Gary Saul Morson Bücher

In this invigorating new assessment of Anna Karenina , Gary Saul Morson overturns traditional interpretations of the classic novel and shows why readers have misunderstood Tolstoy’s characters and intentions. Morson argues that Tolstoy’s ideas are far more radical than has been his masterpiece challenges deeply held conceptions of romantic love, the process of social reform, modernization, and the nature of good and evil. By investigating the ethical, philosophical, and social issues with which Tolstoy grappled, Morson finds in Anna Karenina powerful connections with the concerns of today. He proposes that Tolstoy’s effort to see the world more wisely can deeply inform our own search for wisdom in the present day. The book offers brilliant analyses of Anna, Karenin, Dolly, Levin, and other characters, with a particularly subtle portrait of Anna’s extremism and self-deception. Morson probes Tolstoy’s important insights (evil is often the result of negligence; goodness derives from small, everyday deeds) and completes the volume with an irresistible, original list of One Hundred and Sixty-Three Tolstoyan Conclusions.

Born into Russian aristocracy at the end of the 19th Century, Paul Rodzianko led a life rich in love, challenged by war, and inspired by great jumping horses. With humor and infectious joy, he recounts the adventures of his charmed childhood--playing with his cousins at the Winter Palace, riding horses at his family's many country estates, and, most spectacularly, serving as a page in the court of Tsar Nicolas II. Then, on August 1, 1914, Russia and Germany declare war on each other, and, Rodzianko writes, "The hurricane descended and swept our world away." Serving in the Chevalier Guards, he fights first against the Germans and then, after the Revolution, against the Reds in Siberia. He writes movingly about WWI and the Russian Civil War: the initial excitement about going to war and the grim realities, the frustrating shortages of munitions and the failures of the railroads, the shocking execution of the Romanovs, and the brutal deaths of millions of young men. Tattered Banners is an evocative and haunting account of a time and people that have continued to intrigue us for more than a century

Der zweite große Roman des russischen Schriftstellers Lew Nikolajewitsch Tolstoj zeichnet ein vielschichtiges Porträt der russischen Gesellschaft der Zarenzeit. Zentrales Thema dieses Romans ist die tragische Liebsbeziehung der Titelheldin Anna Karenina.

Focusing on the concept of "prosaics," the study emphasizes the significance of ordinary events in literature and how novels uniquely capture them. Morson argues for a "prosaics of process," showcasing masterpieces that defy traditional structure. Through his pseudonym Alicia Chudo, he delves into the philosophical implications of emotions like laughter and empathy. Addressing declining student interest in literature, he advocates for teaching methods that highlight literature's role in fostering empathy across differences. Morson also examines the connection between games and wit as a reflection of mental resilience in social contexts.

In clear and witty writing, Morson offers first serious study of the many kinds of aphorisms, their relation to longer works, and the philosophical wisdom they offer.

Fundamentalism Writ Large -- Fundamentalism and its Alternatives: From Fanaticism to Dialogue -- Divided We Stand: The Politics of Hate -- Price and Prejudice: Economics and the Quest for Truth -- Searching for Eternal Truths: Religion and its Discontents -- Literature: How to Ruin It and Why You Shouldn't -- Path Forward -- Chekhov With the Final Word.

In Cents and Sensibility, an eminent literary critic and a leading economist make the case that the humanities—especially the study of literature—offer economists ways to make their models more realistic, their predictions more accurate, and their policies more effective and just. Arguing that Adam Smith’s heirs include Austen, Chekhov, and Tolstoy as much as Keynes and Friedman, Gary Saul Morson and Morton Schapiro trace the connection between Adam Smith’s great classic, The Wealth of Nations, and his less celebrated book on ethics, The Theory of Moral Sentiments. The authors contend that a few decades later, Jane Austen invented her groundbreaking method of novelistic narration in order to give life to the empathy that Smith believed essential to humanity. More than anyone, the great writers can offer economists something they need—a richer appreciation of behavior, ethics, culture, and narrative. Original, provocative, and inspiring, Cents and Sensibility demonstrates the benefits of a dialogue between economics and the humanities and also shows how looking at real-world problems can revitalize the study of literature itself. Featuring a new preface, this book brings economics back to its place in the human conversation.

Gary Saul Morson brings to life the intense intellectual debates shaping two centuries of Russian writing. Dialogues of great writers with philosophical wanderers and blood-soaked radicals reveal a contest between unyielding dogmatism and open-minded wonder, rendering the Russian literary canon at once distinctive and universally human.