Introduction by A. N. Wilson; Translation by C. J. Hogarth

Although best known for "War and Peace" and "Anna Karenina, " Leo Tolstoy did not confine his literary talents to voluminous works. He was also a master of the short story and the long story--the particularly Russian form known as "povest'." Each of the tales in this collection exhibits the rich detail, vivid narration, and startling truths that characterize Tolstoy's famous novels.
Two unusual, intriguing short stores--"Three Deaths" and "The Three Hermits"--appear here, along with four powerful long stories: "Family Happiness," "The Devil," "Father Sergius," and "Master and Man." "Family Happiness," the first story in this compilation, features a Tolstoyan theme that recurs both here and elsewhere in the author's writings: "The only certain happiness in life is to live for others." Written over a period of 40 years or more, these works display the author's evolving perspectives on love, marriage, art, politics, and patriotism. They offer an eclectic introduction to the great Russian writer's fiction as well as a feast for those already acquainted with the pleasures of reading Tolstoy.

Maude's excellent translation of Tolstoy's treatise on the emotionalist theory of art was the first unexpurgated version of the work to appear in any languages. More than ninety years later this work remains, as Vincent Tomas observed, one of the most rigorous attacks on formalism and on the doctrine of art for art's sake ever written. Tomas's Introduction makes this the edition of choice for students of aesthetics and anyone with philosophical interests.

This scarce antiquarian book is included in our special Legacy Reprint Series. In the interest of creating a more extensive selection of rare historical book reprints, we have chosen to reproduce this title even though it may possibly have occasional imperfections such as missing and blurred pages, missing text, poor pictures, markings, dark backgrounds and other reproduction issues beyond our control. Because this work is culturally important, we have made it available as a part of our commitment to protecting, preserving and promoting the world's literature.

Leo Tolstoy undertook the writing of the stories in Divine and Human and Other Stories around the time of the 1905 revolution in Russia. While doing so, he drew on the tragic past of Russia and its empire to comment on the issues and ideas of the day. Tolstoy had long before taken on the mantle of sage, and in addition to his treatises and essays on religious and social topics, he continued to write many works of fiction. The stories "Divine and Human", "Berries", and "What For?" are collected together here for the first time, and they show the depth of -- and contradictions in -- Tolstoy's thought as he tried to reconcile his harsh religious beliefs with humanistic appeals for justice. Taken as a whole the collection is a revealing look at the irreconcilable life and thought of a literary giant.