Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy. Life and creative path. The creative and life path of Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy

"... To remember the ancestors - my fathers, grandfathers, great-grandfathers, I am not only not ashamed, but especially joyful" - wrote Leo Tolstoy. Representatives of the Tolstoy dynasty, leading their history since 1686, have clearly shown themselves as military leaders, statesmen and politicians, priests, scientists, town planners, artists, writers, poets, doctors. Their occupation is varied, but all of them are united by a devoted sincere service to their Fatherland, service to Russia.

At the set tea table on the croquet area are sitting, from left to right: Leo Tolstoy in a light blouse, Vanechka, Sasha, Lev, Andrey (standing) Tolstoy, Tatyana Lvovna, Sofya Andreevna, Maria Lvovna (standing). Behind the sofa, on which Leo Tolstoy is sitting, stands his son Misha.

“I always admire these trees, this is my favorite place. And in the morning this is my walk. Sometimes I sit here and write. " (L. N. Tolstoy - A. B. Goldenveiser) At the request of L. N. Tolstoy, a wooden bench was built in "Yolochki". This place is known as his favorite place for reflection in the peace and quiet of a young spruce forest, a place to relax after long walks around the estate and the surrounding area.

In 1857, the war between Russia and Turkey began. Tolstoy arrived in Sevastopol. Here he got to know the Russian people better and wrote "The Sevastopol Stories." The writer showed war as a phenomenon unnatural to humanity. He spoke about the heroism and patriotism of the Russian soldier.

The Patriotic War of 1812 in the novel "War and Peace" by Leo Tolstoy The basis of the novel "War and Peace" is made up of historical military events, artistically transformed by the writer. In the 3rd and 4th volumes, Tolstoy draws events Patriotic War 1812 This war for Russia was just, national liberation. The whole people, closely rallied around their army, came out to fight the invaders.

Natasha Rostova. it poetic image... Natasha Rostova is the personification of youth and joy. She grew up in an old noble family. Its main features are the kindness and breadth of the Russian soul, friendliness, hospitality. Natasha - perfect image women in the view of Tolstoy.

Prince Andrei was the son of the old prince Nikolai Andreevich Bolkonsky. Throughout the novel, Bolkonsky is looking for his purpose in life, trying to choose a de man of honor, and such petty inclinations, ignoble aspirations are unacceptable to him. That is why he quickly became disillusioned with social life. Marriage did not bring him happiness either.

LN Tolstoy showed a significant part of the events of the Borodino battle in the perception of Pierre Bezukhov. Pierre, who understands nothing about military affairs, perceives war from a psychological point of view. The hero realized here that history is created by the most powerful force in the world - the people. No effort by the French could break the will of the Russians to fight to the death. A visit to the Borodino field at the moment famous battle became an important milestone on the path of the hero's quest. Bezukhov approvingly accepts the words of the unknown soldier: "They want to pile on all the people, one word - Moscow." “To be a soldier, just a soldier!” - such a desire seized Pierre after the Borodino battle.

The novel "Anna Karenina" was created in the period from one thousand eight hundred and seventy-three to one thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven. Over time, the concept has undergone great changes. The plan of the novel changed, its plot and compositions expanded and complicated, the characters and their names changed. But with all the changes made by Tolstoy to the image of Anna Karenina, and in the final text, Anna Karenina remains, in Tolstoy's terminology, both a “lost herself” and an “innocent” woman. She gave up her sacred duties as mother and wife, but she had no other choice. Tolstoy justifies the behavior of his heroine, but at the same time tragic fate it turns out to be inevitable.

The novel "Resurrection" (gg.). The novel shows the fate of a simple girl Katyusha Maslova and aristocrat Dmitry Nekhlyudov. This novel is a condemnation of the autocracy, heartlessness and venality of judges. Tolstoy shows the resurrection of the soul of the hero D. Nekhlyudov.

