In this first book-length study of Tolstoy’s meditation on death, life, love, and happiness, Inessa Medzhibovskaya focuses on unknown documents and stories that illuminate the realities of Russian philosophical culture at the end of the long nineteenth century. Special attention is paid to Tolstoy’s involvement with the Moscow Psychological Society and its periodicals, to his friendship with its longtime Chairman Nikolai Grot, and to Tolstoy’s interactions with such outstanding figures of Russian thought as Nikolai Strakhov, Nikolai Fedorov, Lev Lopatin, and Vladimir Soloviev. What was Tolstoy’s relationship to Grot—the relation of a genius to a scribe, or a mentor to a disciple? What did it mean to be elected a distinguished member of the Moscow Psychological Society? Who were the other members? What was the nature of the critical exchanges around On Life between Tolstoy, his family and friends, and other Russian thinkers, scientists, and artists? Bookending the volume is an extensive historical appendix. Here the reader will find documents published in English for the first time.
Inessa Medzhibovskaya teaches in the Departments of Liberal Studies here at Eugene Lang College. Her previous books include Tolstoy and the Religious Culture of His Time; Tolstoy, On Life: A Critical Edition; Tolstoy and His Problems: View from the Twenty-First Century; and A Critical Guide to Tolstoy’s On Life.
The “Tolstoy’s ON LIFE” book launch party will take place on October 30th. For details, check the Upcoming Events section.
For more information about the book, go to: https://www.tolstoy-studies-journal.com/