Andrei Bolkonsky.

One of the main characters in the novel is Andrei Bolkonsky. prince beautiful appearance who dreams of military glory. For Andrei, the most important thing in life is duty to the Motherland. The mature prince was in love with the young Countess Natasha Rostov. He suffered a lot of emotional experiences, as well as betrayal by Natasha. But when a lot of time passed, and fate again brought them together with Natasha, but this time life turned out to be unfair. The hero's life ends tragically, he dies from a bullet wound received in battle.

Natasha Rostov.

The young heroine, who is surrounded by wealth, is loved by her parents. The girl is very lively, cheerful, sincere. She is educated. She was in love with Andrei Bolkonsky. But life has prepared them many trials. Her fate was brought down by the war. The lovers were never meant to be together. Later she married Pierre Bezukhov, gave birth to children and found peace in family life. But it was no longer such a bright and active Natasha as several years ago.

Pierre Bezukhov.

Another important hero who inherited a valuable fortune from his father after his death. The hero is kind and naive, he was of a strong physique. Previously married to beautiful woman Ellen, this led to bad consequences. Later, he married the young Natalya Rostova. Pierre's personality changed over time and later he became a confident man who is able to achieve his goal and has his own outlook on life.

Ilya Andreevich Rostov.

He is a count, he is a kind and sympathetic person. He loves to live in luxurious conditions. Often arranged chic balls. He loves his wife and children very much.

Nikolay Rostov.

He is the eldest son of the Rostovs. He is honest, kind and responsive. He was married to Maria Bolkonskaya. And he found personal happiness and peace with her.

Sonya.

A fragile, slender girl, she is kind and smart. She was in love with Prince Nikolai Bolkonsky, but after learning that his heart belongs to another woman, she decided not to interfere with his happiness.

Ellen Kuragina.

The heroine is the first wife of Pierre. The woman was not particularly intelligent, but thanks to her bright appearance and sociability, she was able to open her own salon in St. Petersburg.

Anatoly Kuragin.

He is Ellen's brother. Outwardly, he is also charming, like his sister. I preferred to live for my own pleasure. Being married, you want to steal Natasha and marry her.

`

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Tolstoy's favorite characters in War and Peace are Pierre Bezukhov and Andrei Bolkonsky. They are united by the quality that the writer himself most valued in people. In his opinion, to be a real person, you need to “torn, fight, get confused, make mistakes, start and quit” all your life, and “peace is spiritual meanness.” That is, a person should not calm down and stop, he should search for meaning all his life and strive to find an application for his strengths, talents, mind.

In this article we will consider what are the characteristics of the main characters of Tolstoy's novel "War and Peace". Pay attention to why Tolstoy endowed these characters with such features and what he wanted to say to his readers.

Pierre Bezukhov in the novel "War and Peace"

As we have already noted, speaking about the main characters of the novel "War and Peace" by Tolstoy, it is definitely worth discussing the image of Pierre Bezukhov. For the first time the reader sees Pierre in the aristocratic Petersburg salon of Anna Pavlovna Scherer. The hostess treats him somewhat condescendingly, because he is just the illegitimate son of a rich nobleman of Catherine's times, who has just returned from abroad, where he received an education.

Pierre Bezukhov differs from other guests in his spontaneity and sincerity. drawing psychological picture of his protagonist, Tolstoy points out that Pierre was a fat, absent-minded person, but all this was redeemed by "an expression of good nature, simplicity and modesty." The hostess of the salon was afraid that Pierre would say something wrong, and indeed, Bezukhov passionately expresses his opinion, argues with the viscount and does not know how to follow the rules of etiquette. At the same time, he is kind and smart. The qualities of Pierre, shown in the first chapters of the novel, will be inherent in him throughout the entire story, although the hero himself will go through a difficult path of spiritual evolution. Why can Pierre Bezukhov be safely attributed to the main characters of Tolstoy's novel "War and Peace"? Consideration of the image of Pierre Bezukhov helps to understand this.

Pierre Bezukhov is so loved by Tolstoy because this main character novel tirelessly searches for the meaning of life, asks himself painful questions: “What is wrong? What well? What should you love, what should you hate? Why live, and what am I? What is life, what is death? What power governs everything?