After the Ball (1903, published 1911). The story "After the Ball" is based on a real event that Tolstoy learned about when he lived with his brothers in Kazan as a student. His brother Sergei Nikolaevich fell in love with the daughter of the local military commander L.P. Koreisha was going to marry her. But after Sergei Nikolaevich saw the cruel punishment commanded by the father of his beloved girl, he experienced a strong shock. He stopped visiting Koreish's house and gave up the idea of ​​getting married.

At the end of his life, on an autumn night in 1910, Tolstoy secretly left the estate in search of truth, simple forms of being. But on the way he fell ill and died at the Astapovo station. It was November 7 In ... the silence of Yasnaya Polyana, over the ravine, in the Old Order, the grave of the writer.

The life and work of L.N. Tolstoy is inextricably linked with Moscow. Until 1901 the Tolstoy family lived in Khamovniki. The Tolstoy Museum is located here. Usually the whole family lived here in the winter, and in the summer they went to Yasnaya Polyana. In the museum, you can hear the voice of the writer, his piece of music.

After the death of Leo Tolstoy, representatives of the Minsk intelligentsia submitted a petition to the city duma to perpetuate the memory of the great writer. The application was considered until the end of 1911 and, finally, it was decided to open the Tolstoy Library. She appeared in a three-room apartment on Novo-Moskovskaya (now Moskovskaya) street not far from the railway station. The writer's wife, Sofya Andreevna, came to the opening celebrations, and she brought 40 books with her.

The monument was made by order of the city administration by the Moscow master V.I.Buyakin. According to the project, Tolstoy was supposed to be barefoot, but the authorities did not like this idea, and as a result, Lev Nikolayevich had boots on his feet, which the writer had never actually worn. The opening took place on September 9, 1973, on the day of the 145th anniversary of the birth of Leo Tolstoy. In the summer of 2008, the restoration of the monument and the square near it was carried out.

Museum-estate of L.N. Tolstoy "Khamovniki" is memorial complex and preserves the atmosphere of L.N. Tolstoy. In the Khamovniki estate, where the main building was completed according to the instructions of Lev Nikolaevich, not only memorial things have been preserved and the furnishings have been reconstructed, but there is also a protected area with an area of ​​0.96 hectares. This is one of the few manor complexes that have survived in the center of Moscow.

Course of the lesson:

In the work of Leo Tolstoy, it is customary to distinguish 3 main stages of creativity:

1. Creativity of the 50s. (“Young Tolstoy”);

2.60-70 years. classical period creativity ("War and Peace", "Anna Karenina");

3.1880-1910 - the works of this period bear the imprint of the spiritual upheaval that took place in Tolstoy (see table)

The main regularity of the development of L.N. Tolstoy m. B. expressed in the words of his aunt: "A person who tests himself." Tolstoy constantly tested himself and life by the laws of morality, tried to find those laws that move life. This search was reflected in many of the writer's works. The means of expressing this idea were the little things and details of the inner life of the heroes.

Tolstoy began writing in the second half of the 40s. His first story was "Childhood" (after 2 years - "Boyhood", "Youth"). In 1852 Tolstoy sent this work to Nekrasov, who was then the editor of Sovremennik.

The protagonist of the story is autobiographical. The author conveys many features of his inner world based on observations of himself recorded in his diary. All this allowed N.G. Chernyshevsky to name L.N. Tolstoy as a writer who reveals “Dialectic human soul those. subtle phenomena of inner life ”. The dialectic of the soul is the formula for Tolstoy's work.

V early period the writer's creativity is characterized by the idea that a person is an inseparable part and human world, and the natural world. Another important motive is the feeling of social guilt. The search for God occupies a very important place in creativity.

Con. 50s early. 60s were marked by the first spiritual crisis of L.N. Tolstoy. The result of leaving it was the novel "War and Peace".

In this work, life is depicted in its entirety. The author presents the world as a globe, which consists of droplets - people, and in the center is God, to whom every drop that reflects him strives.

Example:

In the scene of the crossing, Pierre pronounces the following words to Prince Andrew: “Don't I feel in my soul that I am part of this huge, harmonious whole? I feel that not only can I not disappear, but that I always will and always have been ”

The idea of ​​universal interconnection and interdependence is one of the most important for the novel “War and Peace”.

