We’re still in the thick of war in Europe in 1805. The French army, under Napoleon, are triumphant. The Austrians have been defeated and the Russian army are in flight. Two of our heroes Nikolay Rostov and Andrey Bolkonsky are caught up in the war, having both joined up, but they have very different experiences. The group was most struck by Andrey Bolkonsky’s death wish: with a pregnant wife at home, he is chasing a romantic death fighting for his country. We are wondering whether Tolstoy subscribes to the nineteenth century romantic view of war, and that it is a glorious thing to lose your life as a hero fighting for your country: throwing your life away as though it is nothing.

 

Wellington Reading Group