Pierre Bezukhov goes through a difficult path of spiritual quest. He is not satisfied with the St. Petersburg revelry of golden youth. Having received an inheritance and becoming one of the richest people in Russia, the hero marries Helen, but he blames himself for the failures of family life and even his wife's infidelities, since he proposed without feeling love.

For a time he finds meaning in Freemasonry. He is close to the idea of ​​spiritual brothers about the need to live for the sake of others, to give to others as much as possible. Pierre Bezukhov is trying to change and improve the situation of his peasants. But disappointment soon sets in: the protagonist of Tolstoy's novel "War and Peace" understands that most of the Masons are trying to make acquaintances with influential people in this way. Further, the image and characteristics of Pierre Bezukhov are revealed in an interesting aspect.

The most important stage on the path of spiritual development of Pierre Bezukhov is the war of 1812 and captivity. On the Borodino field, he understands that the truth is in the universal unity of people. In captivity, the peasant philosopher Platon Karataev reveals to the main character the realization of how important it is to “live with people” and stoically accept everything that fate brings.

Pierre Bezukhov has an inquisitive mind, thoughtful and often ruthless introspection. He is a decent person, kind and a little naive. He asks himself and the world philosophical questions about the meaning of life, God, the purpose of existence, not finding an answer, he does not dismiss painful thoughts, but tries to find the right path.

In the epilogue, Pierre is happy with Natasha Rostova, but personal happiness is not enough for him. He becomes a member of a secret society preparing reforms in Russia. So, discussing who are the main characters of the novel "War and Peace" by Tolstoy, we focused on the image of Pierre Bezukhov and his characteristics. Let's move on to the next key character of the novel - Andrei Bolkonsky.

Andrei Bolkonsky in the novel "War and Peace"

The Bolkonsky family is united by common generic features: a sharp analytical mind, nobility, the highest sense of honor, an understanding of one's duty in serving the Fatherland. It is no coincidence that, seeing off his son to the war, the father, admonishing him, says: “Remember one thing, Prince Andrei: if they kill you, it will hurt me, an old man ... And if I find out that you behaved not like the son of Nikolai Bolkonsky, I will be ... ashamed!" Undoubtedly, Andrei Bolkonsky is a bright character and one of the main characters in Tolstoy's novel War and Peace.

During military service Bolkonsky is guided by considerations of common good, and not his own career. He heroically rushes forward with a banner in his hands, because it hurts him to see the flight of the Russian army on the Austerlitz field.

Andrey, like Pierre, is waiting for a difficult path of searching for the meaning of life and disappointments. At first, he dreams of the glory of Napoleon. But after the Austerlitz sky, in which the prince saw something infinitely high, beautiful and calm, the former idol seems to him small, insignificant with his vain aspirations.

Comprehends the main character of the novel "War and Peace" Tolstoy and disappointment in love (Natasha betrays him, deciding to run away with the fool Anatoly Kuragin), in life for the sake of the family (he understands that this is not enough), in public service (Speransky's activities turn out to be meaningless fuss, without real benefit).

Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy, with his pure Russian pen, gave life to a whole world of characters in the novel War and Peace. His fictional heroes, who are intertwined into entire noble families or family ties, present to the modern reader a real reflection of those people who lived in the times described by the author. One of the greatest books of world significance, "War and Peace", with the confidence of a professional historian, but at the same time, as in a mirror, presents to the whole world that Russian spirit, those characters of secular society, those historical events, which were invariably present at the end of the XVIII and early XIX centuries.
And against the background of these events, it is shown in all its power and diversity.

L.N. Tolstoy and the heroes of the novel "War and Peace" are experiencing the events of the past nineteenth century, but Lev Nikolayevich begins to describe the events of 1805. The coming war with the French, the decisively approaching whole world and the growing greatness of Napoleon, the confusion in Moscow secular circles and the apparent calm in St. secular society- all this can be called a kind of background against which, like a brilliant artist, the author drew his characters. There are quite a lot of heroes - about 550 or 600. There are both main and central figures, and there are others or just mentioned. In total, the heroes of "War and Peace" can be divided into three groups: central, secondary and mentioned characters. Among all of them, there are both fictional heroes, as prototypes of the people who surrounded the writer at that time, and real-life historical figures. Consider the main characters novel.

