Transformation of Characters in 'War and Peace' Essay

Through creative use of language, literary artists can depict different thematic concerns. In the category of such writers includes the Russian writer, Leo Tolstoy. Indeed, in the book 'War and Peace' Tolstoy tells the narrative of the Rostovs, an aristocratic Russian family, and several people linked to it. The narrative gives an illusory account of the events in the Rostov family and instances of historical events while touching on various themes. In this way, for example, the author can delve into the issue of war and peace in different perspectives. For instance, he examines the way in which the concept relates to different characters. Among the links is the manner in which the characters are affected by war and peace. Against this background, it can be argued that different characters in 'Peace and War' by Leo Tolstoy show the way in which characters change in the face of war and peace leading to thirst for life.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

To begin, the examination of one of the main characters, Pierre Bezuhov, supports the notion that individuals develop the quest to live in the face of war and peace. It can be deduced that Pierre has learned about freedom and the need to live through imprisonment in the course of the war. Eventually, he is depicted as preying on new ideas as he also shows strong emotions that lean on the quest to live (Tolstoy 1829). Thus, this realism shows that individuals can embrace life through suffering that provides perceptions of what basic human needs are, the way Pierre is in a position to find out in 'Book XIII.' Intrinsically, as underscored in (Hensher), appreciating the existential opposites of both life and death provide an essential step in both the growth and development of individuals in 'War and Peace.' As such, Pierre's new quest to have a life in the presence of war and suffering underscores the way war and peace can influence people's desire to live a life of understating the purpose of human life.

It can also be argued that the experience of war makes Pierre have life through a quest for own-image. Innately, in the absence of a legitimate father that would give him a sense of identity, Pierre's career seems to be that of pursuit for self-identity (Hensher). It is also worth noting that Pierre's literary critics with the key to the mission are seen when he espouses Napoleon as the person who exhibits the French Revolution's central ideas. The ideas in this context include the need to free men from elements of stultification of class life, which is implicitly stated in the revolution. Pierre seems to lack freedom in the 'outer man:' thus, he goes out of his socioeconomic class. Ultimately, he frees himself when he joins the masons. In sum, this perception paints Pierre as a character who has been influenced by war to live a revolutionized life.

Within the same vein, the absence of peace within Pierre develops his desire to have a more meaningful life. Mostly, when the character is illustrated as an identity-lacking detainee and is all to be killed because of his namelessness, he starts to discover his nature. He learns that the qualities that could turn out as weaknesses of personality on his society can become his strength through the isolation of anguish and imprisonment. At last, Pierre becomes morally cleansed via the experience of suffering and death. He is regenerated into a new sense of freedom of self. Therefore, the rebirth of Pierre here can be used to augment the assertion that conflict and peace have the potential to give people a reason to live despite past experiences.

The other way in which the concept of war and peace results in the thirst to live relates to the portrayal of Prince Andrey Bolkonsky. Andrey suffers as a result of rigid standards of his domineering father. His father isolates him from his closest relatives; thus, he lacks the peace of mind leading to anguish in the world that his father has made for him. The character becomes sensitive to the violent setting in which he is brought up. He then concludes that the terrible experiences of death and suffering are less than the power that people have to inflict pain on other human beings. Admittedly, this awareness makes him talk about the futility of his life regularly. Therefore, the prince develops a rational approach to life; nonetheless, his experiences limit the intellectual perception of life to which he resorts. Against this background, Andrey joins the war as an army officer. He has a quest to live a life that is deficient in his enlightened self and the burden of segregation that his intellect foists on him, the same way his father gets isolated by their society's duty of inflexible social and economic class values.

Within the same setting, the war also makes Andrey continue with the pursuit of life. Although the prince had joined the army to pursue a career that would make him forget about his former self, he soon withdraws from it. Ideally, this is as a result of his disillusionment with the senselessness of fighting, and, as reiterated in his skepticism, the prince retires from vigorous life. However, Andrey is in a position to have a more fulfilling life when he meets Natasha. He recommences his life-commitment when the two fall in love, which presents him with the possibility of new self-identity. In this way, the combination of war and peace that are symbolized by the prince joining the army and Natasha respectively can be argued to lead to Andrey wanting to live through adoptions of different strategies.