Example:

"Each general and soldier felt their insignificance, conscious of themselves as a grain of sand in this sea of ​​people, and together they felt their power, conscious of themselves as a part of this huge whole" (Vol. 1, part 3, ch. 8)

This idea was carried over by L.N. Tolstoy throughout his life. As a child, the writer's elder brother, Nikolenka, announced to the others that he had a secret through which, when it was revealed, all people would become happy. ant brothers(i.e., Moravian, this was the name of the organization of Czech peasants and artisans who advocated the universal unity of people).

In the late 70s and 80s. Tolstoy is going through a new crisis (philosophical treatise "Confession"). V later years comes to the need for auto-translation

Love the book, it will make your life easier, will help you in a friendly way to sort out the colorful and stormy confusion of thoughts, feelings, events, it will teach you to respect a person and yourself, it inspires the mind and heart with a feeling of love for the world, for a person.

Maxim gorky

Literary began in 1850 with a move to Moscow from the parental Yasnaya Polyana. It was then that the writer began his first work - the autobiographical story "Childhood" - a work about the life of gypsies, which remained unfinished.
And in the same year, "The Story of Yesterday" was written - a story about experiences in one day.

In 1851, Tolstoy went to serve as a cadet in the Caucasus. This happened under the influence of one of the most authoritative men for the young Lev Nikolaevich - brother Nikolai, who then served as an artillery officer. In the Caucasus, Tolstoy completed his novel Childhood, his literary debut, which in 1852 was published in the Sovremennik magazine. This story, together with the following "Adolescence" and "Youth" became part of the famous autobiographical trilogy O the inner world child, teenager and youth Irteniev.

In the years 1851-1853. once a student, and now an aspiring writer, participated in Crimean war. Army life and participation in hostilities left in the memory of the writer indelible impressions and provided huge material for the military stories of 1852-1855: "Logging", "Raid" and "Sevastopol stories".

Was first described here back side wars are a complex life and experiences of a person in a war. Participation in the bloodiest war of the 19th century. and the artistic experience gained in the war stories of 1852-1855, the writer used a decade later in the work on his main work - the novel “

Plan

I. Introduction. Justification for the choice of topic.

II. Main part. Leo Tolstoy's creative path.

1. The emergence of a writer in the literary world.

2. “Childhood”, “Adolescence”, “Youth”.

3. Sevastopol stories.

4. Artistic identity story "Cossacks".

5. The epic novel "War and Peace".

a) creation of a work;

b) the affirmation in the novel of "popular thought";

c) the path of ideological and moral quest positive hero Tolstoy;

d) the depiction of the truth of the war in the novel.

e) “War and Peace” is a book about the great renewal of life caused by terrible historical events.

6. "ABC" of Tolstoy.

7. “Anna Karenina” is a novel about the present.

a) reflection of family life and the life of light in the book;

b) connection in the development of the destinies of Anna and Levin;

c) "Signs of the times" in the content and artistic form"Anna Karenina".

8. Tolstoy's way of understanding and embodying the world through psychological analysis in “The Death of Ivan Ilyich”.

9. Review novel "Resurrection".

10. The theme of the struggle against autocratic despotism in the story “Hadji Murad”.

III. Conclusion. The value of the writer's artistic heritage.

“The artist's goal is not to undeniably resolve the issue, but to make people love life in its countless, never-exhausting all its manifestations. If they had told me that I could write a novel with which I would incontrovertibly establish my seemingly correct views on all social issues, I would not have devoted even two hours of labor to such a novel, but if they had told me that what I write would be current children will read in 20 years and will cry and laugh at him and love life, I would devote my life and all my strength to him ... "

L.N. Tolstoy.