Quotes from the novel "War and Peace"

- ... I often think how sometimes the happiness of life is unfairly distributed.

A person cannot own anything while he is afraid of death. And whoever is not afraid of her, everything belongs to him.

Until now, thank God, I have been a friend of my children and enjoy their full confidence, - said the countess, repeating the error of many parents who believe that their children have no secrets from them.

Everything, from napkins to silver, faience and crystal, bore that special imprint of novelty that happens in the household of young spouses.

If everyone fought only according to their convictions, there would be no war.

Being an enthusiast became her social position, and sometimes, when she didn’t even want to, she, in order not to deceive the expectations of people who knew her, became an enthusiast.

Everything, to love everyone, to always sacrifice oneself for love, meant not to love anyone, meant not to live this earthly life.

Never, never marry, my friend; here is my advice to you: do not marry until you tell yourself that you have done everything you could, and until you stop loving the woman you have chosen, until you see her clearly; otherwise you will make a cruel and irreparable mistake. Marry an old man, worthless ...

The central figures of the novel "War and Peace"

Rostovs - counts and countesses

Rostov Ilya Andreevich

Count, father of four children: Natasha, Vera, Nikolai and Petya. A very kind and generous person who loved life very much. His exorbitant generosity ultimately led him to extravagance. Loving husband and father. A very good organizer of various balls and receptions. However, his life on a grand scale, and disinterested assistance to the wounded during the war with the French and the departure of the Russians from Moscow, dealt fatal blows to his condition. His conscience constantly tormented him because of the impending poverty of his family, but he could not help himself. After the death of his youngest son Petya, the count was broken, but, however, revived during the preparations for the wedding of Natasha and Pierre Bezukhov. It takes just a few months after the wedding of the Bezukhovs, as Count Rostov dies.

Rostova Natalya (wife of Ilya Andreevich Rostov)

The wife of Count Rostov and the mother of four children, this woman, at the age of forty-five, had oriental features. The focus of slowness and gravity in her was regarded by others as the solidity and high significance of her personality for the family. But real reason her manner, perhaps, lies in the exhausted and weak physical condition due to childbirth and the upbringing of four children. She loves her family and children very much, so the news of the death of Petya's youngest son almost drove her crazy. Just like Ilya Andreevich, Countess Rostova was very fond of luxury and the execution of any of her orders.

Leo Tolstoy and the heroes of the novel "War and Peace" in Countess Rostova helped to reveal the prototype of the author's grandmother - Tolstoy Pelageya Nikolaevna.

Rostov Nikolai

Son of Count Rostov Ilya Andreevich. A loving brother and son who honors his family, at the same time loves to serve in Russian army which is very significant and important for his dignity. Even in his fellow soldiers, he often saw his second family. Although he was in love with his cousin Sonya for a long time, at the end of the novel he marries Princess Marya Bolkonskaya. A very energetic young man, with curly hair and an "open expression". His patriotism and love for the Emperor of Russia never dried up. Having gone through many hardships of war, he becomes a brave and brave hussar. After the death of father Ilya Andreevich, Nikolai retires in order to correct the financial affairs of the family, pay off debts and, finally, become a good husband for Marya Bolkonskaya.

It seems to Tolstoy Leo Nikolaevich as a prototype of his father.

Rostova Natasha

Daughter of the Count and Countess Rostov. A very energetic and emotional girl, who was considered ugly, but lively and attractive, she is not very smart, but intuitive, because she was able to perfectly “guess people”, their mood and some character traits. Very impetuous for nobility and self-sacrifice. She sings and dances very beautifully, which at that time was an important characterizing quality for a girl from a secular society. The most important quality of Natasha, which Leo Tolstoy, like his heroes, repeatedly emphasizes in the novel War and Peace, is closeness to the simple Russian people. Yes, and she herself absorbed the entire Russianness of culture and the strength of the spirit of the nation. Nevertheless, this girl lives in her illusion of goodness, happiness and love, which, after some time, brings Natasha into reality. It is these blows of fate and her heartfelt feelings that make Natasha Rostova an adult and give her, as a result, a mature true love to Pierre Bezukhov. The story of the rebirth of her soul deserves special respect, as Natasha began to attend church after she succumbed to the temptation of a deceitful seducer. If you are interested in Tolstoy's works, which take a deeper look at the Christian heritage of our people, then you need to read about how he fought temptation.

