Russian cultural heritage of the nineteenth century includes many world famous musical works, achievements of choreographic art, masterpieces of brilliant poets. The work of Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy, a great prose writer, humanist philosopher and public figure, occupies a special place not only in Russian, but also in world culture.
The biography of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy is contradictory. It indicates that he did not immediately come to his philosophical views. And the creation of artistic literary works, which made him a world-famous Russian writer, was far from his main activity. Yes, and the beginning of it life path it was not cloudless. Here are the main ones milestones in the writer's biography:
- Tolstoy's childhood years.
- Military service and the beginning of a creative career.
- European travel and teaching activities.
- Marriage and family life.
- Novels "War and Peace" and "Anna Karenina".
- One thousand eight hundred and eighties. Moscow census.
- Novel "Resurrection", excommunication.
- The final years of life.
Childhood and adolescence
The writer's date of birth is September 9, 1828. He was born into a noble aristocratic family, on his mother’s estate “Yasnaya Polyana”, where Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy spent his childhood until he was nine years old. Leo Tolstoy's father, Nikolai Ilyich, came from the ancient Tolstoy count family, which traced its family tree back to the mid-fourteenth century. Lev's mother, Princess Volkonskaya, died in 1830, some time after the birth of her only daughter, whose name was Maria. Seven years later, my father also died. He left five children in the care of his relatives, among whom Leo was the fourth child.
Having changed several guardians, little Leva settled in the Kazan house of his aunt Yushkova, his father’s sister. Life in new family turned out to be so happy that she pushed the tragic events into the background early childhood. Later, the writer recalled this time as one of the best in his life, which was reflected in his story “Childhood,” which can be considered part of the writer’s autobiography.
Having received his primary education at home, as was customary in most noble families at that time, Tolstoy entered Kazan University in 1843, choosing to study oriental languages. The choice turned out to be unsuccessful; due to poor academic performance, he changes the Oriental Faculty to study law, but with the same result. As a result, after two years, Lev returns to his homeland in Yasnaya Polyana, deciding to take up farming.
But the idea, which required monotonous, continuous work, failed, and Lev leaves for Moscow, and then to St. Petersburg, where he tries again to prepare for entering the university, alternating this preparation with carousing and gambling, increasingly accumulating debts, as well as with musical studies and journaling. Who knows how all this could have ended if not for the visit of his brother Nikolai, an army officer, to him in 1851, who persuaded him to enlist in military service.
The army and the beginning of a creative journey
Army service contributed to the writer's further reassessment of the social relations existing in the country. This is where it was started a writing career that consisted of two important stages:
- Military service in the North Caucasus.
- Participation in the Crimean War.
For three years, L.N. Tolstoy lived among the Terek Cossacks, took part in battles - first as a volunteer, and later officially. Impressions of that life were subsequently reflected in the writer’s work, in works dedicated to the life of the North Caucasian Cossacks: “Cossacks”, “Hadji Murat”, “Raid”, “Cutting Wood”.
It was in the Caucasus, in between military skirmishes with the highlanders and while waiting to be accepted into official military service, that Lev Nikolaevich wrote his first published work - the story “Childhood”. The creative growth of Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy as a writer began with her. Published in Sovremennik under the pseudonym L.N., it immediately brought fame and recognition to the aspiring author.
Having spent two years in the Caucasus, L. N. Tolstoy, with the beginning of the Crimean War, was transferred to the Danube Army, and then to Sevastopol, where he served in the artillery troops, commanding a battery, participated in the defense of Malakhov Kurgan and fought at Chernaya. For his participation in the battles for Sevastopol, Tolstoy was awarded several times, including the Order of St. Anne.
Here the writer begins work on “Sevastopol Stories”, which he completes in St. Petersburg, where he was transferred in the early autumn of 1855, and publishes them under his own name in Sovremennik. This publication gives him the name of a representative of a new generation of writers.
At the end of 1857, L.N. Tolstoy resigns with the rank of lieutenant and sets off on his European journey.
Europe and pedagogical activity
Leo Tolstoy's first trip to Europe was a fact-finding, tourist trip. He visits museums, places associated with the life and work of Rousseau. And although he admired the sense of social freedom inherent in the European way of life, his overall impression of Europe was negative, mainly due to the contrast between wealth and poverty hidden under a cultural veneer. The characteristics of Europe at that time were given by Tolstoy in the story “Lucerne”.
After his first European trip, Tolstoy was involved in public education for several years, opening peasant schools in the vicinity of Yasnaya Polyana. He already had his first experience in this when, leading a rather chaotic lifestyle in his youth, in search of its meaning, during an unsuccessful farming career, he opened the first school on his estate.
At this time, work continues on “Cossacks” and the novel “Family Happiness”. And in 1860-1861, Tolstoy again traveled to Europe, this time with the goal of studying the experience of introducing public education.
After returning to Russia, he developed his own pedagogical system based on personal freedom, wrote many fairy tales and stories for children.
Marriage, family and children
In 1862 the writer married Sophia Bers, who was eighteen years younger than him. Sophia, who had a university education, later helped her husband a lot in his writing work, including completely rewriting draft manuscripts. Although family relationships were not always ideal, they lived together for forty-eight years. Thirteen children were born into the family, of whom only eight survived to adulthood.
L.N. Tolstoy’s lifestyle contributed to the growth of problems in family relationships over time. They became especially noticeable after the completion of Anna Karenina. The writer plunged into depression and began to demand that his family lead a lifestyle close to peasant life, which led to constant quarrels.
"War and Peace" and "Anna Karenina"
It took Lev Nikolayevich twelve years to work on his most famous works “War and Peace” and “Anna Karenina”.
The first publication of an excerpt from “War and Peace” appeared back in 1865, and already in sixty-eight the first three parts were printed in full. The success of the novel was so great that an additional edition of the already published parts was required, even before the completion of the last volumes.
