Why are Prince Andrew and Pierre friends quotes. Essay by Tolstoy L.N.

Introduction

After reading Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy’s famous novel “War and Peace,” I experienced many life events and experienced different feelings along with his characters. Some surprised me, some disappointed me, some became a good moral example, and some turned out to be not even worthy of attention. Of course, my favorite hero appeared, whom I respect, love, and understand. In the novel “War and Peace” I have several of them, because Tolstoy showed several human destinies at once that deserve special attention. But the author himself also has sympathies. It seems to me that Tolstoy’s favorite hero in the novel “War and Peace” is Pierre Bezukhov. The lines in which the writer describes Pierre (his external characteristics, mental breakdown, moral quest for the right path, happiness, love) are filled with a certain feeling of kindness and respect for his hero.

Pierre Bezukhov and his path

The first time we meet Pierre is in the living room of Anna Pavlovna Scherer. Tolstoy describes his appearance in sufficient detail: “Pierre was clumsy. Fat, taller than usual, wide, with huge red hands... he was absent-minded.”

He makes no impression on those around him, only Anna Pavlovna worries that Pierre will “disgrace” her salon. The only person who was truly happy about Bezukhov was Prince Andrei Bolkonsky. At the very beginning of the novel, Pierre was convinced that Napoleon was right, but after a while he pursued the idea of killing Bonaparte in order to free all of Russia.

His passion for Helen Kuragina brought him only disappointment. Pierre realized that external beauty can coexist with internal ugliness. A wild life, idle evenings with the Kuragins and social intrigues do not bring satisfaction to Pierre, and he leaves this “depraved” road.

Freemasonry did not open the right path for him. Hopes for “eternal ideals” were not justified, and Pierre became disillusioned with “brotherhood.” Helping one's neighbor and generosity of soul were Pierre's true qualities, and Freemasonry already ran counter to his ideals.

The collapse of his ideals changed Pierre beyond recognition. From a weak, soft “fat man” he turned into a strong man who found his true happiness and dissolved in it. Having overcome fear (the episode of saving the girl), endured captivity (knowledge of the simple human joys of life), and destroyed previous desires (to kill Napoleon, save Europe), Pierre went through the difficult path of moral quest for the human meaning of life.

Acquaintance with Platon Karataev revealed to Pierre a certain philosophy of life. He experiences the world in different colors, understands that not everything is important and necessary. We see that Tolstoy is not indifferent to this hero, otherwise he would have “abandoned” him long ago in the middle of the journey. Pierre is a favorite character in the novel. After all, the writer believes that his Pierre Bezukhov will find what he is looking for, something bright, pure, devoted, eternal and good. The same as he was in his essence.

Pierre's friendship with Andrei Bolkonsky

Pierre considered Bolkonsky “a model of all perfections precisely because Prince Andrei united to the highest degree all those qualities that Pierre did not have and which can be most closely expressed by the concept of willpower.” The friendship of Bolkonsky and Bezukhov has been tested. Pierre was in love with Natasha Rostova at first sight. And Bolkonsky too. When Andrei proposed to Rostova, Pierre did not reveal his feelings. He was sincerely happy about his friend's happiness. Could Leo Tolstoy allow his beloved hero to be dishonest? Pierre showed nobility in his relations with Andrei Bolkonsky. His awareness of the relationship between Rostova and Kuragin did not allow him to betray his friend. He didn’t laugh at Natasha, much less Andrei. Although he could easily destroy their happiness. However, devotion to friendship and honesty in his heart did not allow Pierre to become a scoundrel.

Love for Natasha Rostova

Pierre Bezukhov's love is also not accidental. Natasha Rostova is one of Tolstoy’s favorite heroines. After a long search and moral tests, the writer rewarded his hero with real happiness. Having met Natasha at the ball, Pierre timidly invited her to dance. Natasha did not even suspect that in the heart of this “big fat man” a new feeling was arising, not yet recognized by him. Pierre Bezukhov has been waiting in the wings for a long time. But to get to him, he actually went through a difficult path.