A collective prototype of the writer's daughter-in-law Tatyana Andreevna Kuzminskaya, as well as her sister, Lev Nikolaevich's wife, Sophia Andreevna.

Rostova Vera

Daughter of the Count and Countess Rostov. She was famous for her strict disposition and inappropriate, albeit fair, remarks in society. It is not known why, but her mother did not really love her and Vera felt this keenly, apparently, therefore she often went against everyone around her. Later she became the wife of Boris Drubetskoy.

It is the prototype of Tolstoy's sister Sophia - the wife of Leo Nikolayevich, whose name was Elizabeth Bers.

Rostov Petr

Just a boy, the son of the Count and Countess of the Rostovs. Growing up Petya, the young man tried to go to war, and in such a way that his parents could not at all keep him. Escaped all the same from parental care and decided on the hussar regiment of Denisov. Petya dies in the first battle, without having time to fight. His death greatly crippled his family.

Sonya

The miniature glorious girl Sonya was the native niece of Count Rostov and lived all her life under his roof. Her long-term love for Nikolai Rostov became fatal for her, because she never managed to unite with him in marriage. In addition, the old Count Natalya Rostova was very against their marriage, because they were cousins. Sonya acts nobly, refusing Dolokhov and agreeing to love only Nikolai for life, while freeing him from his promise to marry her. For the rest of her life, she lives with the old countess in the care of Nikolai Rostov.

The prototype of this seemingly insignificant character was Lev Nikolayevich's second cousin, Tatyana Aleksandrovna Ergolskaya.

Bolkonsky - princes and princesses

Bolkonsky Nikolai Andreevich

The father of the protagonist, Prince Andrei Bolkonsky. In the past, the acting General-in-Chief, in the present, the Prince, who earned himself the nickname "Prussian King" in Russian secular society. Socially active, strict like a father, tough, pedantic, but wise owner of his estate. Outwardly, he was a thin old man in a powdered white wig, thick eyebrows hanging over penetrating and intelligent eyes. He does not like to show feelings even for his beloved son and daughter. He constantly harasses his daughter Mary with nit-picking and sharp words. Sitting at his estate, Prince Nikolai is constantly on the alert for events taking place in Russia, and only before his death he loses a complete understanding of the scale of the tragedy of the Russian war with Napoleon.

The prototype of Prince Nikolai Andreevich was the writer's grandfather Volkonsky Nikolai Sergeevich.

Bolkonsky Andrey

Prince, son of Nikolai Andreevich. Ambitious, like his father, restrained in the manifestation of sensual impulses, but loves his father and sister very much. Married to the "little princess" Lisa. did good military career. He philosophizes a lot about life, the meaning and state of his spirit. From which it is clear that he is in some kind of constant search. After the death of his wife in Natasha, Rostova saw hope for himself, a real girl, and not a fake one like in secular society, and a certain light of future happiness, so he was in love with her. Having made an offer to Natasha, he was forced to go abroad for treatment, which served as a real test of their feelings for both. As a result, their wedding fell through. Prince Andrei went to war with Napoleon and was seriously wounded, after which he did not survive and died from a severe wound. Natasha devotedly looked after him until the end of his death.

Bolkonskaya Marya

Daughter of Prince Nikolai and sister of Andrei Bolkonsky. A very meek girl, not beautiful, but kind-hearted and very rich, like a bride. Her inspiration and devotion to religion serve as many examples of kindness and meekness. Unforgettably loves her father, who often mocked her with his ridicule, reproaches and injections. And also loves his brother, Prince Andrei. She did not immediately accept Natasha Rostova as a future daughter-in-law, because she seemed to her too frivolous for her brother Andrei. After all the hardships experienced, she marries Nikolai Rostov.

