War Novels: Compare and Contrast between Leo Tolstoy' War and Peace' & Ernest Hemingway’s ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’
Introduction:-
"Ernest Hemingway":-
Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, journalist, and sportsman. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his adventurous lifestyle and his public image brought him admiration from later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the mid-1950s, and he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954. He published seven novels, six short-story collections, and two nonfiction works. Three of his novels, four short-story collections, and three nonfiction works were published posthumously. Many of his works are considered classics of American literature.More information.
"For Whom the Bell Tolls":
For Whom the Bell Tolls is a novel by Ernest Hemingway published in 1940. It tells the story of Robert Jordan, a young American volunteer attached to a Republican guerrila unit during the Spanish Civil War. As a dynamiter, he is assigned to blow up a bridge during an attack on the city of Segovia.
Robert Jordan – American university instructor of the Spanish language and a specialist in demolitions and explosives.More information.
" Leo Tolstoy":-
Leo Tolstoy, was a Russian writer who is regarded as one of the greatest authors of all time.He received nominations for the Nobel Prize in Literature every year from 1902 to 1906 and for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1901, 1902, and 1909. That he never won is a major controversy.More information.
"War and Peace" Novel by Leo Tolstoy :-
War and Peace (pre-reform Russian:post-reform Russian:romanized: Voyna i mir) is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published serially, then published in its entirety in 1869. It is regarded as one of Tolstoy's finest literary achievements and remains an internationally praised classic of world literature.
To conclude, it can be said that the selection of the third person narrative is very well suited as the narrator is free to move from one character to other and to dig up the monologues of each of them. In its use of the narrative perspective ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ is a competent novel, a technique well chosen in the light of its theme, attentively applied to the demands of realism to create powerful artistic illusion which is a landmark in the twentieth century fiction.More information.
Narrative technique:
"ForWhom the Bell Tolls" :-
To enhance thematic focus Hemingway’s narrative style employs flashbacks and flash forwards. For him point of view use important hence he uses the narrative through an omniscient view that incessantly goes back and forth between the characters. For Hemingway, point of view is important. In this way, Hemingway shows the effect of the war on the men and women involved. In the course of blowing up the bridge, each character tells his or her story. Maria describes her parents’ murder and her rape; Pilar tells the most compelling story of Finito’s fear in bullfighting and of Pablo and his men, the way they beat the Fascists to death in a drunken rage; Jordan shares what he learned about the true politics of war at Gaylord’s in Madrid; also the stories of the gypsy and Anselmo. These stories of their struggle make their mission more acute in the historical context. Michael Reynolds says about ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ that:
“Without drawing undue attention to his artistry, Hemingway has written a collection of short stories embedded in a framing novel.”
The most vital contribution in Hemingway’s narrative style is perhaps his dialogue wherein the voice of the author is absolutely minimum.
"War and Peace":-
To provide the vast material of War and Peace with some semblance of unity, the author must make his transitions between ideas or between settings intelligible to enable the reader to keep up with the movement of the novel. Tolstoy smoothly introduces us to the three settings wherein we first meet the major and minor characters as he takes us from one party in Petersburg to another in Moscow, and thence to a family reunion at Bleak Hills. From the general war scene at Austerlitz in Book III, Tolstoy conveys us, in Book IV, to a scene of violence in a duel between Pierre and Dolohov. This marks the transition between the"outer" state of war and the inner turmoil within Pierre. The radiant intermezzo of Book VII shows us the end of youth for the Rostovs and prepares us for Natasha's sad moment of maturation in Book VIII. Within this movement, Pierre appears as the transition figure between the personal events of the novel and the gathering tide of war that engulfs the whole nation. He effects the bridge to convey us from Natasha's heartsick lethargy to Russia's major historic struggle. Many other significant and masterfully executed transitions can be cited besides these examples, but the careful reader can discern these for himself (or herself) as he or she studies the novel.
Characterization:-
"ForWhom the Bell Tolls"
➡️One of Hemingway's most distinct and celebrated characteristics is his deliberate writing style. Trained as a newspaper reporter, Hemingway used a journalistic style in his fiction, honed down to economical, abrupt descriptions of characters and events. His goal was to ensure that his words accurately described reality. The best example of his economical style comes at the end of the novel, as Jordan faces death. Hemingway's spare, direct description of Jordan's final moments as he considers suicide and then determines to survive long enough to help the group escape reflects Jordan's stoicism and his acceptance of the inevitable.
Robert Jordan
is an American Spanish professor who has volunteered to fight for the Loyalists in the Spanish Civil War. He is a demolition expert, and the plot revolves around his mission to destroy a bridge in Fascist territory.
General Golz
is the Russian general, practicing his war tactics as a Loyalist volunteer, who orders Jordan to blow the bridge.
Anselmo
is Jordan's elderly guide and trusted friend and a good man. He truly believes in the Loyalist cause, however, and thus is a brave and loyal soldier.
Pablo
is the leader of the guerillas who help Jordan blow the bridge. Once a ruthless leader, Pablo is now afflicted by cowardice and cynicism. As he no longer wants to fight for the Cause, he makes difficulties for Jordan and threatens the completion of his mission.
Pilar
is Pablo's "woman." She is as bold as she is broad, and she keeps the band united through her personal example of patriotism. She is also superstitious, and early in the novel foresees Jordan's death in his palm reading.
Maria
is the young girl the guerilla's resuced from a prison train. Her father was a loyalist mayor, and the battered Maria has been left an orphan. Maria and Jordan fall immediately in love.
El Sordo
is the deaf guerilla leader who Jordan and Pilar enlist in helping with the bride mission.
Rafael
is a member of Pablo's band. He is referred to frequently as "the gypsy" and characterized as lazy but well-intentioned.
Agustin
is another member of the band; he is a devoted soldier.
Fernando
is another guerilla, and Jordan trusts him the most next to Anselmo.
Andres
is the guerilla Jordan sends with the message to Golz to cancel the attack.
Kashkin
is Jordan's friend and a famous Russian journalist.
"War and Peace":-
So many characters in this novel so here some brif introduced of characters.....
Anna Pavlovna Scherer
An old maid of honor for the empress Maria Feodorovna, and one of Petersburg's most celebrated socialites. She loves to host soirées. Her friends sometimes call her Annette.
Prince Vassily Kuragin
The middle-aged patriarch of the Kuragin family. He is intelligent, calculating, and will go to great lengths to benefit his family. He is the father of Ippolit, Anatole, and Hélène.
Wintzingerode
General F.F. von Wintzingerode, a real general whom Alexander I sent to Prussia in 1805 in hopes of getting that country’s support in the war against Napoleon.
Baron Funke
The empress appoints him as first secretary in Vienna, much to Prince Vassily’s chagrin (Vassily wanted his son to receive this important position).
Ippolit Kuragin
Prince Vassily’s eldest son. Vassily calls him an “an untroublesome fool” (6) and he plays less of a role in the novel than his siblings do.
Anatole Kuragin
Prince Vassily's handsome, charismatic son. Despite his charm, he is a good-for-nothing whose main activity is seducing women.
Prince Nikolai Bolkonsky
An intelligent and wealthy middle-aged prince who lives in the country. He makes his family miserable with his stinginess and his eccentric ways. Father to Andrei Bolkonsky and Princess Marya.
Andrei Bolkonsky
One of the novel's primary characters, brother to Princess Marya and son to Prince Nikolai Bolkonsky. Also called Prince Andrei, Andryusha, or Andre. He is a fiercely moral and moody man who battles his desire to be part of the world and military against his desire to be left alone. Father to Nikolushka later, after his wife Lise dies.
Princess Marya Bolkonsky
Prince Nikolai Bolkonsky’s daughter, and brother to Prince Andrei. She is becoming an old maid and hopes to marry soon so that she can get away from her father. However, she is extremely pious and serious and enjoys an ascetic lifestyle.
Lise Meinen
Prince Andrei Bolkonsky’s wife. She is often referred to as Liza, “the young princess” or “the little princess.” She is not to be confused with Princess Marya Bolkonsky. Lise is pregnant at the start of the book and is known for her youthful prettiness.
Hélène Kuragin
Prince Vassily’s beautiful and delightful daughter. Sister to Anatole and Ippolit. She marries Pierre Bezukhov and becomes a famous socialite. Her Russian name is Elena Vassilievna, but she is almost always referred to as Hélène.
Mortemart
A French viscount who fled France during the Revolution and has lived in Russia ever since.
Princess Anna Mikhailovna Drubetskoy
An elderly, impoverished princess who constantly requests favors and money from the other characters in the novel. She does her best to provide for her son, Boris, despite her bad financial situation. She proves to be a skilled manipulator when she manages to ingratiate herself with both sides of the Bezukhov inheritance dispute.
General Mikhail Ilarionovich Kutuzov
A real, high-ranking general who became commander in chief of the Russian military when the war with France recommenced in 1812.
