Research On National Consciousness In Lev Tolstoy's War Novels

Leo Tolstoy is a Russian writer with word influence and his literature thoughts was built of the basis of love and religion.The age Tolstoy lived was an age with developing national consciousness and inevitably,his thoughts was influenced by the social thoughts and was with inclination of strong national consciousness.After the transition of wordview in 1880 s,religious thoughts cored on common human love became an important element of Tolstoy’s thoughts so that his national consciousness was deconstructed and we could hardly find its trace in his works.This paper focuses on Tolstoy’s novels with the content of war and studies the change of Tolstoy’s national consciousness by close reading and analyze the reason combined with Tolstoy’s religious thoughts.The first chapter describes the developing process of nation and the awareness of nation identity,analyze the process of nation’s formation and its feature,and explore its different level and practice.In the developing process of Russian nation,with resisting foreign oppression and territory expanding,Russian nation recognized their uniqueness.At the same time,because of the underdevelopment of Russian culture,Russian people were rude in westerner’s eyes.After Peter reform,Russia’s power strengthened and Russia’s image in the West had improved.Russian local intellectuals were also aware of their national image,and tried to improve this image,shaping a new image of Russia.In the second chapter attacks,logging,Sevastopol story and war and peace are the research object and analysize the national consciousness shown in the novels.The structure of the novel arrangement,the way of shaping the great Russian national image,the debasement of other nation’s image,the contrast between Russia and non-Russian nation,and the creation mentality reflected in the description of environment are the main focus of this part.The Third chapter finds that this novel is not saturated with Tolstoy’s national consciousness as in the early novels with the close reading of the hajimulate.The image of Russia is no longer an undeniably great and in the process of conquering some infamous brutality is presented.Protagonist as a non-Russia was shaping into a heroic image,showing that the author was reflecting on Russia national conquestingprocess from the perspective of the conquered peoples and Russian nation was no longer sacred,which reflected the deconstruction of author’s national consciousness.Tolstoy’s religious works such as the way of life of the Kingdom of God in your heart,my beliefs,and so on begen to emphasize the implementation of the principle of God Love with the concept of God.This love ise without national distinction and the object of love is all the human,which is an important element of Tolstoyism.With these reason,Tolstoy’s national consciousness melted in the religious thoughts.The conclusion summarizes the full text briefly and represents the changing process of Tolstoy’s national consciousness.