Tolstoy's next novel, Anna Karenina, published in 1873-1876, was no less successful. In this work of the writer, signs of a mental crisis are already felt. The relationships of the main characters of the book, the development of the plot, its dramatic ending testified to the transition of L. N. Tolstoy to the third stage of his literary creativity, reflecting the strengthening of the writer’s dramatic view of existence.
1880s and Moscow census
At the end of the seventies, L. N. Tolstoy met V. P. Shchegolenok, on the basis of whose folklore stories the writer created some of his works “How People Live,” “Prayer” and others. The change in his worldview by the eighties was reflected in the works “Confession”, “What is My Faith?”, “The Kreutzer Sonata”, which are characteristic of the third stage of Tolstoy’s work.
Trying to improve the lives of the people, the writer took part in the Moscow census in 1882, believing that the official publication of data on the plight of ordinary people would help change their fate. According to the plan issued by the Duma, he collects statistical information for several days on the territory of the most difficult site, located in Protochny Lane. Impressed by what he saw in the Moscow slums, he wrote an article “On the census in Moscow.”
The novel "Resurrection" and excommunication
In the nineties, the writer wrote a treatise “What is art?”, in which he substantiates his view of the purpose of art. But the pinnacle of Tolstoy’s writing of this period is considered the novel “Resurrection.” Its depiction of church life as a mechanical routine later became the main reason for Leo Tolstoy’s excommunication from the church.
The writer’s response to this was his “Response to the Synod,” which confirmed Tolstoy’s break with the church, and in which he justifies his position by pointing out the contradictions between church dogmas and his understanding of the Christian faith.
The public reaction to this event was contradictory - part of society expressed sympathy and support for L. Tolstoy, while others heard threats and abuse.
Final years of life
Deciding to live the rest of his life without contradicting his beliefs, L.N. Tolstoy secretly left Yasnaya Polyana in early November 1910, accompanied only by his personal doctor. The departure did not have a specific end goal. It was supposed to go to Bulgaria or the Caucasus. But a few days later, feeling unwell, the writer was forced to stop at the Astapovo station, where doctors diagnosed him with pneumonia.
Attempts by doctors to save him failed, and the great writer died on November 20, 1910. The news of Tolstoy's death caused excitement throughout the country, but the funeral took place without incident. He was buried in Yasnaya Polyana, in his favorite place of childhood play - at the edge of a forest ravine.
The spiritual quest of Leo Tolstoy
Despite the recognition literary heritage writer all over the world, himself Tolstoy treated the works he wrote with disdain. He considered the dissemination of his philosophical and religious views, which were based on the idea of “non-resistance to evil through violence,” known as “Tolstoyism,” to be truly important. In search of answers to the questions that worried him, he communicated a lot with people of clergy, read religious treatises, and studied the results of research in the exact sciences.
In everyday life, this was expressed by a gradual renunciation of the luxury of landowner life, from one’s property rights, and a transition to vegetarianism—“simplification.” In Tolstoy’s biography, this was the third period of his work, during which he finally came to the denial of all the then social, state, and religious forms of life.
World recognition and heritage study
And in our time, Tolstoy is considered one of the greatest writers in the world. And although he himself considered his literary pursuits to be a secondary matter, and even in certain periods of his life insignificant and useless, it was his stories, tales and novels that made his name famous and contributed to the spread of the religious and moral teaching he created, known as Tolstoyism, which for Lev Nikolaevich was the main outcome of life.
In Russia, a project to study Tolstoy’s creative heritage is launched from the junior grades of secondary schools. The first presentation of the writer’s work begins in the third grade, when an initial acquaintance with the writer’s biography takes place. In the future, as they study his works, students write abstracts on the theme of the classic’s work, make reports both on the biography of the writer and on his individual works.
The study of the writer’s work and the preservation of his memory are facilitated by many museums in memorable places in the country associated with the name of L. N. Tolstoy. First of all, such a museum is the Yasnaya Polyana Museum-Reserve, where the writer was born and buried.
The future great philosopher and novelist, Count Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, was born on August 28 (September 9), 1828 in the Yasnaya Polyana estate, in the Tula province, in Krapivensky district. In 1844 he entered Kazan University. Since 1852, for 4 years, the count has carried out military service in the Caucasus and Crimea. After completing his service, Tolstoy traveled outside his native country for the first time; he visited Germany, France and Switzerland.After marrying Sophia Bers in 1862, he spent the next 7 years working on.
Important! 1873-1875 The count was actively involved in teaching activities. This period saw the publication of several books for children - “ABC”, “Russian books for reading”, “New ABC”. In parallel with this, he is working on “”.1880s are characterized by the appearance of a number of works in which the author rethinks his views on life and even crystallizes his philosophical teaching, after which he renounces authorship of many of his creations. Over the next 13 years, a number of articles by the count were published on the impossibility of using corporal punishment and the unacceptability of the death penalty. During the same period, the novel “Sunday” was published. He made a significant contribution to children - he wrote fairy tales (there are several dozen of them). In 1910 he goes south. But on the way he falls ill and stops at the Astapovo station, where he died, presumably from pneumonia.
Parents
The paternal and maternal family of the future great Russian writer belonged to the aristocracy. Mother - Maria Nikolaevna, father - Nikolai Ilyich, the hereditary count, descended from one of the close associates of Peter I.Important! Subsequently, according to experts, it was the father and mother who became the prototypes for N. Rostov and Princess Marya in the novel “War and Peace.”
Childhood years
Levushka was the fourth child in the family. Unfortunately, in the third year of his life, the already middle-aged Countess Maria Nikolaevna dies, giving birth to her husband’s fifth child, daughter Maria. A distant relative ended up raising the children. In the ninth year of his life, the novelist-philosopher visited Moscow for the first time, which left an indelible impression. It was after this trip that the first essay entitled “The Kremlin” appeared. Subsequently, he will describe this period of his life in an autobiographical trilogy and call it “Childhood.”