Love for Natasha Rostova lived in his heart. Maybe it was she who led him to the right decision, showed him the truth, and determined his future life. Natasha loved Pierre Bezukhov very much, she devoted herself entirely to her family - her children and her husband: “the whole house was guided only by the imaginary commands of her husband, that is, by the desires of Pierre, which Natasha tried to guess.” Pierre deserved this happiness. L.N. Tolstoy tells us in the epilogue that, having lived in marriage with Rostova for seven years, Pierre was a self-sufficient person. He understood the meaning of life, knew that he was needed and had “a firm consciousness that he was not a bad person... he saw himself reflected in his wife.”

Conclusion

My essay on the topic “Tolstoy’s favorite hero in the novel “War and Peace” is written about Pierre Bezukhov. His life is real, unvarnished. Tolstoy showed us his life over several years, revealing the pages of his fate. Pierre is the writer’s favorite hero, this is clearly evident from the descriptions. But there are other heroes in the novel who undoubtedly deserve their attention. Perhaps they will become the subject of my next essays.

Work test

Can people who know each other always become friends? This is always a free choice, it does not concern parents and children, who, as we all know, are not chosen. Therefore, only someone who can always be completely trusted, respected and taken into account in everything can be a friend. But friends don't always think alike. It’s not for nothing that the proverb says that an enemy will assent, but a true friend will argue. The friendship between Prince Andrei and Pierre Bezukhov, who are completely different in character and have different personalities, is based on selflessness and sincerity. They are ready to support each other and help in difficult situations. They have many differences, but they have one thing in common - the desire for useful activities. Their common goal is a full and meaningful life. Just as two opposites attract, so these two people found each other in a whole crowd. They will meet at one of the high-society evenings, held among many guests, glitter of jewelry and expensive clothes, where false courtesy reigns, artificial smiles, and "decent" conversations are conducted. Two dissimilar people, among everyone else, will find each other, they will not part until the end of their days one of them.

The friendship of these two men, the sophisticated aristocrat Bolkonsky and the illegitimate son of a noble nobleman Pierre, seems strange. Bolkonsky belongs in this society, he is accepted by everyone in this society, with his impeccable manners. Education and flexible mind. And Pierre, having first appeared in this living room, without observing the rules of etiquette, begins an argument about Napoleon. Everything here is new to him and therefore interesting: both the conversations and the people who lead them. They were sincerely happy to meet. Having known each other since childhood, they did not meet each other for several years. They have something to talk about, even despite these years and the difference in their ages. What can unite them now, what makes them interesting to each other? Both young men are at a crossroads, their thoughts are not a career, but the meaning of life, and useful, worthy of a person, activity. They both know what they want and what they need to strive for. Neither naive Pierre nor Prince Andrey knows this. He himself does not like the life Bolkonsky leads, he considers it a failure and is constantly looking for a way out of this situation. He tries to influence Pierre, convince him that he can be useful in various fields, warns him about the bad influence of the company of Kuragin and Dolokhov.

These two friends talk not only about their personal problems; the name of Napoleon, which causes not only indignation, but also fear, was then on the lips of the entire court society. The rifles perceive him differently. Thus, Pierre, who ardently defends it, justifies his cruelty as a necessity for preserving the gains of the French Revolution. Prince Andrei is attracted to Bonaparte by his originality, as a great commander who, thanks to his talent, rose to the very pinnacle of glory.On many issues, friends do not agree with each other, but they retain the right to their own judgment and choice. Prince Bolkonsky, as the more experienced one, fears for his friend, for the negative and corrupting influence that the environment in which Pierre finds himself may have. For Bezukhov, his friend is an example of all perfections, but he does not listen to his advice, so he learns from his own mistakes. Fate will test friends more than once, but they never forgot about each other, no matter how difficult the situation they were in. Everyone struggles with themselves, they sometimes win it, sometimes they suffer defeat, but they still persist in it, never giving up. In the novel we see two different people who supported each other all the time, became better people, in some cases fairer and purer in soul. One can only dream of such friendship and mutual assistance these days.