Introduction

I chose the theme of L.N. Tolstoy, since his personality, deeply epochal, life-affirming, historical and philosophical literature, his attitude to life, to the search for his place in it are closest to me. Studying his life and work is the ideal way of self-education. In a painful search for answers to the innumerable questions that every sane person asks himself at a certain stage of his life, Leo Tolstoy wrote: which calmly and, without mistakes, without remorse, without confusion, to live on the sly and do everything without haste, neatly everything only good. It's funny! ... To live honestly, you have to torn, get confused, fight, make mistakes, start and quit, and always fight and lose. And calmness is a meanness of the soul ”.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, LN Tolstoy was called “a teacher in life and art”. In the following decades, up to the present day, the legacy brilliant artist continues to amaze with both life and creative discoveries. Readers of all ages will find the answer to their questions here. And he will not just explain the incomprehensible to himself, but “obey” the rarely alive Tolstoy's heroes, will perceive them as real people... Here he is a phenomenon writer. The wisdom of his comprehension of a person, an era, the country of all that exists comes to us in experiences that are close to everyone.

Striving for moral perfection, preaching love for one's neighbor, kindness, searching for the meaning of life are the leading ideological motives of the writer's work. They represent the true path, the path to the rational, good, eternal. All these are universal values.

Reading other famous, wonderful, Russian writers such as A.S. Griboyedov, N.V. Gogol, N.A.Nekrasov, A.N. Ostrovsky, M.E.Saltykov-Shchedrin, F.M.Dostoevsky ... you feel some despair. It seems that there is no way out of the network of endless problems both at the state and at the everyday human level.

Lev Nikolaevich not only angrily protests, denounces or denounces injustice, vices and imperfections of this world in general and reality in Russian society in particular, but tries to understand the Russian people. This is a philosopher writer. Writer, loving people and able to see bright sides life.

Tolstoy paints a picture of an entire era in the life of Russia. The writer's works are a reflection the smallest details real life that time. And he gives us the right to assess events.

Leo Tolstoy was 24 years old when the story “Childhood” appeared in the best, leading magazine of those years, Sovremennik. At the end of the printed text, readers saw only initials that did not say anything to them then: L.N.

Sending his first creation to the editor of the journal, N.A. Nekrasov, Tolstoy contributed money - in case the manuscript was returned. The editor's response, more than positive, delighted the young author "to the point of stupidity." Tolstoy's first book, Childhood, along with the subsequent two stories, Adolescence and Youth, became his first masterpiece. Novels and stories, created at the time of creative heyday, did not overshadow this peak.

“This is a new talent and, it seems, reliable,” wrote NA Nekrasov about the young Tolstoy. “Here, finally, is Gogol's successor, not in the least like him, as it should be…”, - IS Turgenev echoed Nekrasov. When "Boyhood" appeared, Turgenev wrote that the first place among writers belongs to Tolstoy by right and waits for him, that soon "Tolstoy alone will be known in Russia."

Outwardly uncomplicated story about childhood, adolescence and moral character hero, Nikolenka Irteniev, opened new horizons for all Russian literature. The leading critic of those years, G. Chernyshevsky, reviewing the first collections of Tolstoy ("Childhood and Adolescence", "War stories"), defined the essence of artistic discoveries young writer two terms: "dialectic of the soul" and "purity of moral feeling."

Psychological analysis existed in realistic art before Tolstoy. In Russian prose - in Lermontov, Turgenev, young Dostoevsky. Tolstoy's discovery was that for him a research tool mental life- the microscope of psychological analysis has become the main one among others artistic means... NG Chernyshevsky wrote in this regard: “Psychological analysis can take different directions: one poet is occupied more than the outline of characters; another - the influence of social relations and clashes on characters; the third - the connection of feelings with actions; fourth, the analysis of passions; Count Tolstoy most of all - himself mental process, its forms, its laws, the dialectic of the soul, to be expressed in a definitive term ”.

An unprecedented keen interest in mental life is of fundamental importance for Tolstoy the artist. In this way, the writer opens in his heroes the possibility of change, development, internal renewal, confrontation with the environment.

According to the researcher's fair opinion, “the ideas of the revival of man, nation, humanity ... constitute the pathos of Tolstoy's work ... early stories, the writer has deeply and comprehensively explored the possibilities human personality, her ability for spiritual growth, the possibility of her involvement in the lofty goals of human existence ”.