Education and upbringing
Lev Nikolaevich received his first education at home from his German tutor Reselman, whom he spoke about very warmly in the story “Childhood” (character Karl Ivanovich). At the next stage, the future writer was trained by Saint-Thomas, who was a native Frenchman. Their relationship with young Tolstoy can be traced quite well in.Important! Even at the stage of preparation for university, it turned out that Lev Nikolaevich was distinguished by a noticeable affinity for languages. Researchers of the life of this great creative personality claim that he spoke fifteen languages.Having entered the Kazan University at the Faculty of Arabic-Turkish Literature, throughout the entire period of study Lev Nikolaevich was known as a fairly good student. But a personal conflict with a history and German teacher led to a change of faculty to law, and as a result, he lost interest in studying and left the university without receiving a diploma. Returning to his homeland, he tried to be useful to the peasants, but it didn’t work out very well due to a basic lack of knowledge. At the same time, he led the life typical of young people of his position. He wrote partly about his everyday life in “The Landowner’s Morning,” a story about life in pursuit of pleasure: card games, hunting, carousing...
Service and war in the Caucasus
Then the writer’s life turns into a marathon of revelry. Wine, women and cards contribute to the accumulation of considerable debts, which he will have to pay off for many years to come. Older brother Nikolai, who was serving in the Caucasus at that time, advises Lev to join the military service. In search of a higher, moral justification for his existence, Tolstoy leaves for the Caucasus. In the fall of 1851, he joined the troops, became a cadet, and eventually received an officer rank. After Sevastopol he was sent to St. Petersburg, where he again fell into a wild life and Tolstoy met prominent publicist contemporaries -,.First literary works
The beginning of the literary activity of the great novelist is considered to be the diary he started in 1847, which he kept throughout his life. However, the first published work was the story “Childhood,” and it was she who decided the future fate of Lev Nikolaevich. The literary society recognized him as an outstanding master, whose work amazed the critics of the time with the depth of its psychological analysis and the vivid realism of what was happening. Inspired by success, the novelist took up the continuation of the Autobiographical Trilogy - “Adolescence” was published in 1854, and “Youth” 3 years later. Conceived as the fourth story in this cycle, “Youth” saw this light. While there, in the Caucasus, Tolstoy began to create the story “Cossacks”, as well as a number of other, smaller in form, works, in particular the stories “Raid”, “Yuletide Night”. During times military service The beginning of the cycle of “Sevastopol Stories” was laid, completed in St. Petersburg.
Creativity flourishes
After military service, the novelist goes on his first trip to Europe. Upon returning to his native estate, he devotes time to opening a school for peasant children, where he himself teaches from time to time. In 1860-61. he takes a second trip to European countries, where he begins work on the novel “The Decembrists.” Subsequently, this work becomes the epic novel “War and Peace,” on which the author worked for more than 7 years. Another milestone in the creative path of a world-famous writer was the novel “Anna Karenina,” written over 4 years, starting in 1873.Personal life
Marriage to Sofya Andreevna Bers became one of the main decisions in the life of the novelist. Being 17 years younger than her husband, Sophia became exactly what L.N. Tolstoy wanted her to be. She was a wife, mother and a real mistress of a truly large family and home. The wife gave birth to 13 children to the great writer, unfortunately, only eight of them survived to adulthood. And, in addition, Sofya Andreevna became a devoted assistant to her husband in his creative work. Not without her participation, both “War and Peace” and “Anna Karenina” were released, distinguished by their enormous creative power on the one hand, and a deep psychological analysis of the reality of that time on the other. A significant role in the count’s philosophical research was played by his youthful fascination with the works of J. J. Rousseau, whose portrait was worn in a medallion by Leo Tolstoy. According to the recollections of contemporaries, the future writer read all the works of the French thinker and educator, including the “Musical Dictionary”.
Major novels of Count Tolstoy
During his life, the novelist wrote five novels. Of these, world fame still thunders over the two most famous works - “Anna Karenina” and “War and Peace”. But those who seek to understand the full depth of Tolstoy’s personality should definitely read the other 3 - “Decembrists”, “Family Happiness”, and also “Resurrection”.Attitude to religion
The end of the 70s and 80s is a turning point in the biography of both the writer and the personality of Tolstoy. The novel “Sunday” can serve as a characteristic of that time period. The article “Confession,” which traces the idea of the inevitability of death, forces the author to seek a higher justification in real life. First, this approach leads the graph to Orthodox Church. But after a deeper study of the dogmas and ways of Christianity, Lev Nikolaevich came to his own teaching, called “Tolstoyism”. In it, he recognized only the rational part of religion, completely rejecting the theological husk and mystical theses of Christianity. After the publication of “Confession,” which became a kind of pillar of that same “Tolstoyism,” students unexpectedly began to gather around the writer. The first of them was a retired horse guard - the tough and despotic V. G. Chertkov, the rest of the followers did not take long to arrive. In recent decades, the count's family estate turned into a place of pilgrimage, where people from all over the empire and the world, regardless of nationality and religious beliefs, went to see the great elder. For this, by decision of the Holy Synod, Lev Nikolaevich was excommunicated from the Orthodox Church. Information about the event quickly spread, which only fueled the growing popularity of Tolstoy’s teachings.Copyright Disclaimer
After his excommunication from the church, which, to put it briefly, did not bring much fruit to the Christian community, the count became more and more withdrawn into himself and became interested in vegetarianism. Increasingly, he devotes himself to simple physical labor - sewing boots, and also teaches children. But most importantly, he renounces all rights to his works created after 1881.Crisis of family relations
It was this fact that became fundamental in the growing crisis of the marriage of Tolstoy and his wife, who was hostile to her husband’s new way of life. Sofya Andreevna, who brilliantly mastered the peculiarities of life during the times of “War and Peace,” always considered it her duty to ensure the welfare of her large family, and therefore refused to give away personal property. Of all the family members, only the youngest daughter Alexandra reacted to her father’s new teaching with understanding. She and V.G. Chertkov led two warring camps, fighting for the most important thing in their lives - the count's mind and attention.Later publications
Expert researchers of the life of the great Russian writer include everything he wrote after 1880 as the late period of creativity. Among the later works, as a rule, the stories “Mother” are distinguished, as well as no less famous works“The Kreutzer Sonata” and “Hadji Murad”. Philosophical stories also occupy a significant share:- “How do people live?”
