Chapter I: Introduction

The present volume contains two contrasting treatises. The first is religious, and shows in Count Tolstoï's earnest and eloquent manner the meaning of Christ's words which he takes for his text,--"The Kingdom of God is within you." The outward forms of religion, however helpful they may be to some souls, are not essential; the superstitions with which Faith sometimes clothes or masks herself may or may not be uplifting; but the foundation of Christianity is the truth contained in Christ's words, his simple, plain, undogmatic commands and prohibitions.

One word sums it all up, and that word is Love. If the world should take love for its guiding star, it is evident that all the evils of the world would cease,--wars, crimes, poverty, ambitions; the millennium would come! Count Tolstoï shows how that blessed period may begin in every man. The translation of this beautiful and inspiring book has been made by Mrs. Aline Delano of Boston.

In answering the question, "What is Art?" Count Tolstoï analyzes and tests the various definitions given by other writers. He shows up with merciless severity what he considers the fallacy in the popular delusion that the fetish of Art pardons bestiality, obscenity, and whatever conduces to stimulating the passions. The work is strongly controversial, and attacks unsparingly many of the popular notions of the day, as, for instance, that "Art is the manifestation of some mysterious idea of God," or "the expression of man's emotions by external signs," or the production of pleasing objects. He believes that art has a loftier function, and he proceeds elaborately to argue in favor of this universal activity, which should be to effect a union among men so that they may have the same noble feelings and progress together toward universal and individual well-being. "Art for art's sake" is meaningless to him. It is interesting to notice that the most original and independent of the French critics has recently taken practically the same ground in a lecture, in which he asserts that it is the critic's business to test art and literature, and that art has a most intimate relation with morality.

Much of the book is racy and amusing; much of it is abstruse, and requires close attention. But whether one follows the author in his individual opinions or not, it cannot be denied that the general tone of the treatise is helpful and uplifting, and that it is based on sound common sense. Mr. Aylmer Maude of England is the translator of this work, and has had the benefit of Count Tolstoï's own suggestions in regard to certain points. As the special preface explains, the translation accurately represents the author's views, while the edition published in Russia was in many ways garbled and distorted. The translators of both treatises have seized the opportunity of carefully revising their work.

CONTENTS

THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS WITHIN YOU

PAGE

INTRODUCTORY 1

CHAPTER I

Doctrine of non-resistance to evil, from the origin
of Christianity, has been, and still is, professed
by the minority of men 3

CHAPTER II

Opinions of believers and unbelievers in regard to
non-resistance 30

CHAPTER III

Misconception of Christianity by non-believers 47

CHAPTER IV

Misconception of Christianity by scientists 79

CHAPTER V

Contradiction of our life and Christian consciousness 100

CHAPTER VI

Attitude of men of the present day toward war 122

CHAPTER VII

Significance of the military conscription 152

CHAPTER VIII

Certainty of the acceptance of the Christian doctrine
of non-resistance to evil by violence by the men
of our world 171

CHAPTER IX

The acceptance of the Christian life-conception
delivers men from the miseries of our pagan life 194

CHAPTER X

Uselessness of violence for the destruction of
evil--The moral advance of mankind is accomplished,
not only through the knowledge of truth, but also
through the establishment of public opinion 218

CHAPTER XI

Christian public opinion already arises in our
society, and will inevitably destroy the system
of violence of our life--When this will come about 242

CHAPTER XII

Conclusion: "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at
hand!" 254

WHAT IS ART?

TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE 339

AUTHOR'S PREFACE 341

CHAPTER I

Time and labor spent on art--Lives stunted in its
service--Morality sacrificed to and anger
justified by art--The rehearsal of an opera
described 345

CHAPTER II

Does art compensate for so much evil?--What is
art?--Confusion of opinions--Is it "that which
produces beauty"?--The word "beauty" in
Russian--Chaos in æsthetics 351

CHAPTER III

Summary of various æsthetic theories and definitions,
from Baumgarten to to-day 360

CHAPTER IV

Definitions of art founded on beauty--Taste not
definable--A clear definition needed to enable
us to recognize works of art 376

CHAPTER V

Definitions not founded on beauty--Tolstoï's
definition--The extent and necessity of
art--How people in the past have distinguished
good from bad in art 383

CHAPTER VI

How art for pleasure has come into esteem--Religions
indicate what is considered good and bad--Church
Christianity--The Renaissance--Skepticism of the
upper classes--They confound beauty with goodness 389

CHAPTER VII

An æsthetic theory framed to suit this view of life 396

CHAPTER VIII

Who have adopted it?--Real art needful for all men--Our
art too expensive, too unintelligible, and too
harmful for the masses--The theory of "the elect"
in art 401

CHAPTER IX

Perversion of our art--It has lost its natural
subject-matter--Has no flow of fresh
feeling--Transmits chiefly three base emotions 406

CHAPTER X

Loss of comprehensibility--Decadent art--Recent French
art--Have we a right to say it is bad and that what
we like is good art?--The highest art has always
been comprehensible to normal people--What fails
to infect normal people is not art 412

CHAPTER XI

Counterfeits of art produced by: Borrowing; Imitating;
Striking; Interesting--Qualifications needful for
production of real works of art, and those
sufficient for production of counterfeits 436

CHAPTER XII

Causes of production of counterfeits--Professionalism--
Criticism--Schools of art 446

CHAPTER XIII

Wagner's "Nibelung's Ring" a type of counterfeit
art--Its success, and the reasons thereof 455

CHAPTER XIV

Truths fatal to preconceived views are not readily
recognized--Proportion of works of art to
counterfeits--Perversion of taste and incapacity
to recognize art--Examples 468

CHAPTER XV

THE QUALITY OF ART, CONSIDERED APART FROM ITS
SUBJECT-MATTER--The sign of art: Infectiousness--
Incomprehensible to those whose taste is
perverted--Conditions of infection: Individuality;
Clearness; Sincerity 476

CHAPTER XVI

THE QUALITY OF ART, CONSIDERED ACCORDING TO ITS
SUBJECT-MATTER--The better the feeling the better
the art--The cultured crowd--The religious
perception of our age--The new ideals put fresh
demands to art--Art unites--Religious art--Universal
art--Both coöperate to one result--The new
appraisement of art--Bad art--Examples of art--How
to test a work claiming to be art 479

CHAPTER XVII

Results of absence of true art--Results of perversion
of art: Labor and lives spent on what is useless
and harmful--The abnormal life of the rich--
Perplexity of children and plain folk--Confusion
of right and wrong--Nietzsche and Redbeard--
Superstition, Patriotism, and Sensuality 497

CHAPTER XVIII

The purpose of human life is the brotherly union of
man--Art must be guided by this perception 507

CHAPTER XIX

The art of the future not a possession of a select
minority, but a means toward perfection and unity 510

CHAPTER XX

The connection between science and art--The mendacious
sciences; the trivial sciences--Science should deal
with the great problems of human life, and serve as
a basis for art 517

APPENDICES

APPENDIX I 528

APPENDIX II 530

APPENDIX III 537