The prototype of Marya is the mother of Leo Tolstoy - Volkonskaya Maria Nikolaevna.

Bezukhovs - counts and countesses

Bezukhov Pierre (Pyotr Kirillovich)

One of the main characters who deserves close attention and the most positive assessment. This character has experienced a lot of mental trauma and pain, possessing in itself a kind and highly noble disposition. Tolstoy and the heroes of the novel "War and Peace" very often express their love and acceptance of Pierre Bezukhov as a man of very high morals, complacent and a man of a philosophical mind. Lev Nikolayevich loves his hero, Pierre, very much. As a friend of Andrei Bolkonsky, the young Count Pierre Bezukhov is very devoted and responsive. Despite the various intrigues weaving under his nose, Pierre did not become embittered and did not lose his good nature towards people. And by marrying Natalya Rostova, he finally found that grace and happiness that he so lacked in his first wife, Helen. At the end of the novel, his desire to change the political foundations in Russia can be traced, and from afar one can even guess his Decembrist moods.

Character prototypes
Most of the heroes of such a complex structure of the novel always reflect some people who one way or another met on the path of Leo Tolstoy.

The writer successfully created a whole panorama of the epic history of the events of that time and privacy secular people. In addition, the author managed to very brightly paint the psychological traits and characters of his characters so that they can learn worldly wisdom and modern man.

Field Marshal General Prince, adjutant wing Count, son-in-law of commander Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov. All three led the soldiers into the attack under heavy fire with a battle banner in their hands. All three were wounded, only Prince Volkonsky survived. one

Tolstoy about the hero: “There I will be sent,” he thought, “with a brigade or division, and there, with a banner in my hand, I will go forward and break everything that is in front of me.”

“At this time, a new face entered the living room. The new face was the young Prince Andrei Bolkonsky, the husband of the little princess. Prince Bolkonsky was short, a very handsome young man with definite and dry features. ... Apparently, everyone who was in the living room not only did they know each other, but they bored him so much that it was very boring for him to look at them and listen to them.

Take a look at Adolf Ladurner's painting "The Armorial Hall of the Winter Palace", where Prince Peter Volkonsky is in the center. See how accurate Tolstoy is.

All photographs of the heroes of the novel are taken from the film "War and Peace" (1965).

Count Nikolai Rostov

Prototype: the writer's father, Count.

Tolstoy about the hero: "... So much nobility, true youth, which you meet so rarely in our age between our twenty-year-old old people! .."

Count Pierre Bezukhov

Tolstoy about the hero:"... When moments of cruelty were found on him, like those in which he connected the quarterly with a bear and let him into the water, or when he challenged a man to a duel for no reason, or killed the coachman's horse with a pistol ..."; "... Dolokhov (also a partisan with a small party)."

Princess Helen Kuragina (Countess Bezukhova)

Prototype: H; beloved of Chancellor Prince Alexander Mikhailovich Gorchakov, who became the morganatic wife of Duke Nikolai Maximilianovich of Leuchtenberg, grandson of Nicholas I (Tolstoy has "a young blond man with a long face and nose") 3 .

Tolstoy about the heroine: "In Petersburg, Helen enjoyed the special patronage of a nobleman who occupied one of the highest positions in the state. In Vilna, she became close to a young foreign prince. When she returned to Petersburg, the prince and nobleman<>both claimed their rights, and Helen presented a new task in her career: to maintain her close relationship with both without offending either.

Vasily Denisov

Prototype:, a participant in the Patriotic War of 1812, a hussar who, like the hero of the novel, fought in a partisan detachment.

Tolstoy about the hero: "... Denisov, to the surprise of Rostov, in a new uniform, pomaded and perfumed, appeared in the living room in the same dandy that he used to be in battles ..."

Artillery Staff Captain Tushin

Prototypes: Major General of Artillery Ilya Timofeevich Radozhitsky and Staff Captain of Artillery Yakov Ivanovich Sudakov. In character, he resembled the brother of the writer Nikolai Nikolaevich.

Tolstoy about the hero:"... Tushin appeared on the threshold, timidly making his way from behind the backs of the generals. Bypassing the generals in a cramped hut, embarrassed, as always, at the sight of his superiors ..."