- "Godson".
- “Where there is love, there is God.”
- “Hunger or not hunger?”
- “I can’t be silent!”
- “About hunger.”
Last years of life
The end of the writer’s life takes place mainly in the same place where he was born. However, in 1901, the count fell ill and was forced to live in Crimea for some long time. All this time, the writer continued to work with undiminished enthusiasm. The only thing that seriously bothered him was the irreconcilable contradictions between his wife and his closest associate V.G. Chertkov.Death of Leo Tolstoy
It is for this reason, shortly before his death, that he and his daughter Alexandra leave the estate and go south. Researchers of the life of the count-writer have still not come to a consensus about where he was going. It is known for certain that illness forced him to stop in Astapovo, where on November 7, 1910 he died, presumably from pneumonia. On November 10, he was buried on the territory of the family estate, in the same forest where as a child he played with the “green stick that knew the secrets of happiness.” Today, the writer's grave is a mound of earth, without a monument or slab with the dates of birth and death.Children of Leo Tolstoy, their destinies
In his marriage to Sofia Andreevna, Lev Nikolaevich had 13 children:- Sergey, who had a penchant for music, connected his life with it. Known as a talented composer.
- Tatiana. A talented artist who inherited the ability to write from her father. She created about three dozen portraits of her father. Until 1923, she was the curator of the museum-estate where her father was born.
- Ilya. Although this son of a novelist did not show any talent for science in childhood, it was his father who considered him the most gifted. Having emigrated to the United States before the revolution, he subsequently lectured on his father’s work and published publications.
- Lion- proved himself as a writer and sculptor. Particular attention was focused on his children's works.
- Maria. She married N.A. Obolensky. She died of pneumonia.
- Andrey.His mother's favorite, but noticeably a disappointment to his father. Occupying a high official position, he was noted for his passion for wine and women.
- Michael.I chose the military path. Managed to live, despite the fact that he participated in military battles, in different countries Asia and Europe until his death in 1944.
- Alexandra. After the revolution, she was arrested, despite the fact that she served in a medical hospital during the war. Later she left for the States, where she gave lectures about her father and helped Russian emigrants settle down. She passed away at the age of 95. Of all the novelist's children, she was given the longest life.
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Count Leo Tolstoy, a classic of Russian and world literature, is called a master of psychologism, the creator of the epic novel genre, an original thinker and teacher of life. The works of this brilliant writer are Russia’s greatest asset.
In August 1828, a classic was born on the Yasnaya Polyana estate in the Tula province Russian literature. The future author of War and Peace became the fourth child in a family of eminent nobles. On his father's side, he belonged to the old family of Count Tolstoy, who served and. On the maternal side, Lev Nikolaevich is a descendant of the Ruriks. It is noteworthy that Leo Tolstoy also has a common ancestor - Admiral Ivan Mikhailovich Golovin.
Lev Nikolayevich’s mother, nee Princess Volkonskaya, died of childbirth fever after the birth of her daughter. At that time, Lev was not even two years old. Seven years later, the head of the family, Count Nikolai Tolstoy, died.
Caring for the children fell on the shoulders of the writer’s aunt, T. A. Ergolskaya. Later, the second aunt, Countess A. M. Osten-Sacken, became the guardian of the orphaned children. After her death in 1840, the children moved to Kazan, to a new guardian - their father’s sister P. I. Yushkova. The aunt influenced her nephew, and the writer called his childhood in her house, which was considered the most cheerful and hospitable in the city, happy. Later, Leo Tolstoy described his impressions of life at the Yushkov estate in his story “Childhood.”
Silhouette and portrait of Leo Tolstoy's parents The classic received his primary education at home from German and French teachers. In 1843, Leo Tolstoy entered Kazan University, choosing the Faculty of Oriental Languages. Soon, due to low academic performance, he transferred to another faculty - law. But he did not succeed here either: after two years he left the university without receiving a degree.
Lev Nikolaevich returned to Yasnaya Polyana, wanting to establish relations with the peasants in a new way. The idea failed, but the young man regularly kept a diary, loved social entertainment and became interested in music. Tolstoy listened for hours, and...
Disappointed with the life of the landowner after spending the summer in the village, 20-year-old Leo Tolstoy left the estate and moved to Moscow, and from there to St. Petersburg. The young man rushed between preparing for candidate exams at the university, studying music, carousing with cards and gypsies, and dreams of becoming either an official or a cadet in a horse guards regiment. Relatives called Lev “the most trifling fellow,” and it took years to pay off the debts he incurred.
Literature
In 1851, the writer’s brother, officer Nikolai Tolstoy, persuaded Lev to go to the Caucasus. For three years Lev Nikolaevich lived in a village on the banks of the Terek. The nature of the Caucasus and the patriarchal life of the Cossack village were later reflected in the stories “Cossacks” and “Hadji Murat”, the stories “Raid” and “Cutting the Forest”.
In the Caucasus, Leo Tolstoy composed the story “Childhood,” which he published in the magazine “Sovremennik” under the initials L.N. Soon he wrote the sequels “Adolescence” and “Youth,” combining the stories into a trilogy. The literary debut turned out to be brilliant and brought Lev Nikolaevich his first recognition.
