Upon a recommendation from a friend, I’m delightfully plowing through Anna Karenina. I had yet to tackle the great Russian novelists, and now I see I’ve been missing out. Tolstoy wrote AK over a four-year period in the 1870s, with its first publication appearing in 1878. The title may lead one to think the story is only about a socialite who betrays her husband, but this is not the case. Over the nearly one-thousand-page book, Tolstoy touches all layers of Russian society and a great many facets of human nature. It is a remarkable book.
On more than one occasion the author distinguishes between private interests and public concerns. Levin is a country squire who is preoccupied with bringing agricultural pursuits to a new level. He contemplates all angles of farming. In particular, he expresses a need to invigorate the ambitions of the labor force. Tolstoy depicts various arrangements throughout the novel, including a family farm, hired workers, and leaseholders. It’s important to note that the emancipation of the serfs happened in 1861.
He is desperate to engage the workers for his estate, to key into their motivation. Here is how he frames his ambition:
I need only push on steadily toward my aim and I shall achieve it,’ he thought, ‘and it is worth working and striving for. It is not a personal affair of my own but one of public welfare. The whole system of farming, and above all the position of the people, must be completely altered: instead of poverty – wealth and satisfaction for all; instead of hostility-concord and a bond of common interest. In a word-a revolution bloodless but immense; first in our own small district, then throughout the province, throughout Russia, and the whole world-for a good thought must be fruitful. Yes, it is an aim worth working for! The fact that the author of it is myself, Constantine Levin,…
For Tolstoy, a combination of motive in the private and the public is possible.
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