Baron Alfons Karlovich Berg

Prototype: field marshal general, baron, then count 4. In the rank of lieutenant of the Life Guards of the Semenovsky Regiment, he was wounded at Austerlitz in his right hand, but, having shifted his sword to his left hand, he remained in the ranks until the end of the battle. For this, he was awarded the Golden Sword "For Bravery" 5 .

Tolstoy about the hero: “It was not for nothing that Berg showed everyone his right hand wounded in the battle of Austerlitz and held a completely unnecessary sword in his left. He told everyone this concealment so stubbornly and with such significance that everyone believed in the expediency and dignity of this act, and Berg received two awards for Austerlitz ".

Anna Pavlovna Sherer

Prototype: maid of honor to Empress Maria Alexandrovna, daughter of the great poet.

Tolstoy about the heroine:"... The famous Anna Pavlovna Scherer, maid of honor and close associate of Empress Maria Feodorovna ..."

Marya Dmitrievna Akhrosimova

Prototype: who had a scandalous reputation in high society. “She was depicted with photographic accuracy, down to her last name and rolling up her sleeves, as is well known, by L.N. Tolstoy in War and Peace 6 .

Tolstoy about the heroine:Akhrosimova is known "not for wealth, not for honors, but for her directness of mind and frank simplicity of address."

Lyovochka MAYBE WILL DESCRIBE US WHEN HE WILL BE 50 YEARS OLD. S. A. TOLSTAYA - TO SISTER. NOVEMBER 11, 1862

1. Patriotic War 1812 and the liberation campaign of the Russian army in 1813-1814. Encyclopedia: In 3 volumes. T. 1. M .: Russian Political Encyclopedia (ROSSPEN), 2012. S. 364; There. T. 3. S. 500.
2. Patriotic war of 1812 and the liberation campaign of the Russian army in 1813-1814. Encyclopedia: In 3 volumes. T. 1. M .: Russian Political Encyclopedia (ROSSPEN), 2012. S. 410.
3. Ekshtut S.A. Nadine, or the novel of a high society lady through the eyes of the secret political police. M.: Consent, 2001. S. 97-100.
4. Patriotic war of 1812 and the liberation campaign of the Russian army in 1813-1814. Encyclopedia: In 3 volumes. T. 1. M .: Russian Political Encyclopedia (ROSSPEN), 2012. S. 623.
5. Ekshtut S.A. Everyday life Russian intelligentsia from the era of the Great Reforms to Silver Age. M.: Molodaya Gvardiya, 2012. S. 252.
6. Gershenzon M.O. Griboedovskaya Moscow. M.: Moskovsky Rabochiy, 1989. S. 83.

), the French invasion of Russia, the battle of Borodino and the capture of Moscow, the entry of allied troops into Paris; the end of the novel is attributed to 1820. The author has read many historical books and memoirs of contemporaries; he understood that the task of the artist does not coincide with the task of the historian and, not striving for complete accuracy, he wanted to create the spirit of the era, the originality of her life, the picturesqueness of her style.

Lev Tolstoy. War and Peace. The main characters and themes of the novel

Certainly, historical figures Tolstoy are somewhat modernized: they often speak and think like the author's contemporaries. But this renewal of the old is inevitable in the creative perception of the historian of any process as a continuous, vital stream. Otherwise, it does not piece of art, but dead archeology. The author did not invent anything - he only chose what seemed to him the most significant. “Everywhere,” Tolstoy writes, “wherever historical figures speak and act in my novel, I did not invent, but used materials from which I formed a whole library of books during my work.”

For "family chronicles" placed within the historical framework of the Napoleonic Wars, he used family memoirs, letters, diaries, and unpublished notes. Complexity and richness human world”, depicted in the novel, can only be compared with the gallery of portraits of the multi-volume “ human comedy» Balzac . Tolstoy gives more than 70 detailed descriptions, outlines with a few strokes many minor persons - and all of them live, do not merge with each other, remain in memory. One sharply grasped detail determines the figure of a person, his character and behavior. In the waiting room of the dying Count Bezukhov, one of the heirs, Prince Vasily, walks on tiptoe in confusion. "He couldn't walk on tiptoe and jumped awkwardly with his whole body." And in this bouncing, the whole nature of the dignitary and imperious prince is reflected.