The creative biography of Leo Tolstoy is developing rapidly: an appointment to Bucharest, a transfer to besieged Sevastopol, and command of a battery enriched the writer with impressions. From the pen of Lev Nikolaevich came the series “Sevastopol Stories”. The works of the young writer amazed critics with their bold psychological analysis. Nikolai Chernyshevsky found in them a “dialectic of the soul,” and the emperor read the essay “Sevastopol in December” and expressed admiration for Tolstoy’s talent.
In the winter of 1855, 28-year-old Leo Tolstoy arrived in St. Petersburg and entered the Sovremennik circle, where he was warmly welcomed, calling him “the great hope of Russian literature.” But over the course of a year, I got tired of the writing environment with its disputes and conflicts, readings and literary dinners. Later in Confession Tolstoy admitted:
“These people disgusted me, and I disgusted myself.”
In the fall of 1856, the young writer went to the Yasnaya Polyana estate, and in January 1857 he went abroad. Leo Tolstoy traveled around Europe for six months. Visited Germany, Italy, France and Switzerland. He returned to Moscow, and from there to Yasnaya Polyana. On the family estate, he began arranging schools for peasant children. With his participation, twenty educational institutions appeared in the vicinity of Yasnaya Polyana. In 1860, the writer traveled a lot: in Germany, Switzerland, and Belgium, he studied the pedagogical systems of European countries in order to apply what he saw in Russia.
A special niche in Leo Tolstoy’s work is occupied by fairy tales and works for children and teenagers. The writer has created hundreds of works for young readers, including good and instructive fairy tales “Kitten”, “Two Brothers”, “Hedgehog and Hare”, “Lion and Dog”.
Leo Tolstoy wrote the school textbook “ABC” to teach children writing, reading and arithmetic. The literary and pedagogical work consists of four books. The writer included instructive stories, epics, fables, as well as methodological advice for teachers. The third book includes the story “ Caucasian prisoner».
Leo Tolstoy's novel "Anna Karenina" In the 1870s, Leo Tolstoy, while continuing to teach peasant children, wrote the novel Anna Karenina, in which he contrasted the two storylines: the family drama of the Karenins and the domestic idyll of the young landowner Levin, with whom he identified himself. The novel only at first glance seemed to be a love affair: the classic raised the problem of the meaning of existence of the “educated class”, contrasting it with the truth of peasant life. "Anna Karenina" was highly appreciated.
The turning point in the writer’s consciousness was reflected in the works written in the 1880s. Life-changing spiritual insight occupies a central place in the stories and stories. “The Death of Ivan Ilyich”, “The Kreutzer Sonata”, “Father Sergius” and the story “After the Ball” appear. The classic of Russian literature paints pictures of social inequality and castigates the idleness of the nobles.
In search of an answer to the question of the meaning of life, Leo Tolstoy turned to the Russian Orthodox Church, but even there he did not find satisfaction. The writer came to the conclusion that the Christian church is corrupt, and under the guise of religion, priests are promoting false teaching. In 1883, Lev Nikolaevich founded the publication “Mediator,” where he outlined his spiritual beliefs and criticized the Russian Orthodox Church. For this, Tolstoy was excommunicated from the church, and the writer was monitored by the secret police.
In 1898, Leo Tolstoy wrote the novel Resurrection, which received favorable reviews from critics. But the success of the work was inferior to “Anna Karenina” and “War and Peace”.
For the last 30 years of his life, Leo Tolstoy, with his teachings on non-violent resistance to evil, was recognized as the spiritual and religious leader of Russia.
"War and Peace"
Leo Tolstoy disliked his novel War and Peace, calling the epic “wordy rubbish.” The classic writer wrote the work in the 1860s, while living with his family in Yasnaya Polyana. The first two chapters, entitled “1805,” were published by Russkiy Vestnik in 1865. Three years later, Leo Tolstoy wrote three more chapters and completed the novel, which caused heated controversy among critics.
Leo Tolstoy writes "War and Peace" The novelist took the features of the heroes of the work, written during the years of family happiness and spiritual elation, from life. In Princess Marya Bolkonskaya, the features of Lev Nikolaevich’s mother are recognizable, her penchant for reflection, brilliant education and love of art. The writer awarded Nikolai Rostov with his father’s traits - mockery, love of reading and hunting.
When writing the novel, Leo Tolstoy worked in the archives, studied the correspondence of Tolstoy and Volkonsky, Masonic manuscripts, and visited the Borodino field. His young wife helped him, copying his drafts out clean.
The novel was read avidly, striking readers with the breadth of its epic canvas and subtle psychological analysis. Leo Tolstoy characterized the work as an attempt to “write the history of the people.”
According to the calculations of literary critic Lev Anninsky, by the end of the 1970s, the works of the Russian classic were filmed 40 times abroad alone. Until 1980, the epic War and Peace was filmed four times. Directors from Europe, America and Russia have made 16 films based on the novel “Anna Karenina”, “Resurrection” has been filmed 22 times.
“War and Peace” was first filmed by director Pyotr Chardynin in 1913. The most famous film was made by a Soviet director in 1965.
Personal life
Leo Tolstoy married 18-year-old in 1862, when he was 34 years old. The count lived with his wife for 48 years, but the couple’s life can hardly be called cloudless.
Sofia Bers is the second of three daughters of the Moscow palace office doctor Andrei Bers. The family lived in the capital, but in the summer they vacationed on a Tula estate near Yasnaya Polyana. For the first time Leo Tolstoy saw his future wife as a child. Sophia was educated at home, read a lot, understood art, and graduated from Moscow University. The diary kept by Bers-Tolstaya is recognized as an example of the memoir genre.
At the beginning of his married life, Leo Tolstoy, wanting there to be no secrets between him and his wife, gave Sophia a diary to read. The shocked wife learned about her husband’s stormy youth, passion for gambling, wild life and the peasant girl Aksinya, who was expecting a child from Lev Nikolaevich.