Dolokhov
An officer in the Semyonovsky regiment, known for his penchant for gambling and duels. He lives with Anatole Kuragin.
Boris Drubetskoy
Princess Drubetskoy's son, who is 18 at the start of the novel. He is friendly but a relentless social climber. A long-time friend of the Rostovs.
Natasha Rostov
The beautiful, enchanting youngest daughter of the Rostov family. She has several romances with men before finally marrying Pierre Bezukhov.
Nikolai Rostov
Also called Nikolushka, Nikolai is in his mid-twenties at the start of the novel. He is dreamy and romantic, but sometimes lacks common sense. He is particularly patriotic and much of the novel is concerned with his military career. Initially, he is romantically linked to his cousin Sonya Rostov but ends up marrying Princess Marya Bolkonsky instead. Brother to Natasha and Pytor.
Pyotr Rostov
Also called Petya and Petrusha. He is the rowdy youngest son of the Rostov family. He does not play much of a role in the novel until he volunteers for the military at fifteen and is tragically shot shortly thereafter.
Sonya Rostov
An impoverished, orphaned cousin who lives with the Rostov family. Natasha's closest confidante. She is a few years older than Natasha and has a self-sacrificing personality. She is in love with Nikolai Rostov and stands by him faithfully despite his bad treatment of her.
Vera Rostov
The eldest Rostov daughter. Despite being beautiful and well-mannered, she has a bitter personality.
Count Kirill Bezukhov
Pierre’s father, who is very sick at the beginning of the novel. His will is the subject of much speculation, since his massive estate might go to Pierre or to Prince Vassily.
Countess Rostov
The nervous, overly generous matriarch of the Rostov family.
Count Ilya Andreevich Rostov
The kind, elderly head of the Rostov family. He also serves as the marshal for the Bolkonskys'
Ryazan estates.
Mitenka
A nobleman’s son who was brought up by Count Rostov. Now an adult, he manages the Rostov family’s finances.
Marya Dmitrievna Akhrosimov
A noblewoman with a reputation for “directness of mind and frank simplicity of manners” (59).
Shinshin
Countess Rostov’s cousin, a witty middle-aged bachelor.
Lieutenant Berg
An officer in the Semyonovsky regiment who marries Vera Rostov.
Julie Karagin
A pretty young heiress who competes with Sonya for Nikolai Rostov’s attention. Despite their similar surnames, she is not related to Prince Vassily. After her brothers die, she inherits all of her parents' estate and marries Boris Drubetskoy.
Pierre Bezukhov
One of the few main characters not associated with one of the novel's major families. A young heir whose quest for spiritual fulfillment is one of the novel's major plots. Until he gets his inheritance, he fails to impress society because of his absent-mindedness, his overweight stature, and his social awkwardness. However, he is well-meaning and thoughtful and enjoys intelligent conversation.
Princess Katerina Semyonovna Mamontov
Also known as Catiche. She is Prince Vassily’s cousin and cares for Count Kirill Bezukhov during his long illness.
Mlle Bourienne
Princess Marya’s companion, and a terrible flirt. She was living as an orphan on the streets when she was adopted by Prince Nikolai as a child.
Lorrain
The French doctor who takes care of Count Kirill.
Mikhail Ivanovich
The Bolkonksy family’s architect. Despite Mikhail’s low rank, Prince Nikolai often invites him to dinner to demonstrate his opinion that all men are equal.
Timokhin
A captain in the Semyonovsky regiment.
Zherkov
A hussar cornet, one of Dolokhov's friends from St. Petersburg.
Kozlovsky
An adjutant in the Semyonovsky regiment.
General Mack
An Austrian general who works with General Kutuzov on strategy.
Prince Nesvitsky
Prince Andrei's roommate during the 1805 campaign.
Captain Denisov
The squadron commander of the Pavlogradsky hussar regiment. Also known as Vaska Denisov. He is good at his job but has a gambling problem. When he goes home with Nikolai Rostov on leave, he falls in love with Natasha Rostov.
Lieutenant Telyanin
A low-ranking officer in the Pavlogradsky regiment who steals some money from Captain Denisov.
Lavrushka
An orderly for Captain Denisov.
Karl Bogdanovich Schubert
The commander of the Pavlogradsky regiment. He is also called Bogdanych.
Staff Captain Kirsten
A high-ranking officer in the Pavlogradsky regiment.
Bilibin
The Russian ambassador to Austria and a friend of Prince Andrei. Andrei stays with him in
Brünn when he is acting as a courier in October, 1805.