“Details of feelings”, mental life in its inner flow come to the fore, pushing aside “the interest of events”. The plot is deprived of any external eventfulness and amusement and is simplified to such an extent that in a retelling it can be put in several lines. It is not the events themselves that are interesting, the contrasts and contradictions of feelings are interesting, which, in fact, are the subject, the theme of the narration.

“People are like rivers” is a famous aphorism from the novel “Resurrection”. While working on his last novel, Tolstoy wrote in his diary: “One of the greatest errors in judging a person is that we define a person as smart, stupid, kind, evil, strong, weak, and a person is everything: all possibilities are fluid substance ”. This judgment almost literally repeats the entry made in July 1851, that is, just at the time of Childhood: “Talk about a person: he is an original, kind, intelligent, stupid, consistent person, etc. ... words that do not give any idea about a person, but have a pretense to describe a person, while often only confusing ”.

Tolstoy's main artistic task is to capture and embody the “fluid substance” of mental life, the very formation of man. The idea of ​​his first book is determined by the characteristic title: “Four epochs of development”. It was assumed that internal development Nikolenka Irteniev, but in essence every person in general will be traced from childhood to youth. And it cannot be said that the last, fourth part remained unwritten. She was embodied in other stories of the young Tolstoy - "The Landowner's Morning", "Cossacks".

One of Tolstoy's most beloved and soulful thoughts is connected with the image of Irteniev - the thought of the enormous possibilities of a person born for movement, for moral and spiritual growth... Tolstoy is especially interested in the new in the hero and in the world that opens up to him day after day. The ability of the beloved Tolstoyan hero to overcome the usual framework of being, to constantly change and renew, to “flow” harbors a premonition and a guarantee of change, gives him a moral support for confronting negative and inert elements in his environment. In "Youth" this "power of development" Tolstoy directly connects with the belief "in the omnipotence of the human mind."

The poetry of childhood - "a happy, happy, irreversible time" is replaced by a "desert of adolescence", when the affirmation of one's "I" occurs in continuous conflict with the people around, so that in a new era - youth - the world is divided into two parts: one, illuminated by friendship and spiritual closeness; the other is morally hostile, even if it sometimes attracts to itself. At the same time, the fidelity of the final assessments is ensured by the "purity of the moral feeling" of the author.

MOU school number 10

Literature project

Topic: “Life and work of L.N. Tolstoy ".

Completed:

Grade 10 students

Kazantseva Yu.

Shtykova A.

Checked:

Baldina O.A.

g. Zhigulevsk

Introduction. 3

1. Life of L.N. Tolstoy. 5

1.1 Family nest. 5

1.2 Childhood. 7

1.3 Adolescence. ten

1.4 Youth. eleven

1.5 Youth in the Caucasus. 13

1.6 The second birth of Leo Tolstoy. fourteen

1.7 Departure and death of Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy. 17

2. The creative path of L.N. Tolstoy. 21

2.1 "Childhood". "Adolescence". "Youth". 21

2.2 "Cossacks". 23

2.3 "War and Peace". 27

2.4 "Anna Karenina". 32

2.5 "Resurrection". 38

Conclusion. 43

List of used literature .. 45

We chose the theme for writing the project: "The life and work of L. N. Tolstoy", because his personality and his works seemed interesting to us, and we wanted to study in detail his biography and his creative way.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, LN Tolstoy was called “a teacher in life and art”. In the following decades, right up to the present day, the legacy of the genius artist continues to amaze with both life and creative discoveries. Readers of all ages will find the answer to their questions here. And he will not just clarify the incomprehensible to himself, but will “obey” the rarely living Tolstoyan heroes, will perceive them as real people. This is the phenomenon of the writer. The wisdom of his comprehension of a person, an era, the country of all that exists comes to us in experiences that are close to everyone.

Everything is found in our project: reasoning, praise, and even criticism, but you definitely will not see indifference here towards Lev Nikolaevich and his works.

Our goal: to study the biography and works of Tolstoy, as well as to understand his thoughts and feelings that he experienced when he worked on his works.