The first-born Sergei was born in 1863. In the early 1860s, Tolstoy began writing the novel War and Peace. Sofya Andreevna helped her husband, despite her pregnancy. The woman taught and raised all the children at home. Five of the 13 children died in infancy or early childhood childhood.
Problems in the family began after Leo Tolstoy finished working on Anna Karenina. The writer plunged into depression, expressed dissatisfaction with the life that Sofya Andreevna so diligently arranged in the family nest. The count's moral turmoil led to Lev Nikolayevich demanding that his relatives give up meat, alcohol and smoking. Tolstoy forced his wife and children to dress in peasant clothes, which he made himself, and wanted to give his acquired property to the peasants.
Sofya Andreevna made considerable efforts to dissuade her husband from the idea of distributing goods. But the quarrel that occurred split the family: Leo Tolstoy left home. Upon returning, the writer entrusted the responsibility of rewriting drafts to his daughters.
The death of their last child, seven-year-old Vanya, briefly brought the couple closer together. But soon mutual grievances and misunderstandings alienated them completely. Sofya Andreevna found solace in music. In Moscow, a woman took lessons from a teacher for whom romantic feelings developed. Their relationship remained friendly, but the count did not forgive his wife for “half-betrayal.”
The couple's fatal quarrel occurred at the end of October 1910. Leo Tolstoy left home, leaving Sophia a farewell letter. He wrote that he loved her, but could not do otherwise.
Death
82-year-old Leo Tolstoy, accompanied by his personal doctor D.P. Makovitsky, left Yasnaya Polyana. On the way, the writer fell ill and got off the train at the Astapovo railway station. Lev Nikolaevich spent the last 7 days of his life in the house stationmaster. The whole country followed the news about Tolstoy’s health.
The children and wife arrived at the Astapovo station, but Leo Tolstoy did not want to see anyone. The classic died on November 7, 1910: he died of pneumonia. His wife survived him by 9 years. Tolstoy was buried in Yasnaya Polyana.
Quotes by Leo Tolstoy
- Everyone wants to change humanity, but no one thinks about how to change themselves.
- Everything comes to those who know how to wait.
- All happy families are similar to each other, each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.
- Let everyone sweep in front of his own door. If everyone does this, the whole street will be clean.
- It's easier to live without love. But without it there is no point.
- I don't have everything I love. But I love everything I have.
- The world moves forward because of those who suffer.
- The greatest truths are the simplest.
- Everyone is making plans, and no one knows whether he will survive until the evening.
Bibliography
- 1869 – “War and Peace”
- 1877 – “Anna Karenina”
- 1899 – “Resurrection”
- 1852-1857 – “Childhood”. "Adolescence". "Youth"
- 1856 – “Two Hussars”
- 1856 – “Morning of the Landowner”
- 1863 – “Cossacks”
- 1886 – “The Death of Ivan Ilyich”
- 1903 – “Notes of a Madman”
- 1889 – “Kreutzer Sonata”
- 1898 – “Father Sergius”
- 1904 – “Hadji Murat”
In the history of Russian literature there are many writers whose works are still read throughout the world. Take, for example, the same Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky, whose novels are studied not only as part of the national school curriculum.
An equally iconic writer is the well-known Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, short biography which we describe in this article. It was his life that predetermined this man’s somewhat controversial views on life.
Joyful years of childhood
Little Lev was already the fourth child in a large and famous noble family. His mother, nee Princess Volkonskaya, died when he was not yet two years old. Despite this, Tolstoy perfectly remembered the “spiritual appearance” of his mother: he conveyed her penchant for reflection, sensitive attitude to art, and even an amazing portrait resemblance to Marya Nikolaevna Bolkonskaya.
He remembered the writer’s father as a cheerful, energetic man who loved hunting and long walks. He also died early, in 1837. That is why T. A. Ergolskaya, a distant relative of the family, bore the entire burden of raising children on her shoulders. She had a huge influence on the young count, “infecting” him with a penchant for art.
Despite early death his parents, early childhood years have always been a special, bright time for Lev Nikolaevich. All the impressions that the estate itself made on him and the years that he spent there are fully reflected in the autobiographical work “Childhood.”
This is how Tolstoy spent his childhood. Brief biography later life would be incomplete without a story about his student years.
Kazan times
When Lev was 13 years old, his family moved to Kazan, billeting in the house of a relative, P. I. Yushkova. Already in 1844, the future writer entered the department of oriental studies at the local university, after which he transferred to the faculty of jurisprudence and law, where he studied for only two years. As he himself later recalled, “the classes did not find a response in my soul, and I preferred secular entertainment to them.”
In 1847, he himself became tired of such a life. Tolstoy submits a report on his dismissal from the university “for family reasons and health reasons,” after which he goes to Yasnaya Polyana with the intention of studying the entire university course on his own and passing the exam as an external student.
Youthful “turbulent life”
His failed attempt to build that summer new life for serfs is clearly reflected in the story "The Landowner's Morning". Tolstoy would write it in 1857. Then, in the fall of 1847, he went first to Moscow, and then to St. Petersburg, where he was going to take candidate exams. Contemporaries testify that Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy (whose brief biography is described in the article) was a rather strange person: he either spent days preparing for exams and passed them, or indulged in daydreaming or spent time in revelry.
Even his religiosity sometimes alternated with periods of atheism. It is not surprising that in Tolstoy’s family he was considered a “useless and trifling” person, and the debts that he accumulated during that period were only repaid many years later. Despite this behavior, everything inside him was burning. Tolstoy kept a detailed diary, where he engaged in deep self-esteem. It was then that he developed a passionate desire to write, and he began to take his first serious notes.
What other events does the short biography of Leo Tolstoy include? How was a writer formed?