Prince Bagration
A real prince who participates in the 1805 and 1812 campaigns.
Murat
A French general.
Captain Tushin
A staff captain in Prince Bagration’s detachment. He is inept and works with the artillery. He impresses Prince Andrei with his friendly manner.
Alpatych
The steward at Bald Hills (the Bolkonsky estate).
Weyrother
A German general who develops the the plan for the battle of Austerlitz.
Prince Dolgorukov
A military friend of Prince Andrei who helps get Boris Drubetskoy promoted in 1805.
Tsar Alexander I
The young emperor of Russia. Despite his youth, he has an invigorating effect when he reviews the troops. Tolstoy portrays him as deeply patriotic and sincere in his efforts to defend his people.
Count Tolstoy
A high-ranking Russian general. A real person with no relation to the author.
Langeron
An officer who vociferously objects to Weyrother’s plan for the battle of Austerlitz.
Feoktist
The English Club's head chef.
Marya Bogdanovna
The midwife who helps deliver Lise Meinen's son.
Iogel
A dancing instructor in Moscow who throws annual balls for his current and former students.
Osip Alexeevich Bazdeev
An elderly Freemason who inspires Pierre after they meet by chance at a posting house.
Count Willarski
A Polish count who serves as Pierre's sponsor in the Freemasons.
Savishna
Nikolushka's nanny.
Nikolushka
Prince Andrei's son, the younger Prince Nikolai Bolkonsky. Also called Nikolenka.
Dessales
The Bolkonsky family's tutor.
Ivanushka
A young boy who is part of the 'people of God,' an itinerant group of beggars taken in by Princess Marya.
Pelageyushka
An elderly woman in the people of God.
Count Zhilinsky
A Pole raised in France. He rooms with Boris Drubetskoy at the emperors' meeting in Tilsit.
Lazarev
An officer who receives the French Legion of Honor from Napoleon after the peace treaty in 1807.
Count Arakcheev
The Russian minister of war.
Mikhail Mikhailovich Speransky
The secretary of state and a counselor to Tsar Alexander. He is in charge of many domestic reforms.
Count Kochubey
A nobleman in St. Petersburg.
Magnitsky
The director of the commission on military regulations.
Marya Ignatievna Peronsky
Countess Rostov's friend in St. Petersburg. She is a retired lady-in-waiting who served the
empress.
Marya Antonovna
Marya Antonovna Naryshkin, a real person who was Tsar Alexander's mistress.
Danilo
A hunter on the Rostovs' Otradnoe estate.
Pelageye Danilovna Melyukov
A noblewoman in St. Petersburg who holds a party attended by the Rostovs.
Métivier
A French doctor in Moscow.
Balaga
A troika driver who often works for Dolokhov and Anatole Kuragin.
Balashov
The envoy that Tsar Alexander sends to demand that Napoleon withdraw his troops from Russian lands.
Count Bennigsen
A Polish general in the Russian army who competes with Kutuzov for power.
Ilyin
Nikolai Rostov's protegé in the hussars in the 1812 campaign.
Count Rastopchin
A real person. He is a gentleman in the tsar's entourage who is in charge of Moscow during the 1812 war. He is brutal to the political prisoners under his charge, and famously tries to stop people from deserting the city.
Marya Genrikhovna
A German doctor’s wife who travels with the Pavlogradsky regiment. A flirt.
Obolensky
Pyotr Rostov's friend.
Dron
The headman at the Bolkonskys' country estate, Bogucharovo.
Dunyasha
Princess Marya Bolkonsky’s childhood nurse who has remained a faithful servant to the family.
Captain Ramballe
A jocular French officer whom Pierre saves from a gunshot in occupied Moscow.
Makar Alexeevich
Osip Bazdeev's mentally disabled brother-in-law. He lives in Moscow and tries to kill Captain Ramballe.
Anna Ignatyevna Malvintsev
Princess Marya's maternal aunt.
Platon Karataev
A simple, religious peasant-soldier whom Pierre meets when he's imprisoned by the French in Moscow.
Dokhturov
A Russian general who leads one of the last offensives against the French in 1812.
Tikhon
A peasant soldier in Denisov’s band of partisans, known for his courage and his sense of humor.
abbé Morio
A thoughtful man with whom Pierre has a discussion during the novel's first soirée.
Smolyaninov
A Freemason who helps initiate Pierre into the society.
Ilagin
A neighbor to the Rostovs, who is caught sending men to use their land illegally. He reciprocates by inviting them to his land.