The external feature acquires a deep psychological and symbolic sound from Tolstoy. He has incomparable visual acuity, brilliant observation, almost clairvoyance. By one turn of the head or movement of the fingers, he guesses the person. Every feeling, even the most fleeting, is immediately embodied for him in a bodily sign; The movement, posture, gesture, expression of the eyes, the line of the shoulders, the trembling of the lips are read by him as a symbol of the soul. Hence the impression of spiritual and bodily wholeness and completeness that his characters produce. In the art of creating living people with flesh and blood, breathing, moving, casting a shadow, Tolstoy has no equal.

Princess Mary

In the center of the action of the novel are two noble families - Bolkonsky and Rostov. The eldest Prince Bolkonsky, general-in-chief of Catherine's time, a Voltairian and an intelligent gentleman, lives in the Bald Mountains estate with his daughter Marya, ugly and no longer young. Her father loves her passionately, but brings her up harshly and torments her with algebra lessons. Princess Mary "with beautiful radiant eyes", with a shy smile - an image of high spiritual beauty. She meekly bears the cross of her life, prays, accepts " God's people”and dreams of becoming a wanderer ...“ All the complex laws of mankind were concentrated for her in one simple and clear law of love and self-sacrifice, taught to her by the One Who suffered with love for humanity, when He Himself is God. What did she care about the justice or injustice of other people? She had to suffer and love herself, and she did it.

And yet she is sometimes worried about the hope of personal happiness; she wants to have a family, children. When this hope comes true and she marries Nikolai Rostov, her soul continues to strive for "infinite, eternal perfection."

Prince Andrei Bolkonsky

Princess Mary's brother, Prince Andrei, does not look like his sister. This is a strong, intelligent, proud and disappointed person who feels superior to others, weighed down by his chirping, frivolous wife and looking for practically useful activities. He cooperates with Speransky in the commission for the drafting of laws, but soon gets tired of this abstract office work. He is seized by a thirst for glory, he goes on a campaign in 1805 and, like Napoleon, awaits his "Toulon" - exaltation, greatness, "human love". But instead of the Toulon, the Austerlitz field awaits him, on which he lies wounded and looks into the bottomless sky. “Everything is empty,” he thinks, “everything is a lie, except for this endless sky. Nothing, nothing but him. But even that is not even there, there is nothing but silence, calmness.

Andrey Bolkonsky

Returning to Russia, he settles in his estate and plunges into the "longing of life." The death of his wife, the betrayal of Natasha Rostova, who seemed to him the ideal of girlish charm and purity, plunge him into gloomy despair. And only slowly dying from a wound received in the Battle of Borodino, in the face of death, he finds that “truth of life”, which he has always so unsuccessfully sought: “Love is life,” he thinks. Everything, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love it. Love is God, and to die means for me, a particle of love, to return to the common and eternal source.

Nikolai Rostov

Complicated relations connect the Bolkonsky family with the Rostov family. Nikolai Rostov is a whole, spontaneous nature, like Eroshka in The Cossacks or Volodya's brother in Childhood. He lives without questions and doubts, he has a "common sense of mediocrity." Direct, noble, brave, cheerful, he is surprisingly attractive, despite his limitations. Of course, he cannot understand the mystical soul of his wife Marya, but he knows how to create happy family to raise kind and honest children.

Natasha Rostova

His sister Natasha Rostova is one of the most charming female images Tolstoy. She enters the life of each of us as a beloved and close friend. From her lively, joyful and spiritualized face, a radiance emanates, illuminating everything around her. When she appears, everyone becomes cheerful, everyone starts smiling. Natasha is full of such an excess of vitality, such a "talent of life" that her whims, frivolous hobbies, selfishness of youth and thirst for "the pleasures of life" - everything seems charming.