Why are Pierre Bezukhov and Andrei Bolkonsky among L. Tolstoy’s favorite heroes? After all, the natures of these characters are completely different. Already in the salon of A.P. Andrey Sherer resembles a bored Onegin, who was disgusted by secular drawing rooms. If Pierre, out of naivety, reveres the salon guests, then Bolkonsky, having extensive life experience, despises those gathered. Andrei differs from Pierre in his sober, statesmanlike mind, practical tenacity, ability to complete the intended task, restraint, self-discipline and composure. And most importantly - by willpower and
strength of character. However, it would be wrong to say that these heroes have nothing in common, because they have a lot in common. They are acutely aware of falsehood and vulgarity, they are highly educated, intelligent, independent in their judgments and generally close in spirit.\"Opposites complement each other,\" the ancients said. And with that I
I completely agree. Pierre and Andrey are interested in being together. Andrey can only be frank with Pierre. He pours out his soul and trusts only him. And Pierre is only able to trust Andrei, whom he respects infinitely. But these heroes think differently, their worldviews are not at all similar. If Andrei is a rationalist, then his reason is
prevails over feelings, then Bezukhov is a spontaneous nature, capable of acutely feeling and experiencing.
Pierre is characterized by deep thoughts and doubts in search of the meaning of life. His life path is complex and tortuous.
At first, under the influence of youth and the environment, he makes many mistakes: he leads the reckless life of a social reveler and slacker, he allows Prince Kuragin to rob himself and marry the frivolous beauty Helen. Pierre fights in a duel with Dolokhov, breaks up with his wife, and disappoints in life. He is hated by everyone
a recognized lie of secular society, and he understands the need for struggle. Andrei and Pierre are active people, they are constantly looking for the meaning of life. Due to the polarity of their characters and outlooks on life, these heroes go through different life paths. The paths of their spiritual quest are also different. But it should be noted that some events in their
lives are identical, the difference lies only in the order of their placement in the time in which they occur. While Andrei is looking for Napoleonic glory in the war, the future Count Bezukhov, not knowing where to put his energy, amuses himself in the company of Dolokhov and Kuragin, spending time in revelry and entertainment. At this time, Bolkonsky is going through big changes in his life. Disappointed in Napoleon, Prince Andrei, shocked by the death of his wife, falls into melancholy, deciding that he should live only for himself and his family; world fame no longer interests him. Tolstoy says that the desire for fame is the same love for people. At this time, Pierre's position in the world completely changed. Having received wealth and title, he gains the favor and respect of the world.
Intoxicated with triumph, he marries the most beautiful and stupid woman in the world - Helen Kuragina. Later he will tell her: “Where you are, there is depravity and evil.” At one time, Andrei also married unsuccessfully. Let us remember why he was in such a hurry to go to war. Is it only because of the disgusting light? No. He was unhappy in his family life. The prince quickly became tired of his wife's "rare external charm" because he felt her inner emptiness. Like Andrei, Pierre quickly realized his mistake, but in this case no one was hurt except Dolokhov, whom Pierre wounded in a duel. Realizing all the depravity and meaninglessness of his past life, Pierre goes into Freemasonry with a strong desire for spiritual rebirth. It seems to him that he has found his meaning in life. And there is a fair amount of truth in this. Pierre craves activity and decides to ease the lot of the serfs. Naively thinking that he helped them, Pierre feels happy because he has fulfilled his duty. He says: “When I live, or at least try to live for others, I begin to understand the happiness of life.” This conclusion will become the main one for him throughout his life, although he will be disappointed in both Freemasonry and his economic activities. Pierre helped his friend Andrei to be reborn and supported him in difficult times. Under the influence of Pierre and Natasha, Prince Andrei returned to life. His active nature needed scope, and Bolkonsky enthusiastically took part in the work of Speransky’s commission. Later, realizing that she is useless for the people, Prince Andrei will become disillusioned with government activities, like Pierre with Freemasonry.
Love for Natasha will save Andrei from a new attack of hypochondria, especially since before that he did not know true love. But Andrei’s happiness with Natasha was short-lived. After breaking up with her, the prince was finally convinced of the impossibility of personal well-being, and this feeling pushed Andrei to go to the front. Exactly there
Bolkonsky finally understands the purpose of man on earth. He realizes that he must live by helping and sympathizing with people, bringing them maximum benefit. It is a pity that Prince Andrei never had time to put this idea into practice: death crosses out all his plans... But his baton is picked up by Pierre, who survived and
enriched your life experience. In contact with the people, Pierre realizes himself as part of this people, part of its spiritual strength. This is what makes him similar to ordinary people. Platon Karataev taught Pierre to appreciate life in all its manifestations, to love people as himself. The life paths of Pierre Bezukhov and Andrei Bolkonsky are typical of the best part of the noble youth of that time. It was from people like Pierre, in my opinion, that the Decembrist movement was made up. These people remained faithful to their homeland. Once in his youth, L. Tolstoy took an oath; \"To live honestly, you have to rush, get confused, fight,\" make mistakes, start and give up again, and start again, and give up again, and always struggle and lose. And calmness is spiritual vulgarity." It seems to me that L.’s favorite heroes.
Tolstoy lived their lives exactly as the author dreamed of it. They remained true to themselves and their conscience to the end. And let time pass, one generation replaces another, but no matter what, the works of L. Tolstoy will always be remembered, because they reveal questions of morality, they contain answers to many questions that have eternally worried people. Tolstoy can truly be called our teacher.

