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Satire
Definition of Setting
Setting is where and when a story or scene takes place. The where can be a real place like the city of New York, or it can be an imagined... read full definition
Setting is where and when a story or scene takes place. The where can be a real place like the city of New York, or... read full definition
Setting is where and when a story or scene takes place. The where can be a real place like the... read full definition
Volume 2, Part 1: Chapters 10–16
Explanation and Analysis:
War and Peace is primarily set in Russia between 1805 and 1812. While most of the novel is set in the Russian cities of St. Petersburg and Moscow, Tolstoy also turns his attention to the Russian countryside and the sites of major battles across Europe. Writing six decades after the historical events described in the novel, Tolstoy depicts the generation of his grandparents, who experienced the bloody Napoleonic Wars firsthand:
With the fall of 1806, everyone again began talking about war with Napoleon, with still greater ardor than the previous year. A recruitment was announced, not only of ten recruits, but of another nine fighting men per thousand. Bonapartius was anathematized everywhere, and around Moscow the only talk was of the impending war. For the Rostov family, all the interest of these preparations for war consisted only in the fact that Nikolushka absolutely refused to remain in Moscow and was simply waiting for the end of Denisov’s leave in order to go with him to their regiment after the holidays.
In this passage, Tolstoy notes that "everyone" in Russia was talking about the war by "the fall of 1806," as the French army moved northward, threatening the historical capital of Moscow. As the army recruits heavily, Napoleon was "anathematized," or condemned, "all around Moscow." In addition to noting these historical details, Tolstoy also examines this broader context from a more personal lens, considering its effects on Russian families. The Rostov family, for example, are at first largely unaffected by the war, preoccupied instead with Nikolai's desire to leave Moscow and rejoin his regiment. Throughout the novel, Tolstoy tracks the effects of the war on families such as the Rostovs, who ultimately lose much of their property because of it.
Related Themes:
