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PODCAST

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide

A chapter by chapter guide to Tolstoy's War & Peace. These are Summaries/Cliffnotes on a podcast, hence Podnotes. It is best used as a supplement to your reading of the classic.The episodes and descriptions will provide information, context and commentary on each chapter -- and will likely take a lifetime to complete. The goal is for each episode to come in under 10 minutes. The original work fluctuates between French and Russian and there are multiple English translations of War &

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All Episodes

9:55

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 22 [2 of 2]: Letters of Marya & Julie

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2023/03/14

This episode involves Marya Bolkonskaya reading Julie Karagina’s letter and covers Marya’s response. Each missive is written in French and the content serves as a way to bring the reader up-to-speed on the time transpiring since Count Bezukhov's death. Each letter also serves as an exposition of the nature of the characters: Julie is revealed as a somewhat vapid heiress and Marya, the ideal daughter of her father and God.Julie begins through speaking about her affinity for Marya and commenting

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7:40

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 22 [1 of 2]: The King of Prussia...

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2023/02/27

For the first 20 chapters the action centered around the major cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg, circa 1805. This chapter heads to the countryside to one of the oldest cities in Eastern Europe, Smolensk, founded in 863 A.D. It is west of Moscow and a bit south, not that far east of the Belarusian border. Smolensk was part of the Kyivan Rus’, the first state to rise among Eastern Slavs. While the early history of Ukraine is the history of Russia, the converse is not true. Generally, many think

en-US

7:02

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 21: A Death in the Family

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2023/01/27

Prince Vassily and Katerina are ready to make their move to deprive Pierre of his inheritance. First, Vassily wishes to get Anna and Pierre out of the way so the Count's will can be promptly destroyed. Therefore, Vassily invites them to take some tea or a slight snack via the spread set out for well-wishers. Pierre is escorted to the tea area by one of the Count’s nieces and Anna goes as well but remains close enough to keep track of the saboteurs. At some point, Katerina gets up and walks

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14:27

Bonus - Recitation II: Chapters 11-20

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2023/01/01

Chapters 11-20 continue to establish background information on the main characters and central conflict (Napoleon's future invasion). It is slow going without piercing hooks. It is an exposition of the peace before the war. After being banished from St. Petersburg, Pierre has been staying at his ill father’s estate in Moscow. He is left alone by those caring for the Count and kept away from his father. In solitude, Pierre play-acts crossing the English channel as a conquering Napoleon, ready to

en-US

6:13

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 20: Last Moments Between Father &...

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/12/23

Pierre is taken to the inner sanctum of his father's magnificent estate. The room was filled with family, physicians, and servants. The once powerful Kirill Bezukhov is on the precipice of death. The name Kirill derives from the Greek name Kyrillos (Κύριλλος), which comes from Kyrios (κύριος), meaning “lord,” or “lordly.” He is represented as one of Catherine the Great’s grandees, meaning a person of very high rank. In giving the character this particular name, Tolstoy captures the nature of

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7:56

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 19: Step Up and Be a Man

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/12/09

Pierre is sleeping in the back of an open coach while being pulled by horses to his father’s magnificent estate. Count Bezukhov is incapacitated and his wishes were that Pierre takes his estate. However, Pierre has little idea of this intention. The Count drew up papers to “legitimize” Pierre, however, they were never delivered to the proper authorities nor signed off by Emperor Alexander. Prince Vassily Kuragin has been plotting to subvert the will of the Count and in the previous chapter he

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6:48

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 18: Succession & Scandal

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/11/07

The chapter opens with a foreboding update about Count Kirill Bezukhov. As the Rostov affair was in full swing, the Count suffered his sixth stroke, which places him near death. His team of doctors thought it would be a matter of hours. Local undertakers were outside his estate, waiting to be paged while some of the elite of Moscow society marched in and out. Dr. Lorrain, the lead physician, was conspicuously seated under a portrait of Catherine the Great. Catherine died in 1796 so the Count's

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8:26

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 17: Ilya Rostov Flies Like an Eagle

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/10/17

The guests leave the dining area and head to the fancy entertainment rooms of the Rostov estate. These are the drawing rooms, sitting rooms, parlors, terraces, and libraries – the Rostov mansion has it all. Ilya Rostov sits down in one of the rooms to enjoy a French card game named after an American City, Boston. As per custom, young people gathered around a few instruments, including the clavier and harp. Julie Karagina takes a turn on one of these. There was some anticipation for Natasha and

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5:28

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 16: Bonaparte Stopped Austria's...

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/09/12

The extravagant Rostov feast is winding down and the political talk is reaching a zenith.Shinshin asks why Russia should be thrown into a war with Napoleon. He notes Bonaparte already stopped Austria’s cackle and Russia's turn is likely next. The ethnically German colonel (in the Russian Army) who is within earshot gets irritated and announces his fealty to the Emperor. The colonel quotes Alexander's Declaration of War, which has the refrain -- to establish a lasting peace; the country must

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11:58

Bonus - Second Epilogue, Ch. 3: The Locomotive of...