He always sought with all the strength of his soul

one thing: to be quite good.

Pierre about Prince Andrei

You are special to me because you

one living person among all of us

Andrey about Pierre

L. N. Tolstoy. War and Peace

Why do people become friends? If parents, children, and relatives are not chosen, then everyone is free to choose friends. Therefore, a friend is a person whom we completely trust, whom we respect, and whose opinion we take into account. But this does not mean that friends should think alike. A popular proverb says: “An enemy agrees, but a friend argues.” Sincerity and selflessness, mutual understanding and willingness to support and help - this is the basis of true friendship, such as the friendship of Andrei Bolkonsky and Pierre Bezukhov, different in character, with different personalities, but with a common desire for a meaningful, fulfilling life, for useful activity.

“The soul must work,” these words, spoken a century after the creation of “War and Peace,” could become the motto of their life, their friendship. The reader's attention is drawn to Prince Andrei and Pierre from the first pages of the novel. Let's imagine a high-society evening in Anna Pavlovna Scherer's salon. Famous guests, glitter of outfits and jewelry, false pleasantries, artificial smiles, “decent” conversations. Two people, so different from everyone else, found each other in the crowd of guests so as not to be separated until the end of the life of one of them.

How different they are: the sophisticated aristocrat Prince Bolkonsky, and the illegitimate son of the noble Catherine’s nobleman Count Bezukhov Pierre. Prince Andrey belongs here. He is accepted in society, smart, educated, his manners are impeccable. And Pierre’s appearance frightens Anna Pavlovna. Tolstoy explains that her fear “could only relate to that intelligent and at the same time timid, observant and natural look that distinguished him from everyone in this living room.” Andrei Bolkonsky is frankly bored at this evening, he is tired of everything and everyone, but Pierre is not bored: he is interested in people and their conversations. Not observing etiquette, he “breaks into” disputes about Napoleon, disrupting the flow of a “decent conversational machine.” They were delighted to meet. Having known each other since childhood, the young people have not seen each other for a long time. They have something to tell each other, despite the age difference.

What unites them now, why are they interesting to each other? Both are at a crossroads. Both think not about a career, but about the meaning of life, about useful, worthy human activity. They don’t yet know what they want, what they need to strive for, not only the naive Pierre, but also Prince Andrei does not understand this, but Bolkonsky knows for sure that the life he leads is not according to him. He believes that life has failed, he rushes about, looking for a way out. However, this does not stop him from trying to influence Pierre, convincing him that he “will be good” in any field, but he must stay away from the company of Dolokhov and Anatoly Kuragin. They are concerned not only with personal problems. The name of Napoleon is on everyone's lips. It causes fear and indignation in court society. Pierre and Prince Andrei perceive him differently. Pierre ardently defends Napoleon, justifying his cruelty by the need to preserve the gains of the revolution; Prince Andrei is attracted to Bonaparte by the eccentricity of the commander, whose talent raised him to the pinnacle of glory.

While largely disagreeing with each other, they recognize the right of everyone to make their own judgments and make their own choices. But at the same time, the more experienced Bolkonsky is afraid (and, unfortunately, he is right!) of the corrupting influence on Pierre of the environment in which he found himself. And Pierre, considering Prince Andrei a model of all perfections, still does not heed his advice and is forced to learn from his own mistakes.