"War and Freedom"
Four years later, in 1851, his older brother persuaded him to go to the Caucasus (he was an active officer in the army). As a result, Tolstoy lived with the Cossacks on the banks of the Terek for three years, regularly visiting Kizlyar, Tiflis, and Vladikavkaz. Moreover, yesterday’s “trifling” man fearlessly participated in hostilities, and was soon accepted into the active army.
Tolstoy was greatly impressed by the simplicity of Cossack life, the freedom of these people from that painful reflection that was characteristic of many people from high society in those years. These experiences of his were vividly reflected in the work “Cossacks” (1852-1863). In general, his Caucasian impressions gave him a huge supply of inspiration: features of his experiences of that period can be found in almost every work written by Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, whose short biography does not end at this period.
In his diary, he wrote that he really fell in love with this region of “war and freedom.” It was in those parts that the story “Childhood” that we mentioned at the very beginning was written. Then he sent it to the Sovremennik magazine, which was published under a pseudonym with the initials “L. N.” The debut turned out to be stunning; the young writer managed to show his skills with his first work.
Crimean appointment
Already in 1854, he received a new army appointment and went to Bucharest. But it was so boring and dull there that the writer soon could not stand it and wrote a request to be transferred to the Crimean Army. Once in besieged Sevastopol, he received at his disposal an entire battery on the fourth bastion. Tolstoy fought bravely and decisively, which is why he was repeatedly awarded medals.
Crimea again provided a new portion of impressions and literary plans. So, it was here that Leo Tolstoy (whose short biography is described in the article) decides to publish a special magazine for soldiers. In these parts, the writer begins his cycle of “Sevastopol stories,” which Alexander II himself read and highly appreciated.
Features of Tolstoy's novels
From his very first works, the young writer impressed critics with the boldness of his judgments and the breadth of the “dialectics of the soul” (in particular, Chernyshevsky himself spoke about this). However, already at that time in his books one can observe signs of a turning point in his religious perception: he begins to dream of the founding of a “pure” religion, free from sacraments and obscurantism, “purely practical.”
What else did Leo Tolstoy do? A short biography of his life will still not fit all the aspirations and aspirations of this active person, but I would like to dwell on his teaching activities.
Opening of a public school
In 1859, the writer opened a school for peasant children in the village. After that, he participated in the opening of two dozen more schools in the vicinity of Yasnaya Polyana. He was so fascinated by his teaching activities that in 1960 the writer went on a trip to Europe, where he got acquainted with local schools. On the way, he saw A.I. Herzen, and also devoted a lot of time to studying the basic pedagogical theories, which Tolstoy, for the most part, were not at all satisfied with.
Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, whose brief biography is described in this material, outlined his ideas in a separate article. In it, he writes that the main idea of teaching should be a complete renunciation of violence in teaching and “freedom.”
To promote his ideas, he began publishing the Yasnaya Polyana magazine. Its peculiarity was that it was produced with special books for reading in the form of applications. They have become classic examples of children's literature in Russia.
In the 1870s, he published two books: “ABC” and “New ABC”, which repeated the resounding success of their predecessors. With this alone, the writer brought the name Tolstoy into the annals of Russian pedagogy. Biography, summary which we are describing also has a “spy” page.
The passion for publishing books almost played a bad joke on the count: in 1962, his estate was searched in order to discover a secret anarchist printing house. The search could also have been facilitated by both his own ideas and the slander of ill-wishers. But this short biography of Leo Tolstoy is not finished yet. One of the main works of his life lay ahead of him!
"War and Peace"
In September of the same year he married Sofya Andreevna Bers. Immediately after the wedding, he takes his young wife to Yasnaya Polyana, where he devotes himself entirely to household chores and work in the literary field. It was then (more precisely, from the fall of 1963) that he was completely absorbed in his new, amazing project, which for a long time bore the name “One Thousand Eight Hundred and Five.”
It’s easy to guess that it was “War and Peace,” after which another legendary writer, Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, appeared in the world. A brief biography of his achievements cannot convey the significance that this work has had on all world literature.
The novel was so successful also because the time of its creation was marked by family happiness and leisurely, solitary writing. He read a lot, mainly the correspondence of Tolstoy and Volkonsky of those times, constantly worked in the archive, and personally went to the Borodino field. The work moved slowly, and Tolstoy’s wife helped him in editing and copying manuscripts. Only at the beginning of 1865 did he first present the first drafts of his legendary novel “War and Peace” in the “Russian Messenger”.
Attitude to the work, responses
The public received the novel enthusiastically and read it avidly. There were many positive responses to the new work. Readers were amazed by the vivid description of the epic canvas with subtle psychological analysis, as well as a vivid picture everyday life, which the author masterfully entered into history.
The subsequent parts of the novel caused fierce controversy, since in them the writer fell deeper and deeper into the fatalism that Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy was “infected” with at the final stage of his life. His short biography contains many examples when the writer plunged into deep depression for a long time. Of course, such changes in himself could not help but affect his works.
There have been many claims that Tolstoy “transferred” to people at the beginning of the century trends and characters that were not common at that time. Be that as it may, the novel is about Patriotic War of those years and indeed reflected the aspirations of the public, which was keenly interested in that period. However, Tolstoy himself said that his creation does not fall under the criteria of either a novel, or a story, or history or poetry...
Tolstoy was such a special writer. The biography, a summary of which we presented in this article, suggests that he soon begins to experience a creative and personal crisis, the consequences of which are reflected in all his subsequent works.
"Anna Karenina"
In 1870, the writer began working on a new, precise novel. This was the work “Anna Karenina”, in which Tolstoy tries to “borrow” from Pushkin the lightness and simplicity of the syllable, forming his own new style narratives. It should be noted that by that time the “new” Leo Tolstoy had already formed. The biography, a brief summary of which is revealed in this material, depicts him at this time as a deeply religious person who is constantly engaged in introspection and reflection.