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/09/02

Envision a locomotive the way many would circa 1860. What technology! It wasn’t brand new (as they were invented in 1804) but it was a Monster of the age in terms of making the world move. Tolstoy envisions the locomotive as a symbol of great historical movements and uses this symbolism to describe the limitations historians face in finding causes for such movements. He posits three people viewing the mighty locomotive and trying to explain the cause of the movement. The first, Tolstoy deals with a

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10:18

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 15: Cigars & Politics

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/08/24

Before the Rostov dinner, the men get together to talk politics and smoke cigars. We get a look at Count Rostov’s personality among the boys. He earns a cheap thrill in getting his intimates to debate the issues of the day. Seated next to him are Shinshin (Pyotr Nikolaitch) and Lt. Alphonse Berg. Both think they are quite charming. Shinshin is described as on old bachelor with a sallow complexion who tries to look much younger and dresses in the height of fashion. He is a relative of Countess

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10:26

Bonus - Second Epilogue, Ch. 2: Not the Cause for the...

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/08/01

Tolstoy presents his view on how academics view history. He essentially argues that historians have limited reliability. Tolstoy embarks on the path of grappling with the nature of power. He urges avoiding the trap of thinking Great Men move people. Instead, it is actually people (like You) who combine when they are willing to move. It is people (like You) who do all the heavy lifting and rarely get any of the credit.Tolstoy initially describes biographers of famous personages as well as authors of

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5:16

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 14: Rubles for Boris

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/07/23

A quick chapter centering on the emotions of Countess Natasha Rostova. Once Anna Mikhaylovna Drubetskaya left for the Bezukhov estate, Natasha becomes sentimental. Anna’s message, whether intended or not, affects her deeply. The Countess decides to help her childhood friend and not make Anna pursue a bequeathment from the sickly Count Bezukov who may be in no position to distribute anything. The Countess summons her husband through a servant and the good-natured Illya quickly answers. He is dripping

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10:34

Bonus - Second Epilogue, Ch.1: History of Gods & Men

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/07/15

Tolstoy starts his infamous epilogue by giving his definition of the term "history" as the life of nations and humanity. He describes that a limitation of this definition is the inability of man to sufficiently pin down the history of any nation or human movement. He posits there is more to it than the scientific approach of piecing together what happened and then attributing motivations based on objective analysis. For the most part, piecing together history is inadequate guesswork, some

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9:22

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 13: Pierre Invades England (A...

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/07/08

Some background on Pierre: He never got around to deciding on a career in the short time he was in St. Petersburg. He was then kicked out of the then-capital by reason of the scandal involving tying a police officer to a small bear and throwing them both into a river. In Moscow, Pierre was staying in his usual quarters at the estate of his ill father - Count Kirill Bezukhov. However, Pierre was not allowed access to his dad. Pierre was isolated by the Count’s relatives and servants. Early in his

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9:15

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 12: To Count Bezukhov's!

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/06/21

Anna Drubestkoya is able to borrow a horse and carriage from the Rostovs to head to Count Bezukhov’s mansion, where the Count is said to be on his deathbed. Anna relays her plan to her son – to delicately ask Count Bezukhov for some financing…..in the Count's last moments. Humbly asking for money was surely as uncomfortable then as it is now. Anna tells her son, who is embarrassed about asking for a hand-out: This is about your future, not mine, so don’t let pride get in the way. She realizes

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7:21

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 11 (2 of 2): The Art of Asking...

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/06/20

The Countess Rostova and Anna Drubestkoya get to their brief discussion. Anna displays the art of asking for something, without directly asking. After some small talk, Anna divulges she needs 500 rubles to set her son up in the Imperial Guard. The money will be for uniforms and related equipment/supplies, which a recruit had to pay for. Officers could be expected to afford the expense as they were primarily from aristocratic circles while the general body of soldiers were taken from the Czar’s

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13:53

Bonus - Introduction to the Second Epilogue

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/06/11

This subset of episodes, will take on the twelve chapters of the second epilogue of War & Peace. This somewhat controversial epilogue is a presentation of the author’s philosophy that underlies the book.A common critique of the second epilogue is how confusing and apart it seems from the rest. The first epilogue revolves around the characters and resolves some of their journeys. The readers are then presented with an epilogue that takes on metaphysical questions – i.e., questions about the

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10:18

Bk. 1, Pt. 1, Ch. 11 (1 of 2): Vera! Vera! Vera!

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/06/04

The first part of chapter 11 focuses on the unbeloved Rostov child, Vera. Since it is one of the few sections devoted to her, this episode is dedicated to Vera. As Countess Rostova is prepared to “hold court,” tête-à-tête, with Anna Drubestkoya, they both notice Vera is in the vicinity. In cold words, the Countess tells her daughter that she is not wanted and should have realized it before the mother had to say so. Vera deals with the rejection superficially but likely internalizes the

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14:42

Bonus - Recitation I: Chapters 1-10

War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide ·

2022/05/17

This podcast has made it through a commentary on the first ten chapters of War & Peace. It has compiled literally dozens of views - okay, my attempts at humor can be self-effacing.There are over 360 chapters in this book (and chapter can differ by the version you are picking up). Nevertheless, every three and a half chapters will amount to 1% of the book. Covering 10 chapters indicates just over 3% of the novel has been discussed, so completion of this project can be expected………much further

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