The other character that can be used to illustrate the way in which war and peace transform characters into individuals who thirst for life is Natasha Rostov. Through her delineation as an ideal person, Natasha can be perceived as an epitome of a peaceful life that is contrasted to conflicts in the creative work (Hensher). For perception, she is beautiful and bewitching in addition to being empathetic and passionate. She is also seen as not only the agent of love for her grieving mother but also the reconciler of her family disputes. In this way, the peace that she presents can be seen as the reason Andrey has the thirst to live. Thus, this is a conception and can be based on the viewpoint that the army life had left the price deeply disillusioned; therefore, he enters a relationship with Natasha so that he continues living. At the same time, the peace of mind that she seeks to give her mother when she is bereaved can also be deemed as a way of giving the women a reason to live despite the significant loss that she suffers.

Natasha also helps develop the understanding of the relationship between peace and war and how it enhances the desire in Tolstoy's characters to live through her feminist perception. Through her portrayal in the novel, it can be opined that Tolstoy seems to paint her an embodiment of true womanhood. Accordingly, Natasha is confined within the constraints the traditional woman role of child-bearing and familial peace (Lieven 64). In this way, the chances of her being in conflicts with male members in her society are reduced. With this in mind, her sexuality is intentionally directed to its 'natural' aim of reproduction for it not to be both licentious and destructive. She subscribes to this social gender role and ends up being resolute with her child-bearing. Besides, she can give her passion and affectionateness to her household duties. Predictably, the peace that the society aims to achieve through assigning women such roles of giving birth and enhancing family harmony help Natasha have the will to live as she takes care of her family.

Equally important to the understanding of the relationship is Nikolay Rostov. According to Lieven (34), Christianity is portrayed as a religion of peace in the setting that is mired in warfare. There are those who uphold Christian virtues that help them have a pursuit of good lifestyle within and without themselves. Among these is Nikolay Rostov. In the course of his representation in the story, he comes out as a conservative man whose adulthood exploits the progressive qualities of his personality as a Christian. For instance, utilitarianism and deficiency in hypocrisy make the character reject Sonya. He instead marries an heiress called Marya. Admittedly, this guarantees his marriage life in the long run. Primarily, this is because, among others, Marya's religious inclinations give Nikolay added spiritual dimensions that he lacks in addition to her affluence providing him the appropriate amount of capital that he needs for prosperity. Nikolay's submission to the top authority in the state corresponds to the one that Marya offers to Christian virtues. In this way, it can be argued that the peace that Christianity extends to Nikolay through his devotion to it as well as his interaction to the equally religious wife enables him to pursue a life of relative joy in the literary work.

The issue of love and marriage also relate to the way the concept of war and peace shape characters into the aspiration for life. In many cases, the family life in the novel acts as a way of depicting peace and love despite the many challenges that are underlined by conflicts in the novel. The assertion can be illustrated in the viewpoint that the system of family values that are created by Tolstoy in 'War and Peace' shows that love is a powerful tool that can awaken characters to new ways of life (Lieven 124). An illustration to this can be drawn from the family of Andrey and Natasha. There are cases in which Natasha Rostov brings such awakening to her husband, Andrey Bolkonsky, although it does not last for long. In this way, as already indicated, the heroine seems to give the troubled Andrey a reason to live in a hitherto conflicted world of different issues.

Similarly, the author seems to lead Natasha through elements of conflicts and peace evidenced by trials of love, disenchantment, public humiliation, war dispossessions, and, finally, adulthood that further transform her into a mature woman. Fundamentally, this is seen when Natasha eventually marries Pierre Bezukhov as a humble mother of a big family at the end of the story. At this point, the couple is in a position to develop each other in a happy union, nurturing children, and managing their state (Tolstoy 1223). It can be supposed that the transformation that the character goes through is possible because of her desire to live in the environment of both peace and conflict.

Lastly, the representation of the element of the family life of characters as a whole helps create the link between the concept and the desire to have a life in spite of various challenges. Hensher points to the standpoint that different families in Tolstoy's 'War and Peace' represent an isolated miniature that reflects the author's belief in the peace. An example of such families is that of the Rostovs. Interestingly, this family espouses understanding, warmth, hospitality, and humility. For example, the family members can give the necessary support to their children despite their mistakes and delusions. One of such occasions is when Natasha fails to elope on the day before her wedding. In this case, it can be argued that Natasha has the motivation to grow into a socially acceptable woman through the peace and support that she enjoys from her family right from her childhood. Hence, this affirms the relationship that exists between the concept of war and peace and the thirst to live among characters in the novel.

Conclusion

To conclude, it is true that characters in 'Peace and War' by Leo Tolstoy change in the face of war and peace leading to thirst for life. Principally, this can be seen in Pierre Bezuhov who has changed through interactions with war and peace into a character who seeks to live. There is also the depiction of Prince Andrey Bolkonsky who is transformed through war and peace....