He is interested in the very meaning of the existence of the “educated” and “peasant” classes, the theme of global justice. The writer begins to develop the idea of voluntarily depriving himself of “surpluses,” as a result of which his family life begins to fall apart.
Fracture
In 1880, a deep creative crisis began, which L. Tolstoy endured hard. His brief biography during this period is not rich in events: constant quarrels and scandals with his wife, thoughts about suicide and the meaning of life.
The denouement came in 1910. The creator of the greatest novels secretly ran away from his family and decided to set off on a long journey. But poor health (he was already 82 years old) forced him to get off the train at Astapovo station. Seven days later he died.
Alexey Tolstoy also repeatedly recalled the tragic story of his ancestor. The biography (a brief summary of it can be found in any literature textbook) of this man is so unusual that it still makes you think...
🙂 Hello dear readers, thank you for choosing this site! The article “Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy: a short biography” describes the main stages of the life of the greatest writer.
Leo Tolstoy: short biography
Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy is a famous writer and philosopher. His views and beliefs became the basis of a new religious and moral teaching, which would later be called Tolstoyism.
His legacy consists of ninety volumes of works, notes from his personal diary and letters. Tolstoy was repeatedly nominated for Nobel Prize according to literature.
Childhood and youth
Levushka, as the boy was affectionately called, was born on September 9, 1828 in his mother’s noble estate in Yasnaya Polyana, Tula province. Nowadays, the museum-estate annually attracts thousands of tourists and fans of Tolstoy’s work.
Family estate of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy in Yasnaya Polyana
Levushka was the fourth boy in the family, and the next year the long-awaited daughter Mashenka appeared. But soon the children became orphans. Mother Maria Nikolaevna (Volkonskaya) died in the summer of 1830. 7 years later, Nikolai Ilyich also passed away.
The children were taken into custody by their aunt, Alexandra Osten-Sacken. She took two of them with her to Moscow, and the rest lived in the estate. Memories of this time always disturbed the soul, but they were also infinitely dear to Lev Nikolaevich.
In 1841, Osten-Sacken died and the children were transported to another aunt Pelageya Yushkova in. In 1843 Lev entered the university to study. He was indifferent to his studies, and considered the teachers incompetent, preferring a variety of entertainment.
In the spring of 1847, having not completed his studies and having received part of the inheritance, including Yasnaya Polyana, the 19-year-old young man went home. Here he immediately sketched out an extensive plan for his education. But I soon realized that it’s easy to make plans, but you can’t force yourself to study.
Fascinated by asceticism, the young man sometimes changes this lifestyle to carousing and gambling card games. Then the stage of dissatisfaction began and he again wrote a daily routine to change his life.
Works of Leo Tolstoy
In the spring of 1851, his brother Nikolai, who served in the Caucasus, visited the estate. Lev Nikolaevich, having heard enough heroic stories about the war, decided to go with him.
Tolstoy served in the Caucasus for about two and a half years. He hunted, played cards and sometimes took part in raids. He liked this kind of pastime. Here he wrote “Childhood” using his memories.
Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy in his youth
In the summer of 1852, the writer sent the manuscript to the railway station. “Contemporary” to the editor with a note that further work depends on his review literary activity. The answer was positive and Tolstoy published the story, “Adolescence” in 1854.
In December 1854, Tolstoy arrived in Sevastopol, about which he would write detailed story. He describes battle scenes. The style of the work is patriotic, glorifying the courage and courage of Russian soldiers.
Then he begins the story “Sevastopol in May.” But pride in the Russian troops turned into horror and shock from senselessness and inhumanity.
In 1855 Tolstoy left for St. Petersburg. Here he completes the trilogy about Sevastopol and in the fall writes a report on leaving military service.
Lev Nikolaevich devotes himself entirely to literature. He writes the story “Blizzard”, the story “Two Hussars”, and completes a trilogy about childhood. And in January 1857 he went on a voyage to European countries. He visited France, Italy, Germany: he got acquainted with masterpieces of art. But overall the trip disappointed him.
Six months later, the writer returned to his estate. There he worked on the story “Cossacks” and the novel “Family Happiness”.
In 1859, Lev Nikolaevich, at his own expense, created several schools in the province for the children of peasants. At this time he became interested in education in European countries. A year later, he goes to Europe. He spent 9 months abroad and again experienced disappointment.
He decided to create his own education system, canceling all programs. In 1862, the writer published a magazine about pedagogy, accompanied by books for reading. He writes "ABC" with his stories for children, makes adaptations folk tales and songs.
Leo Tolstoy's wife
A crisis gradually sets in in the writer’s work. In his diary, he often expresses his dissatisfaction with his life. He is tormented by thoughts about death.
But he finds the meaning of life in his love for his wife. At 34, Lev Nikolaevich marries 18-year-old Sophia Bers. This happy union lasted 48 years. Sophia bore her husband thirteen children. This was the best period of Tolstoy's life, which he finally found.
Lev Nikolaevich and Sofya Andreevna
Sofya Andreevna was his secretary and even editor. She lived to be 75 years old, outliving her husband by 10 years.
"War and Peace"
Soon the writer begins work on the novel War and Peace. “Large-scale epic”—that’s what critics would later call this work. Peaceful everyday scenes were taken from life, battle and civil episodes from history Russian Empire.
The main idea of the novel is pacifism: protest against any war. The work was completed in 1869 and had a deafening resonance in society.
War and Peace will be followed by an equally serious and dramatic work, Anna Karenina (1873-1876).
L.N. Tolstoy became a recognized writer, his works were a great success, and he gained worldwide fame. But he was of little interest in this. He increasingly thought about social inequality in society and the miserable existence of the common people.
The great Tolstoy passed away at the age of 82 on November 20, 1910 and was buried in Yasnaya Polyana.
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