Escape and spiritual transformation motifs in literary works of L. N. Tolstoy considered in the aspect of intercultural dialogue

P. R. Kozdrin

Institute of Medical Education, Almazov National Medical Research Centre of the Ministry of Health,

Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation

Escape and spiritual transformation motifs in literary works of L. N. Tolstoy considered in the aspect of intercultural dialogue

Abstract. TThe article is devoted to the study of L.N. Tolstoy’s artistic originality based on the material of “Confessions” (1883-1884) and “The Diary of a Madman” (1912) in the context of their literary correlation with the work of J. Bunyan’s allegorical novel “The Pilgrim’s Progress” (1687). The article presents a comparative analysis of the texts by these two writers revealing common themes and images which allowed the authors to convey the idea of the individual’s spiritual transformation. Motifs of the reevaluation of one’s own life and escape from the spiritually impoverished, vain world are reflected in the works of L. N. Tolstoy of different years. We may agree that many of them are united by the following plot formula: the way – enlightenment – the way. All these works of the Russian writer are filled with a confessional and didactic tone, which also puts them closer to Bunyan’s novel. We may accept the view that “The Pilgrim’s Progress” was probably one of the sources for the realization of Tolstoy’s creative ideas. Both authors are very similar in their approach to solve the eternal spiritual problems of the meaning of life and man’s place in the world. Their characters are depicted as life-wanderers searching for spiritual salvation.

Keywords: motif, religiosity, escape, spiritual transformation, ethics.

Paper submitted: May 28, 2021.

For citation: Kozdrin P. R. (2021). REscape and spiritual transformation motifs in literary works of L. N. Tolstoy considered in the aspect of intercultural dialogue. The Science of Person: Humanitarian Researches, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 7–14. DOI: 10.17238/issn1998-5320.2021.15.2.1.

Save article