Our task: to tell people about greatness and talent famous writer, confirming this with reliable facts.

Problems:

When we were working on the project, we had the following problems: every person who has read at least some of Tolstoy's novels perceives them differently, and therefore for a long time we could not come to a common opinion about his novels; and also in different sources the biography of Lev Nikolaevich and the criticism of his works are interpreted differently, and we had to look for reliable information for a long time.

Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy was born on August 28 (September 9, new style), 1828. in the estate Yasnaya Polyana, Tula province, in one of the most distinguished Russian noble families.

The Tolstoy family existed in Russia for six hundred years. Leo Tolstoy's great-grandfather, Andrei Ivanovich, was the grandson of Pyotr Andreevich Tolstoy, one of the main instigators of the streltsy revolt under Princess Sophia. After the fall of Sophia, he went over to the side of Peter. P.A.Tolstoy in 1701, during a period of sharp aggravation of Russian-Turkish relations, was appointed by Peter I to the important and difficult post of envoy in Constantinople. He twice had to sit in the Seven-Tower Castle, depicted on the Tolstoy family coat of arms in honor of the special diplomatic merits of the noble ancestor. In 1717. P.A.Tolstoy rendered the tsar a particularly important service by persuading Tsarevich Alexei to return to Russia from Naples. For participation in the investigation, trial and secret execution of the rebellious Peter Tsarevich P.A.Tolstoy was awarded estates and made head of the Secret Government Chancellery.

On the day of the coronation of Catherine I, he received the title of count, since, together with Menshikov, he energetically contributed to her accession to the throne. But under Peter II, the son of Tsarevich Alexei, P.A.Tolstoy fell into disgrace and at the age of 82 he was exiled to the Solovetsky Monastery, where he soon died. Only in 1760, during the reign of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, the count's dignity was returned to the offspring of Pyotr Andreyevich.

The writer's grandfather, Ilya Andreevich Tolstoy, was a cheerful, trusting, but disorderly man. He squandered all his fortune and was forced, with the help of influential relatives, to procure the post of governor in Kazan. The patronage of the almighty Minister of War Nikolai Ivanovich Gorchakov, to whose daughter Pelageya Nikolaevna he was married, helped. As the eldest in the Gorchakov family, Lev Nikolaevich's grandmother enjoyed their special respect and honor (Lev Tolstoy himself would later try to restore these ties, seeking the post of adjutant under the commander-in-chief of the Southern Army, Mikhail Dmitrievich Gorchakov-Sevastopol).

In the family of I.A.Tolstoy lived a pupil, distant relative PN Gorchakova Tatyana Aleksandrovna Ergolskaya and was secretly in love with his son Nikolai Ilyich. In 1812. Nikolai Ilyich, a seventeen-year-old boy, despite the horror, fear and useless persuasion of his parents, decided military service adjutant to Prince Andrei Ivanovich Gorchakov, participated in the military campaigns of 1813-1814, was captured by the French and in 1815 was liberated by Russian troops who entered Paris.

After World War II, he retired, came to Kazan, but the death of his father left him a beggar with his old mother, sister and cousin T.A.Yergolskaya, accustomed to luxury, in his arms. It was then at the family council that a decision was made: Pelageya Nikolaevna blessed her son to marry the rich and noble Princess Maria Nikolaevna Volkonskaya, and her cousin made this decision with Christian humility. So the Tolstoys moved to live in the princess's estate - Yasnaya Polyana.

A legend surrounded in family memories the image of Tolstoy's great-grandfather on his mother, Sergei Fedorovich Volkonsky. Major General, he participated in Seven Years War... His yearning wife once dreamed that a certain voice was commanding her to send her husband a wearable icon. The icon was immediately delivered through Field Marshal Apraksin. And in battle, an enemy bullet hits Sergei Fyodorovich in the chest, but the icon saves his life. Since then, the icon as a sacred relic was kept by L. Tolstoy's grandfather, Nikolai Sergeevich. The writer will take advantage of the family tradition in War and Peace, where Princess Marya begs Andrey, who is leaving for the war, to put on a small icon: “Think what you want,” she says, “but do it for me. Please do it! His father is still my father,” our grandfather, wore in all wars ... ".

