Leo Tolstoy

 1. How much wealth does a person need?  2. How large a house does a person need?  3. How large a vehicle of transportation does a person need?  4. How powerful a military does a nation need?  5. How many nuclear warheads does a nation need?  6. How much wealth and power does a society need? At what point does it become inconsistent with a good life for the citizens?  8. How many automobiles, highways, freeways, etc, does the world need?

 What Tolstoy gives us is a didactic tale, a story meant to teach a moral or religious lesson.  How greed and an excessive desire for earthly wealth can destroy a person  consequences of ignoring spiritual needs and the state of one’s soul, in favor of acquiring more and more material wealth.  what can happen when humans become too ambitious and greedy

 Many interpretations and aspects to take into account when gathering purpose from a didactic tale ▪ Must consider how greed can affect an individual AND those around him/her ▪ Role of humility and religion ▪ Social aspect, Ecological aspect, Economic aspect, Ethical aspect—gain multiple meanings and insight

 From the sixteenth century to the mid- nineteenth century, Russian peasants were bound by law to work land they could rent but not own. ▪ Grew food meant to feed others ▪ Cultivated crops that others would sell ▪ Worked to exhaustion to make a profit for the land- owner ▪ Peasants could be bought and sold with the land they worked

 Story takes place after the laws were changed to allow ordinary people to purchase land.  To those who had never owned it, land represented the ability to control one’s destiny.  Tolstoy uses land to explore the age-old question of how much is enough. ▪ Significance of Russian author

 Russia - In terms of territory, it is the largest country in the world  Total area of 17,075,200 kilometers (6,592,735 square miles). Covers about one-eighth of the world's land surface.  Russian Revolution – example in Russian history of political turmoil regarding control  Absolute power (totalitarianism of the Tsar)

  Very famous Russian author  Most famous works include  War and Peace - about Napoleon’s invasion of Russia in Masterpiece for its graphic depiction of war, insights into Russia culture, and exploration into the meaning of life.  Anna Karenina - explores themes such as hypocrisy, faith, jealousy, fidelity, society, desire, etc. Shows pressures of Russian social norms, public eye upon a marriage of the upper class. “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.”

 Lost his parents at a very young age – lifelong obsession with the inevitability of death  Came from a noble family  During his childhood, 800 serfs lived on the Tolstoy estate (Yasnaya Polyana)  When he inherited the estate at age 19, he tried to make a better life for them.  Serfs – work the land for a lord/noble land-owner

 Created his own religious faith that emphasized a natural existence, universal love, equality, and nonviolence.  Profound impact on important figures such as Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.  Still revered today as an author who sheds light on personal and societal problems – question the moral implications of how you live your life