She is constantly on the move, intoxicated with joy, inspired by feeling; she does not reason, “does not deign to be clever,” as Pierre says about her, but the clairvoyance of the heart replaces her mind. She immediately “sees” a person and accurately defines him. When her fiancé Andrei Bolkonsky leaves for the war, Natasha becomes infatuated with the brilliant and empty Anatole Kuragin. But the break with Prince Andrei and then his death turn her whole soul upside down. Her noble and truthful nature cannot forgive herself for this guilt. Natasha falls into hopeless despair and wants to die. At this time, news comes of the death of her younger brother Petya in the war. Natasha forgets about her grief and selflessly takes care of her mother - and this saves her.

“Natasha thought,” writes Tolstoy, “that her life was over. But suddenly love for her mother showed her that the essence of her life - love - was still alive in her. Love woke up and life woke up. Finally, she marries Pierre Bezukhov and turns into a child-loving mother and devoted wife: she refuses all the "pleasures of life" that she loved so passionately before, and devotes herself wholeheartedly to her new, difficult duties. For Tolstoy, Natasha is life itself, instinctive, mysterious and holy in its natural wisdom.

Pierre Bezukhov

The ideological and compositional center of the novel is Count Pierre Bezukhov. All complex and numerous lines of action are drawn to it, coming from two "family chronicles" - the Bolkonskys and the Rostovs; he clearly enjoys the greatest sympathy of the author and is closest to him in terms of his mental disposition. Pierre belongs to the "searching" people, reminds Nikolenka, Nekhludova, Venison but most of all Tolstoy himself. Before us are not only the external events of life, but also the consistent history of his spiritual development.

The path of searching for Pierre Bezukhov

Pierre was brought up in an atmosphere of Rousseau's ideas, he lives by feeling and is prone to "dreamy philosophizing". He is looking for the “truth”, but due to weakness of will he continues to lead an empty social life, go on a spree, play cards, go to balls; an absurd marriage to the soulless beauty Helen Kuragina, a break with her and a duel with a former friend Dolokhov produce a profound upheaval in him. He's interested in freemasonry, thinks to find in him "inner peace and harmony with himself." But disappointment soon sets in: the philanthropic activity of the Masons seems to him insufficient, their addiction to uniforms and magnificent ceremonies outrages him. Moral stupor, panicky fear of life finds on him.

"The tangled and terrible knot of life" strangles him. And now, on the Borodino field, he meets the Russian people - a new world opens up to him. The spiritual crisis was prepared by amazing impressions that suddenly fell upon him: he sees the fire of Moscow, is taken prisoner, spends several days awaiting the death sentence, is present at the execution. And then he meets "Russian, kind, round Karataev." Joyful and bright, he saves Pierre from spiritual death and leads him to God.

“First, he sought God for the goals that he set for himself,” writes Tolstoy, and suddenly he recognized in his captivity, not by words, not by reasoning, but by direct feeling, what his nanny had been telling him for a long time; that God is here, here, everywhere. He learned in captivity that God in Karataev is greater, infinite and incomprehensible than in the Architecton of the universe recognized by the Masons.

Religious inspiration covers Pierre, all questions and doubts disappear, he no longer thinks about the “meaning of life”, because the meaning has already been found: love for God and selfless service to people. The novel ends with a picture of the complete happiness of Pierre, who married Natasha Rostova and became a devoted husband and loving father.

Platon Karataev

The soldier Platon Karataev, whose meeting in Moscow, occupied by the French, made a revolution in the truth-seeking Pierre Bezukhov, is conceived by the author as a parallel to " folk hero» Kutuzov; he, too, is a person without a personality, passively surrendering to events. This is how Pierre sees him, i.e., the author himself, but he appears to the reader differently. It is not the impersonality, but the extraordinary originality of his personality that strikes us. His well-aimed words, jokes and sayings, his constant activity, his bright cheerfulness of spirit and sense of beauty ("goodness"), his active love for his neighbors, humility, cheerfulness and religiosity are formed in our view not in the image of an impersonal "part of the whole", but into the amazingly whole face of the people's righteous man.

Platon Karataev is the same "great Christian" as the holy fool Grisha in "Childhood". Tolstoy intuitively felt its spiritual originality, but his rationalistic explanation glided over the surface of this mystical soul.