# War and Peace - what is it good for? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 29, 2008, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004 "2008-05-29T13:16:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/1 "2008-05-29T13:16:31Z")
I’m currently about 300 pages into the 1400 pages of W&P, and I must admit I am underwhelmed. I read it once before, in law school, one semester when I was so pissed at the boring reading I was assigned for class that I also read Anna Karenina. My recollection was that I enjoyed both books (tho preferred AK to W&P), and concluded I preferred Tolstoy to Dostoevsky. I’m reading the relatively recent translation by Anthony Briggs. I’m always very leery of translated works, as I don’t know if I am liking/disliking the author or the translator. W&P seems to me very effective and interesting in presenting the culture and society of early 19th century Russia. But as a novel, I’m not enjoying it so much. Seems very disjointed. Scenes are built up, and then resolved almost as an afterthought. Many of the characters’ thought-processes are so foreign to me or flat-out unbelievable as to make them difficult to empathize with. Also, as might be expected of any novel running 1400 pages, I think old Leo might have benefitted from a good editor. I’m enjoying it sufficiently that I expect to finish it, but I’m finding myself moving it down several notches in my list of “great books” that I’ve read. Would appreciate any thoughts you might have as I make my way through the remaining 1000+ pages. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/2 "2008-05-29T13:39:53Z")
I liked it when I read it. You see how different people react to a life-shattering event like the Napoleonic invasion of Russia, with sidelights on Russian culture, and Freemasonry, and numerology. As I’ve mentioned before, you get to see Tolstory’s "Calculuys of Human Differentials: view of history, and why he thinks individuals can’t really shape it, including Napoleon. Every scene with Napoleon is drawn from a report and is accurate in dpicting the words and actions, but Tolstoy interprets each of those scenes differently than they are usually interpreted. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/3 "2008-05-29T14:09:45Z")
It makes a hell of a doorstop. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/4 "2008-05-29T14:23:19Z")
I think I got about fifty pages in before I gave up. You’re braver than I am. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/5 "2008-05-29T14:44:23Z")
see this thread: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=462153&highlight=tolstoy](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=462153&highlight=tolstoy) ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/6 "2008-05-29T14:50:14Z")
For my money, W&P doesn’t really get going until the Napoleonic invasion. But, the last time we discussed it, some people felt just the opposite. I want to read it again some day, but know that I won’t have time until I retire. You’re right to be concerned about translation. The only solution is to test-drive a few different versions before you start, reading the same two or three scenes in each and seeing which one you like better. It can make a big difference. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/7 "2008-05-29T14:53:33Z")
Absolutely nothing. Say it again. ---
**Author:** ![WormTheRed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/bbe5ce/32.png) [@WormTheRed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WormTheRed)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/8 "2008-05-29T15:02:16Z")
My main problem was with recognizing all the characters. It´s been awhile since I read (half of) it but IIRC close to half the people (of both sexes) were named Sasha - which really confused me! ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/9 "2008-05-29T15:16:03Z")
Thanks to the link to the earlier thread. I’m surprised I did not recall it, as it was so recent. At the very least, I think the book could use an index to the first page where each character is introduced. After 200 pages or so I’m pretty clear on the main 10-20 or so, but there are countless others - especially soldiers - whom I’m not even making any effort to keep straight. I’m enjoying the book and expect to finish it. I findit quite readable if for no other reason that the chapters are short. If I don’t particularly like one chapter or storyline, there is another one coming up soon. But I just found myself questioning whether it was a “masterpiece.” ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/10 "2008-05-29T15:17:05Z")
[QUOTE=JThunder] Absolutely nothing. Say it again. [/QUOTE] Bozhe moi, y’all! ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/11 "2008-05-29T15:38:50Z")
[QUOTE=WormTheRed] My main problem was with recognizing all the characters. It´s been awhile since I read (half of) it but IIRC close to half the people (of both sexes) were named Sasha - which really confused me! [/QUOTE] Plus there are all of those patronymics and derivatives. You have to remember that Larisa Petrovna and Larisa and Lari and Laryushka are all the same person, and after a while all those “ushka”-s sound alike. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/12 "2008-05-29T15:48:41Z")
I was assigned to read this in the 8th grade. I didn’t quite finish it. However you can hollow it out and keep a backup VW Bug in there. ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/13 "2008-05-29T16:03:25Z")
I liked it quite a bit when I read it back in college. It wasn’t assigned reading, which helped; and I’d just seen the Russian adaptation, so I already knew what was going on. I tried reading it again last year, but got bogged down with the battle descriptions and gave up. Still, I liked the characters and their interactions, so maybe I’ll have another go someday. I read _Les Miserables_ a couple of month ago. In the world of very thick books involving Napoleon, I’d say Tolstoy gets from point A to point B a lot quicker than Hugo. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/14 "2008-05-29T16:11:32Z")
[QUOTE=kelly5078] I read _Les Miserables_ a couple of month ago. In the world of very thick books involving Napoleon, I’d say Tolstoy gets from point A to point B a lot quicker than Hugo. [/QUOTE] Amen! Hugo takes 30 pages to get from Point A to Point A[sub]1[/sub], let alone Point B. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/15 "2008-05-29T16:45:20Z")
[QUOTE=kelly5078] I read _Les Miserables_ a couple of month ago. In the world of very thick books involving Napoleon, I’d say Tolstoy gets from point A to point B a lot quicker than Hugo. [/QUOTE] But . . . but . . . how could we understand the Battle of Waterloo without a fifteen-page digression on early Nineteenth Century French convents? 😕😃 ---
**Author:** ![WormTheRed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/bbe5ce/32.png) [@WormTheRed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WormTheRed)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/16 "2008-05-29T18:09:21Z")
[QUOTE=Freddy the Pig] Plus there are all of those patronymics and derivatives. You have to remember that Larisa Petrovna and Larisa and Lari and Laryushka are all the same person, and after a while all those “ushka”-s sound alike. [/QUOTE] Another part of my problem… why can’t everybody just be named Tom, Dick or Sally 😉 And ftr - I actually do love books and reading 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/17 "2008-05-29T21:34:41Z")
A good translation includes a character list. “Get yer program here! Ya can’t follow the players without a program!” ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2008, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-and-peace-what-is-it-good-for/451004/18 "2008-05-29T22:15:29Z")
[QUOTE=WormTheRed] My main problem was with recognizing all the characters. It´s been awhile since I read (half of) it but IIRC close to half the people (of both sexes) were named Sasha - which really confused me! [/QUOTE] I remember keeping index cards to get through it. And despite this, I remember thinking it was a good book. (But its been twenty years).