Pfuel
A general who seems committed to winning the war, where the others are more interested in themselves. Seen in the meeting with Andrei, the tsar, and other generals.
Vereshchagin
A Moscow businessman who is offered to the crowds by Rastpochin so that the latter can protect himself from the crowd's ire. Blamed for a small crime, but devoured by the mob nevertheless.
Napoleon
The real French general and emperor who led the campaign across Europe that is finally ceded when he fails to push past Moscow. Presented by Tolstoy sometimes from an objective distance, and sometimes as a fully-drawn human with feelings and complications.
Effect of War in n this novels:-
"For whom the Bell Tolls":-
Civil war broke out in Spain in 1936, but the underlying causes can be traced back several years prior to that date. In the 1930s Spain experienced continuous political upheavals. In 1931, after years of civil conflict in the country, King Alfonso XIII voluntarily placed himself in exile, and on April 13 of that year, a new republic emerged. The Leftist government, however, faced similar civil unrest, and by 1933, the conservatives regained control. By 1936 the people voted the leftists back in. After the assassination of Jose Calvas Otelo, an influential Monarchist, the army led a revolt against the government and sponsored the return of General Francisco Franco, who had been exiled because of his politics.
As a result, civil war broke out across the country between the Loyalist-leftists and the Monarchist-rightists. Russia backed the leftists while Germany and Italy supported the rightists. The war continued until 1939 with each side committing atrocities: the leftists slaughtered religious and political figures while the rightists bombed civilian targets. At the beginning of 1936, the Loyalists were suffering from an effective blockade as Franco's troops gained control. On March 28, the war ended as the rightists took the city of Madrid.
"War and Peace":-
This battle involved some 250,000 men and ended with about 72,000 men dead on the field. Napoleon entered Russia with a Grand Army of some 442,000 men; by the end of the retreat, only 10,000 crossed back into Poland, the rest either dead, taken prisoner or deserting.
Plot of the novels:-
"For Whom The Bell Tolls"
Epigraph and Chapters One-Two
Chapters Three-Seven
Chapters Eight-Thirteen
Chapters Fourteen-Seventeen
Chapters Eighteen-Twenty
Chapters Twenty-one-Twenty-six
Chapters Twenty-seven-Twenty-nine
Chapters Thirty-Thirty-three
Chapters Thirty-four-Thirty-nine
Chapters Forty-Forty-two
Chapter Forty-three
"War and Peace":-
Book One
Books Two-Three
Books Four-Five
Books Six-Seven
Books Eight-Nine
Book Ten
Book Eleven
Books Twelve-Thirteen
Books Fourteen-Fifteen
First Epilogue-Second Epilogue
Point of view of the writer:
"For Whom the Bell Tolls":-
For Whom the Bell Tolls chronicles the experiences of American college professor Robert Jordan, who has volunteered to fight for the Loyalist cause in the Spanish Civil War. His initial idealism is quickly tempered by the realities of war. Yet his courage enables him to remain devoted to the cause, even as he faces death. Hemingway's compassionate and authentic portrait of his characters as they struggle to retain their idealistic beliefs has helped earn the novel its reputation as one of Hemingway's finest.
Hemingway, siding with the Loyalists, first lent his support to their cause by raising money for ambulances and medical supplies. In 1937, he ran the Ambulances Committee of the American Friends of Spanish Democracy. During the war, he often returned to Spain as a journalist, penning articles for the North American Newspaper Alliance and Esquire. When the Fascist army won control of Spain in 1939, Hemingway had just started writing For Whom the Bell Tolls.
"War and Peace":-
'War and Peace'' (1869) is a historic epic novel about the life of Russian socialites set against the backdrop of the French invasion of Russia. The book's major characters mirror the spiritual biography of Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, as they search for the meaning of life and death in a world shaken by Napoleonic wars.
As the title of Leo Tolstoy's novel War and Peace promises, the book develops in two dimensions. The ''war'' dimension relates to the 1812 French invasion of Russia, while the ''peace'' concerns the life of the Russian society against the backdrop of that invasion. The word ''peace'' (mir) in Russian has multiple meanings:
mir as the state of no-war
mir as society
mir as the world
Indeed, the narrative shifts between the world of the Napoleonic wars, the world of the Russian society, and the inner spiritual worlds of the novel's main characters: Russian aristocrats Andrey Bolkonsky, Natasha Rostova, and Pyotr (Pierre) Bezukhov. The key themes in War and Peace develop through all these worlds, creating a complex and multilayered texture.
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