Further Reading
Thomas Hardy was an English author who lived at approximately the same time as Tolstoy. One of the crowning achievements of his later life was […]
War and Peace
Leo Tolstoy
Leo Tolstoy was born to an upper-class Russian family on September 9, 1828, at the family’s estate in Tula province, Russia. His father was Count […]
Introduction
War and Peace is a historical novel that chronicles the tumultuous events in Russia during the Napoleonic Wars in the early 19th century. Focusing on […]
Plot Summary
A Book I War and Peace is a massive, sprawling novel that chronicles events in Russia during the Napoleonic Wars, when the French emperor Napoleon […]
Characters
A Sonya Sonya is a pathetic figure, always in love but too meek to do anything about it. She is a cousin of and lives […]
Construction
A Structure Since War and Peace was first published, critics have discussed the ambiguous structure of the novel. Some contend that Tolstoy raced through the […]
Historical Perspective
A The Napoleonic Wars In 1789 the French Revolution swept through France, marking one of the true turning points in Western civilization. In part, this […]
Questions
Find out about the music that would have been played at Russian society gatherings in the 1800s and 1810s. Play some samples for your class. […]
Compare and Contrast
1805: America is still developing an identity after winning its independence from England in 1783. A second war against England will be fought from 1812-1814. […]