They still have a lot to do. Both cannot help but think, both struggle with themselves, often suffer defeats in this struggle, but do not give up, but continue to “fight, get confused, make mistakes, start and quit...” (L.N. Tolstoy). And this, according to Tolstoy, the main thing is not to be satisfied with yourself, to judge and punish yourself, to overcome yourself again and again. No matter how fate tests Prince Andrei and Pierre, they do not forget about each other.

Pierre, who has experienced a lot and has grown up, visits the widowed Prince Andrei in Bogucharovo after a trip to his estates. He is active, full of life, hopes, aspirations. Having become a Freemason, he became interested in the idea of internal purification, believed in the possibility of the brotherhood of man, and did, as it seemed to him, a lot to alleviate the situation of the peasants. And Prince Andrei, who survived his “Austerlitz” and lost faith in life, is depressed and gloomy. Bezukhov was struck by the change in him: “... the words were kind, a smile was on the lips and face of Prince Andrei, but his gaze was extinguished, dead.”

I think it is no coincidence that the writer brings his heroes together at this very moment, when one of them, trying to live for others, “understood all the happiness of life,” and the other, having lost his wife, parted with the dream of fame, decided to live only for himself and his loved ones , "avoiding only two evils - remorse and illness." If they are connected by true friendship, this meeting is necessary for both. Pierre is inspired, he shares his new thoughts with Prince Andrei, but Bolkonsky listens to him incredulously and gloomily, does not want to talk about himself, does not even hide the fact that he is not interested in everything that Pierre is talking about, but does not give up the argument. Bezukhov proclaims that it is necessary to do good to people, and Prince Andrei believes that it is enough not to harm anyone. It seems that Pierre is right in this dispute, but in reality everything is more complicated. Prince Andrei, who had that “practical tenacity” that Pierre did not have, manages to do much of what he dreams of and what his friend cannot achieve: he is older, more experienced, knows life and people better.

The dispute, at first glance, did not change anything. However, the meeting with Pierre made a strong impression on Prince Andrei; it “awakened something that had long fallen asleep, something better that was in him.” Apparently, Bezukhov’s “golden heart” did not let him down when he was not afraid to hurt his friend, to offend the prince’s grief, convincing him that life goes on, that much is still ahead. He helped Prince Andrei take the first step towards internal rebirth, towards a new life, towards love.

It seems to me that, had it not been for Bogucharov’s meeting, Bolkonsky would not have noticed either the poetic moonlit night in Otradnoye, or the lovely girl who would soon enter his life and change it, and the old oak tree would not have helped him make such an important conclusion: “No, life is not over at thirty-one... It is necessary for everyone to know me, so that my life does not go on for me alone... So that it is reflected on everyone and so that they all live with me." In two months he will leave for St. Petersburg to be useful to people, and Pierre, influenced by a conversation with Bolkonsky, looking more closely at the Masonic brothers, realized that behind their correct words about the brotherhood of man lies their own goal - “the uniforms and crosses that they sought in life". This, in fact, began his break with Freemasonry.

Both friends still have many hopes, disappointments, downs, and ups ahead. But one thing, the main thing that unites them, both of them will retain - the constant desire to seek truth, goodness and justice. And how Pierre rejoices when he learns that Prince Andrei fell in love with Natasha Rostova, how wonderful and generous he is when he hides his feelings for her, moreover, he persuades his friend to forgive the girl for her infatuation with Anatoly Kuragin. Having failed to achieve this, Pierre painfully experiences their breakup, he hurts for both, he fights for their love, without thinking about himself. Before the events of 1812, Tolstoy again leads his friends to a deep crisis: Prince Andrei became disillusioned with government activities, his hope for personal happiness collapsed, his faith in people was trampled; Pierre broke with Freemasonry and unrequitedly loves Natasha. How difficult it is for both of them, and how they need each other! The events of 1812 are a severe test for both, and both pass it with honor, finding their place in the fight against the invaders. Before the Battle of Borodino, Pierre had to see Prince Andrei, because only he alone could explain to him everything that was happening. And so they meet. Pierre's expectations come true: Bolkonsky explains to him the situation in the army. Now Bezukhov understood that “hidden warmth... of patriotism” that was flaring up before his eyes. And for Prince Andrey, the conversation with Pierre is very important: expressing his thoughts to a friend, he felt that he might not return from this field, and, probably, he felt sorry for his life, his loved ones, his friendship with this huge, absurd, beautiful Pierre, but Andrei Bolkonsky - the true son of his father - restrains himself and does not betray the excitement that has gripped him.

