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War and Peace
Leo Tolstoy's novel, War and Peace carries a theme relating to the circumstances of war and its effect on the society involved. Tolstoy relates the events of war to the unfolding of great events undetermined by the key figures of the time period and more to a grandeur picture. He states war's capability of making a man "great" and the following invincibility and overall hypercritical surrounding that man is therefore granted. It is the circumference of the novel, the fact that it relates so closely to things we are all aware of, that has kept it a classic in not only its original form but its translation as well.
The central idea that a man such as Napoleon becomes great for sheer impact he has on society and his overall endearment by those that know of him creates one of the more interesting aspects of the novel. Tolstoy himself even quotes on this phenomenon, saying "The final departure of the great Emperor from his heroic army is presented to us by historians as something great and characteristic of his genius. Even that final running away, described in ordinary language as the lowest depth of baseness which every child is taught to be ashamed of - even that act finds justification." This idea, also according to Tolstoy is the work of the historians responsible for recording the history. When presented with a situation, an act of some sort, that would somehow deteriorate the view of the man they are trying to create a pedestal for, they quite simply attribute his actions, his unorthodox ways to his uniqueness, to his greatness, and to the fact that he is thinking 'outside the box.' This is clearly stated as Tolstoy puts it, "... When actions are clearly contrary to all that humanity calls right or even just, the historians produce a saving concept of "greatness" ... "Greatness," it seems, excludes the standards of right and wrong. For the "great" man nothing is wrong, there is no atrocity for which a "great" man can be blamed …"
Tolstoy covers another very interesting aspect of life in his work, the meaning of life, and further, the meaning of our existence. He states that, "The sole meaning of life is to serve humanity." This is reflected by the characters of upper class families, those of which had no true reason to go to war, to become soldiers, choices in joining and becoming a part of the war. They make this conscious decision, at least in part, to justify their existence within themselves. By fighting for a cause, rather than watching, they feel as though they have actually lived. This becomes even more apparent as the wounded soldier stares toward the sky and realizes everything in crystal clarity, not granted to him up unto this point. This idea relates back to another one of Tolstoy's many quotes throughout the novel, "Everyone thinks of changing the world, [next page]