Chapter 5, Tolstoy: God's Elder Brother Summary and Analysis

Leo Tolstoy believed that he could bring about the moral transformation of society. He believed that was part of a succession of great thinkers which included Buddha, Moses and Socrates. He was a social reformer with a strong belief in God, and felt that he himself was a good and great man. He had a strong desire to rule and an unwillingness to be ruled.

Tolstoy left Kazan University to study on his own. He was particularly influenced by Rousseau. He set high standards for his own writing which is why there were so many drafts of his novels, War and Peace and Anna Karenina.

Tolstoy frequented prostitutes and other women and suffered from several bouts of venereal disease. Several times he writes about how he has been led astray by women. He...