They won't have to talk heart to heart anymore. A wonderful friendship was cut short by an enemy grenade. Although no, she didn’t cut it off. The deceased friend will forever remain next to Pierre as his most precious memory, as the most sacred thing that he had in his life. He still mentally consults with Prince Andrei and, making the main decision in his life - to actively fight evil, he is sure that Prince Andrei would be on his side. Pierre proudly speaks about this to Nikolenka Bolkonsky, the fifteen-year-old son of Prince Andrei, because he wants to see in the boy the heir to the thoughts and feelings of a person who has not died for him and will never die. What united two wonderful people: the constant work of the soul, the tireless search for truth, the desire to always be pure before their conscience, to benefit people - is immortal. There is something in human feelings that is always modern. The pages of War and Peace, dedicated to the friendship of such different and equally wonderful people as Andrei Bolkonsky and Pierre Bezukhov, are unforgettable. After all, before our eyes, these people, supporting each other, become better, cleaner, fairer. Everyone dreams of such friends and such friendship.

As you know, initially L.N. Tolstoy conceived a novel about a Decembrist who returns from hard labor to post-reform Russia. But the writer decided to talk about the Decembrist uprising in order to identify the reasons for this event for the fate of the homeland. However, this event also required him to turn to the origins of Decembrism - the Patriotic War of 1812.

The writer himself said that it was impossible for him to talk about the time of Russian victories without turning to the era of “shame and defeat” - the war of 1805-1807. This is how the novel “War and Peace” appeared. As can be seen from this story, the novel initially had one hero - Pierre Bezukhov.

Images of Andrei Bolkonsky and Pierre Bezukhov in the novel “War and Peace”

The image of Andrei Bolkonsky appeared from the scene of the death of a young officer on the Austrelitz field. So, in “War and Peace” there are two positive characters who are close to the author and in many ways interpret the events the way the author interpreted them.

Prince Andrei appears on the pages of the novel as an already established person: he is an officer, leads a social life, is married, but

“the life he leads is not according to him.”

This explains the reason for his desire to go to war. We know almost nothing about the hero’s childhood, but knowing his father, the old Prince Bolkonsky, we can say with confidence that Prince Andrei’s upbringing was harsh; he most likely did not know his mother’s caresses. But at the same time, from his father he inherited a great sense of duty, patriotism, loyalty to his word, aversion to falsehood and lies.

We also know little about Pierre’s childhood. His fate is influenced by the fact that he is the illegitimate son of a major Catherine nobleman. Pierre returns from abroad, where he was raised. His foreign upbringing instilled in him a humanistic approach to the problems of humanity. We meet the characters at Anna Pavlovna Sherer's evening. Both Pierre and Andrey stand out from everyone present at the evening:

Andrey - because he is frankly bored, he is only fulfilling the duty of a socialite,
and Pierre - by the fact that he naively violates the established order with sincerity and naturalness. Pierre doesn't know life well and doesn't understand people well.

The world of Tolstoy's heroes is the world of the patriarchal nobility. The writer is trying to understand the position of the best representatives of the noble intelligentsia.

Both Pierre and Andrey are characterized by:

painful thoughts about the purpose of life,
thoughts about the fate of the homeland,
nobility, sincerity,
awareness of the unity of one’s destiny and the destiny of the people and homeland.

The writer’s attitude to the war is expressed by Prince Andrei in a conversation with Pierre before the Battle of Borodino:

“War is the most disgusting thing in the world.”

Tolstoy leads each of the heroes on a painful path of searching for the truth. It is fundamentally important that the writer is not afraid to show the mistakes and failures of the characters.