Nikolai Sergeevich Volkonsky, the writer's grandfather, was a statesman, close to Empress Catherine II. But, faced with her favorite Potemkin, the proud prince paid with his court career and was exiled by the governor to Arkhangelsk. Having retired, he married Princess Ekaterina Dmitrievna Trubetskoy and settled in the Yasnaya Polyana estate. Ekaterina Dmitrievna died early, leaving him only daughter Mary. With his beloved daughter and her French companion, the disgraced prince lived in Yasnaya Polyana until 1821 and was buried in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. The peasants and servants respected their important and sensible master, who cared about their welfare. He built a rich manor house on the estate, laid out a park, dug a large pond in Yasnaya Polyana.

In 1822, the orphaned Yasnaya Polyana came to life, settled in it new owner Nikolai Ilyich Tolstoy. Family life his initially developed happily. Of medium height, lively, with a friendly face and always sad eyes, N.I. litigation inherited from a disorderly father. Children went: in 1823, the first-born Nikolai, then Sergei (1826), Dmitry (1827), Leo and, finally, the long-awaited daughter Maria (1830). However, her birth turned into an inconsolable grief for N.I.Tolstoy: during childbirth, Maria Nikolaevna died, and the Tolstoy family was orphaned.

Levushka was not even two years old then, when he lost his mother, but her spiritual appearance, according to the stories of close people, Tolstoy carefully preserved all his life. "She seemed to me to be such a tall, pure, spiritual being that often ... I prayed to her soul, asking her to help me, and this prayer has always helped a lot." Tolstoy's beloved brother Nikolenka was very similar to his mother: "indifference to the judgments of other people and modesty, reaching the point that they tried to hide the mental, educational and moral advantages they had over other people. They seemed to be ashamed of these advantages." And one more amazing feature attracted Tolstoy in these dear creatures - they never condemned anyone. Once, in the "Lives of the Saints" by Demetrius of Rostov, Tolstoy read a story about a monk who had many shortcomings, but after his death ended up among the saints. He deserved this by the fact that in his entire life he never condemned anyone. The servants recalled that when faced with injustice, Maria Nikolaevna used to "blush all over, even cry, but never say a rude word."

The mother was replaced by an extraordinary woman for the children, aunt Tatyana Aleksandrovna Ergolskaya, who was a person of a decisive and selfless character. She, according to L. Tolstoy, still loved her father, "but did not marry him because she did not want to spoil her pure, poetic relationship with him and with us." Tatyana Alexandrovna had the greatest influence on the life of L. Tolstoy: “This influence was, firstly, in the fact that even in childhood she taught me the spiritual enjoyment of love. She did not teach me this with words, but with her whole being infected me with love. I saw, felt how good it was for her to love, and understood the happiness of love. "

Until the age of five, L.N. Tolstoy was brought up with girls - his sister Masha and adopted daughter Tolstoy Dunechkoy. The children had a favorite game of "cutie". The impressionable and sensitive Leva-reva was almost always the "cutie" who played the role of the child. The girls caressed him, treated him, put him to bed, and he obeyed meekly. When the boy was five years old, he was transferred to the nursery, to the brothers.

As a child, Tolstoy was surrounded by a warm, family atmosphere. Here they valued family feelings and willingly gave shelter to loved ones. In the Tolstoy family lived, for example, the sister of her father, Alexandra Ilinichna, who experienced a difficult drama in her youth: her husband went crazy. She was, according to Tolstoy's recollections, "a truly religious woman." "Her favorite activities" are "reading the lives of the saints, talking with pilgrims, holy fools, monks and nuns, some of whom always lived in our house, and some only visited my aunt." Alexandra Ilyinichna "lived a truly Christian life, trying not only to avoid all luxury and services, but trying, as much as possible, to serve others. She never had money, because she gave out to those who asked for everything she had."