieved the Triple Crown of Acting in both the United States and the United Kingdo ...as Sofya Tolstoya. Both performers were nominated forOscars The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...for their roles. There have been other films about the writer, including ''Departure of a Grand Old Man ''Departure of a Grand Old Man'' (russian: «Уход великого старца», Ukhod velikovo startza) is a 1912 Russian silent film about the last days of author Leo Tolstoy. The film was directed by Yakov Protazanov and Elizaveta Thiman, ...'', made in 1912 just two years after his death, ''How Fine, How Fresh the Roses Were'' (1913), and ''Lev Tolstoy Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...'', directed by and starring Sergei Gerasimov in 1984. There is also a famouslost film A lost film is a feature or short film that no longer exists in any studio archive, private collection, public archive or the U.S. Library of Congress. Conditions During most of the 20th century, U.S. copyright law required at least one copy ...of Tolstoy made a decade before he died. In 1901, the American travel lecturerBurton Holmes Elias Burton Holmes (1870–1958) was an American traveler, photographer and filmmaker, who coined the term "travelogue". Travel stories, slide shows, and motion pictures were all in existence before Holmes began his career, as was the profess ...visited Yasnaya Polyana withAlbert J. Beveridge Albert Jeremiah Beveridge (October 6, 1862 – April 27, 1927) was an American historian and US senator from Indiana. He was an intellectual leader of the Progressive Era and a biographer of Chief Justice John Marshall and President Abraham Linco ..., the U.S. senator and historian. As the three men conversed, Holmes filmed Tolstoy with his 60-mm movie camera. Afterwards, Beveridge's advisers succeeded in having the film destroyed, fearing that the meeting with the Russian author might hurt Beveridge's chances of running for the U.S. presidency.Wallace, Irving, 'Everybody's Rover Boy', in ''The Sunday Gentleman''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1965. p. 117.
Bibliography
See also
*Anarchism and religion Anarchists have traditionally been skeptical of or vehemently opposed to organized religion. Nevertheless, some anarchists have provided religious interpretations and approaches to anarchism, including the idea that the glorification of the state i ...*Christian vegetarianism Christian vegetarianism is the practice of keeping to a vegetarian lifestyle for reasons connected to or derived from the Christian faith. The three primary reasons are spiritual, nutritional, and ethical. The ethical reasons may include a con ...*Leo Tolstoy bibliography This is a list of works by Russian writer Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910), including his novels, novellas, short stories, fables and parables, plays, and nonfiction. Prose Fiction Novels *'' War and Peace'' (Война и мир 'Voyna i mir'' 18 ...* Leo Tolstoy and Theosophy *List of peace activists This list of peace activists includes people who have proactively advocated diplomatic, philosophical, and non-military resolution of major territorial or ideological disputes through nonviolent means and methods. Peace activists usually work ...*Tolstoyan movement The Tolstoyan movement is a social movement based on the philosophical and religious views of Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910). Tolstoy's views were formed by rigorous study of the ministry of Jesus, particularly the Sermon on the Mo ...* Henry David Thoreau * ''War & Peace'' (2016 TV series)
Notes
References
Further reading
* Craraft, James. ''Two Shining Souls: Jane Addams, Leo Tolstoy, and the Quest for Global Peace'' (Lanham: Lexington, 2012). 179 pp. * *
''Trotsky's 1908 tribute to Leo Tolstoy''
Published by the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI).
''The Life of Tolstoy: Later years''
byAylmer Maude Aylmer Maude (28 March 1858 – 25 August 1938) and Louise Maude (1855–1939) were English translators of Leo Tolstoy's works, and Aylmer Maude also wrote his friend Tolstoy's biography, ''The Life of Tolstoy''. After living many years in Russ ..., Dodd, Mead and Company, 1911 at Internet Archive * '' Why We Fail as Christians'' byRobert Hunter Robert Hunter may refer to: Arts * Robert Hunter (painter) (died 1780), Irish portrait painter * Robert Hunter (encyclopædist) (1823–1897), British editor of the ''Encyclopædic Dictionary'' *Robert Hunter (author) (1874–1942), American sociol ..., The Macmillan Company, 1919 at Wikiquote
''Why we fail as Christians''
by Robert Hunter, The Macmillan Company, 1919 at Google Books
External links
* * * * * *
Online project (readingtolstoy.ru) to createopen digital version of 90 volumes of Tolstoy works
* *
Waltz in F major
( Page on Russian Wikipedia), Tolstoy's only known musical composition. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tolstoy, Leo 1828 births 1910 deaths 19th-century Christians 19th-century essayists 19th-century dramatists and playwrights from the Russian Empire 19th-century educators from the Russian Empire 19th-century journalists from the Russian Empire 19th-century male writers from the Russian Empire 19th-century novelists from the Russian Empire 19th-century short story writers from the Russian Empire 20th-century Christians 20th-century essayists 20th-century Russian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Russian educators 20th-century Russian journalists 20th-century Russian male writers 20th-century Russian novelists 20th-century Russian short story writers Anarchist writers Anarcho-pacifists Articles containing video clips Burials in Russia Christian anarchists Christian vegetarianism Christian writersVegetarianism Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat ( red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter. Vegetaria ...Corresponding members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences Cultural critics Deaths from pneumonia in Russia Eastern Orthodox writers Epistemologists Georgists Green anarchists Honorary members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences Counts of the Russian Empire Essayists from the Russian Empire Members of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts Metaphysicians Moral philosophers Non-interventionism Nonviolence advocates Russian opinion journalists Ontologists People excommunicated by the Russian Orthodox Church People from Tula Oblast People from Tula Governorate Philosophers of culture Philosophers of education Philosophers of ethics and morality Philosophers of history Philosophers of literature Philosophers of mind Philosophers of religion Political philosophers Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 4th class Russian anarchists Russian children's writers Russian Christian pacifists Russian diarists Russian educators Russian Esperantists Russian historical novelists Russian magazine editors Russian male dramatists and playwrights Russian male essayists Russian male journalists Russian male novelists Russian male short story writers Russian military personnel of the Caucasian War Russian military personnel of the Crimean War Russian philosophers Schoolteachers from the Russian Empire Russian social commentators Social critics Social philosophersLeo Leo or Léo may refer to: Acronyms * Law enforcement officer * Law enforcement organisation * ''Louisville Eccentric Observer'', a free weekly newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky * Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity Arts an ...Tolstoyans Vegetarianism activists Writers about activism and social change