The life path of Prince Andrei

aversion to social life (“... this life is not for me”, author’s description: “He read everything, knew everything, had an idea about everything”)

war of 1805-1807, dreams of glory (“I want fame, I want to be known to people, I want to be loved by them”)

Austerlitz's sky (“Yes! Everything is empty, everything is deception, except this endless sky...”)

life in the Bald Mountains, raising a son (Live in such a way as not to do harm to others, live for yourself)

rebirth to life: conversation with Pierre on the ferry, night in Otradnoye, oak tree ("Everyone must know me, so that my life does not go on for me alone...")

rapprochement and breakup with Speransky - love for Natasha and breakup with her - (“I can’t forgive”)

Patriotic War of 1812, unity with the people, injury, search for eternity, forgiveness of enemies (Kuragina) - love for (“I love you more, better than before”) - discovery of eternity.

The most important thing that the reader takes away from the fate of Andrei Bolkonsky is that knowledge of the truth requires a person to renounce individualism and selfishness, while the truth, according to Tolstoy, is forgiveness and reconciliation with life.

The paths of Andrei and Pierre constantly intersect, but it is interesting that the heroes are almost never at the same point: Pierre’s periods of rise almost always coincide with periods of decline for Prince Andrei.

The path of spiritual quest of Pierre Bezukhov

Let's look at the path of spiritual quest of Pierre Bezukhov. Marriage to Helen is Pierre's first life test. Here, not only ignorance of life and an inability to withstand pressure was revealed, but also an inner feeling that something unnatural had happened. The duel with Dolokhov is a turning point in Pierre’s life: he, in turn, understands that the life he leads is not for him

("... the main screw on which his whole life was held was turned")

But Pierre’s hero sees the reason for what happened first of all. He takes the blame upon himself. At this moment, his meeting with the freemason Osip Alekseevich Bazdeev takes place. Bezukhov begins to see the meaning of life in the need to do good to people. But Pierre does not yet know life, which is why it is so easy to deceive him, just as his clerks and managers on his estates deceive him. He still cannot distinguish truth from lies. Disappointment in Freemasonry comes to the hero when he encounters representatives of high society in the Masonic lodge and understands that for them Freemasonry is only an opportunity to make a career and gain benefits. It is noteworthy that love for Natasha comes to Pierre when Natasha made a terrible mistake by meeting Anatole Kuragin. Love makes a person better, cleaner.

Pierre's love for Natasha, at first hopeless, revives the hero to search for the truth. The Battle of Borodino turns his life upside down, like the lives of many Russian people. Bezukhov wants to be a simple soldier,

“throw off all this unnecessary, devilish, all the burden of this external world.”

A naive desire to kill Napoleon, sacrifice himself, saving a girl, captivity, execution, loss of faith in life, meeting with Platon Karataev - the stages of Pierre’s spiritual formation in the novel “War and Peace” are rapidly changing. The hero learns from Plato the ability to live in any circumstances, to accept life, to feel like a part of a huge world

(“And all this is mine, and all this is in me, and all this is me!”).

It is noteworthy that after captivity, Pierre acquired the ability to communicate with people and understand them, it is no longer possible to deceive him, he has an internal understanding of good and bad. The meeting with Natasha, the mutual feeling of love revives Bezukhov and gives him happiness. In the epilogue of the novel, Pierre is passionate about the ideas of radical changes in the social structure of Russia - he is a future Decembrist.

Revealing the characters of Pierre and Andrei in the novel

It should be especially noted that the images of Pierre and Andrey do not duplicate each other: before us are two different people, two different characters. The appearance in the novel of not the only positive hero gives Tolstoy the opportunity to show that the search for the meaning of life, spiritual quests were characteristic of the best nobles of Russia.

The character of Tolstoy's heroes is revealed:

in a clash with other characters (explanation scene between Pierre and Hélène),
in the monologues of the heroes (the reflections of Prince Andrei on the road to Otradnoye),
the psychological state of the hero (“No matter what he started to think about, he returned to the same questions that he could not resolve and could not stop asking himself” - about Pierre),
on the spiritual and mental state of the hero (the sky of Austerlitz, the oak tree on the road to Otradnoye).

The whole life of the writer Tolstoy was aimed at comprehending the Truth. These are his favorite heroes - Pierre and Andrey, who seem to set the reader a high standard for comprehending the meaning of life, make them painfully experience ups and downs, and comprehend life and themselves.

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