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Thematic Questions

• Jimi Hendrix once wrote, “When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace.”, and Tolstoy wrote, “All violence consists in some people forcing others, under threat of suffering or death, to do what they do not want to do.” Using examples from the novel, explain how Tolstoy makes the argument of these quotations.
• Analyze the following quotation How does it exemplify the major themes of Resurrection?

And all this terrible change had come about simply because he had ceased to put his faith in his own conscience and had taken to trusting in others. And he had ceased to trust himself and begun to believe in others because life was too difficult if one believed one’s own conscience: believing in oneself, every question had to be decided, never to the advantage of one’s animal self, which seeks easy gratifications, but in almost every case against it. But to believe in others meant that there was nothing to decide: everything had been decided already, and always in favor of the animal I and against the spiritual. Moreover, when he trusted his own conscience he was always laying himself open to criticism, whereas now, trusting others, he received the approval of those around him.

• What is the meaning of the term resurrection in the context of the novel? To whom does it apply more, Maslova or Nehklyudov? What sacrifices are necessary for resurrection to occur?

Philosophical Questions

• Discuss the convergence of deontological and consequentialist viewpoints in the novel.
• Discuss Tolstoy’s view of the legal system and government and how both treat the lower classes.
• Discuss Tolstoy’s view of human nature. Is it fundamentally good or evil? What about the banality of evil?
• Discuss Tolstoy’s definition of the meaning of Christian love and his exploration of the ways that it is perverted and exploited by society and churches.