Free will in the Time of Tolstoy
A few people were curious about the question of free will in political and philosophical thought around the time Tolstoy was writing War and Peace (1860s). Sara gave us an interesting synopsis. “At the time, radical literary critics and radical intelligentsia vivaciously discussed the ideas of French socialists, who basically thought that everything is determined by biology. There was one famous critic who wrote a novel not long before War and Peace…he basically said that there is no free will, but it’s based on the environment and physiological factors.” In Part III, we certainly see Tolstoy exploring this particular theme. As Prince Vasily slyly tries to set up marriages for Helene and Anatole, many observed that the two take after their father in a certain natural ability to seduce and tempt people to bending to their will. This relates to the question someone brought up about “biological determinism”—is it inherited or is it acquired from the experience of living around certain people? For the Kuragins, each seems to be the case. Helene and Anatole take after their father, and the Kuragins in general are very influenced by expectations set by Petersburg society. However, Princess Marya and Prince Andrei’s experiences present a different picture of free will. Theirs has a spiritual nature, but even so, they seem constrained—Marya by the Orthodox religion, and Andrei by the “infinite sky”— in the sense that they aren’t in complete control, that is, there’s something larger than themselves out there that has a say in determining things. So, does Tolstoy suggest that people have free will or that they don’t? That’s a big question to answer! Events of Part III reveal at least a few hints to tackling this question.
Pierre “Proposes” to Helene
Helene struck everyone as a very sensual creature—or rather, sensual statue. She’s associated with beauty: she has “incredible shoulders” and Anna Pavlovna keeps on hinting at the obvious by whispering over and over again into Pierre’s ear, “She is lovely, isn’t she?” Along with this beauty, she’s marked with a stone-like coldness. She has white skin, much like “white marble” as many noted, and wears a dress decorated with ivy and moss. Everyone gazes at her like they would a statue. She’s treated as a “showpiece, either developed by her father or just naturally a chip used towards wealth and power.” Her coldness, besides her statue-like appearance, lies in her attitude and mannerisms. Many questioned her intelligence—Pierre certainly questions it. Helene speaks very tersely, but she has a certain presence that she isn’t shy to exploit. Someone made the great observation that “Helene seems to be the ultimate user with certain gifts to the point that Pierre can’t resist her.” Despite Pierre’s reasoning that he knows they will be unhappy together, his attraction to her seems like “fate,” as someone pointed out. She is an example of “the thrift of genius” and almost everyone in the discussion insisted she had “an inner evil being.” Between her and Pierre, she seems to be the one in the control. Not once did she turn to Pierre to help him feel at ease or express doubt about her father’s ulterior motives. It seems like she can’t help herself in seducing Pierre because of her beauty, but at the same time, she seduces in a way that she has “learned how to perform according to the expectations placed on her.” Tolstoy doesn’t narrate through Helene’s perspective, so a few questions about her remain: Is she a victim of her own beauty, of her father’s influence, societal expectations, or all three? Is it simply in her blood (or more scientifically accurate, DNA) to act as such, and does this make her “evil”? These suggestions point us to her father, Prince Vasily. A participant made a great comment: “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
Many in the discussion doubted Prince Vasily’s nobility and described him as “manipulative and a bit hypocritical.” He seems to be exploiting his daughter’s beauty and “hoodwinking” Pierre to set up an agreeable match. Many questioned whether or not he actually cares about his children. At the beginning of the novel, he directly tells Anna Pavlovna that his children are his crosses to bear—he isn’t quite the ideal family man or father figure. However, even though Vasily “is always pawning his children off for his social and political gain,” as someone observed, Tolstoy suggests that Prince Vasily doesn’t make these decisions consciously. Part III begins with a description of Prince Vasily’s thought processes: “Prince Vasily was not given to planning ahead. Still less would he think of doing any harm to other people in order to gain an advantage. He was a man of the world…he found success in society and turned success into a habit. Various plans and considerations were always forming in his mind, according to circumstances and individual encounters, but he was never fully conscious of them…But whenever he came across a man of power he knew instinctively whether this man might be of some use…” Like Helene’s natural way of seducing people with her beauty, her father has a natural inkling in knowing how to twist people around his finger. (Because this is part of his instinct, does he have the free will to choose not to manipulate others?) A participant pointed out that the Kuragins are influenced by “an instinctive ability to act to what meets their needs,” which was seen as “an antithesis to some of the more noble but less experienced characters.” Prince Vasily’s instinct in societal matters like setting up marriage proposals completely trumps Pierre’s “indecisiveness.” As Pierre fumbles around in his conversation with Helene—both unsure of what was to come next—Prince Vasily barges in and declares, “Congratulations!” He literally forces the marriage on them, and neither objects. Despite his internal desire to resist, Pierre seems to be completely bewitched by the Kuragins’ spell, and convinces himself that it’s “fate” for him to comply.
During the proposal, Pierre simply “was an absolute mess,” “hapless,” “unable to control events.” In his head, he tried to understand the situation—he “intuitively and intellectually found the match to be wrong, that he was being pulled into the whirlpool of marriage with Helene, and he was not going to be able to resist.” Part of his reasoning was that he knew that he only lusted for Helene and that there was speculation of incest between Helene and Anatole. Nonetheless, his passive nature led him to be pulled in. An interesting comparison was made between Pierre and Bagration, in which both are passive, “accepting what is happening and pretending that’s how it’s supposed to be.” Both are passive, but Bagration’s passivity seems more “wise.” Pierre knows the right thing to do and reasons everything out, but he ignores his inner voice. He “fell into the trap of being guided by lust.” A great observation was made that his passivity is connected to his “lack of a vision for himself,” and even possibly “an emotional or spiritual disconnectedness.” His position changed—from illegitimate child to the Count Bezukhov—but his character traits stayed the same. Some people pointed to the fact that Pierre submits not only because of his lust for Helene or his lack of a vision for himself, but also because it is expected of him. Ever since he took the name “Count Bezukhov” and became (or was forced to be) intertwined in society life, he lost his “freer” life of wandering around wherever he pleased, unaccounted for.
Marya Refuses Anatole
Where Prince Vasily succeeded in securing the Pierre/Helene match, he failed in that of Marya/Anatole. Many comparisons were drawn between these proposals. Pierre and Helene were seen as more passive and “less under control”—whether it be their natures, innate tendency to conform to societal pressures, or submission to Prince Vasily. A participant made the comment that Anatole “wasn’t nearly as with the program as Helene, even getting involved with the maid.” He has the same captivating, sensual presence as his sister (all three Bald Hills ladies swoon over him), but he uses it for his own purposes to chase his sexual desires instead of thinking of his father’s and the Kuragin family’s needs. Princess Marya rejects her attraction to Anatole, unlike Pierre’s conscious submission to Helene’s. Fate, yet again, seems to play a big part in how these proposals turned out. Where Pierre convinces himself that it’s fate for him to be with Helene despite his logical reasoning that they’ll be poison to each other, Marya convinces herself that it’s fate for her to reject Anatole because God tells her to desire nothing for herself, but to be ready for anything. She displays a “wise passivity” like Bagration, unlike Pierre’s simple passivity. Many observed that both Pierre and Anatole fall for lust, but the distinction was made that “Anatole gives little thought to his actions whereas Pierre knows intuitively that his relationship with Helene is wrong.” Both are “ineffectual,” but Pierre “tries to be reflective and to understand the limitations of his undisciplined life.”
The Battle of Austerlitz and the Infinite Sky
At Austerlitz, Nikolai and Andrei enter the battle with the same dreams, plans, and desire for glory, despite all that happened at Schongraben. However, Austerlitz is different in two significant ways—it’s the first loss for the Russian army, and Nikolai and Andrei encounter their heroes for the first time. Many in the discussion found that these events, marked by failure, taught Nikolai and Andrei lessons that they perhaps forgot after the victory at Schongraben. Austerlitz is a “loss” in a number of respects—first, the obvious military loss for the Russians, second, Nikolai’s inability to talk to the beloved Tsar, and third, Prince Andrei’s close encounter with physical death, which leads to the death of his dreams and aspirations to emulate Napoleon. This loss is somehow connected with the realization that the “Tsar is isolated and all too human,” which Nikolai fails to see. He runs away from his hero, which causes him to revere the Tsar even more. With Prince Andrei, his confrontation with Napoleon is perhaps less glorious than it would have been if he didn’t get a glimpse at the infinite sky first. A participant noted that “they [the Tsar and Napoleon as heroes] are built up to be more than what they are”—Prince Andrei realizes this, but Nikolai does not. Nikolai continues to chase the same dreams for greatness on the battlefield, but now with the twist of sacrificing everything for the Tsar. He doesn’t experience a grave, life-threatening ordeal like Prince Andrei, so he continues dreaming up fantasies of greatness in battle. Someone called Prince Andrei’s brush with death “life changing, even life affirming—he becomes fully aware of how meaningless his life had become.” When he looks at the sky, wounded and close to death, “it seemed like it was infinity, making everyone and everything even Napoleon insignificant and irrelevant,” a participant noted. He began to see the battle as unimportant. Someone pointed out that, “there is a timelessness represented by the sky and with it the serenity that comes with the eternal, which is contrasted with the destruction and temporary nature of the battle.” Prince Andrei’s glorification of war diminishes when he stares at the infinite sky. So when he gets the chance to speak to Napoleon, who was busy complimenting other Russian soldiers for their efforts during the battle, Prince Andrei decides not to speak at all. Prince Andrei rebukes everything he formerly associated with Napoleon as his hero—glory, will power, and unlimited free will.
Meeting between Napoleon I and Emperor Franz II at Sarutschitz in Moravia after the Battle of Austerlitz, December 4, 1805 by Antoine-Jean Gros. Interesting how the smoke darkens Napoleon, making him fade into the rest of the surroundings. This is how Prince Andrei would have probably seen things after Austerlitz!
Someone mentioned that the book keeps getting better and better. Well, that’s one of the rare absolute-100-percent-true generalizations you can make regarding War and Peace! So keep on reading, and see you next Wednesday!
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