Reading List Completists discussion

Discuss Volume Four of War and Peace in this thread.

It took me awhile to figure this out as there seems to be a lot of opinions about how this book is broken down. I hope this isn't too confusing!

Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 1
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 2
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 3
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 4
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 5
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 6
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 7
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 8
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 9
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 10
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 11
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 12
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 13
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 14
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 15
Volume 4, Part 1, Chapter 16
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 1
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 2
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 3
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 4
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 5
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 6
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 7
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 8
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 9
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 10
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 11
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 12
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 14
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 15
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 16
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 17
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 18
Volume 4, Part 2, Chapter 19
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 1
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 2
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 3
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 4
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 5
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 6
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 7
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 8
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 9
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 10
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 11
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 12
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 13
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 14
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 15
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 16
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 17
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 18
Volume 4, Part 3, Chapter 19
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 1
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 2
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 3
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 4
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 5
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 6
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 7
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 8
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 9
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 10
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 11
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 12
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 13
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 14
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 15
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 16
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 17
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 18
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 19
Volume 4, Part 4, Chapter 20

I have given up keeping track! I think I may be in this part now . . .

Soooooo much war now - for a long time there was soooooo much peace!

Here is how the book breaks down to far (estimated)

75 pages of peace followed by 75 pages of war followed 250 pages of peace followed by 250 pages of war.

War . . . no one wins!

War and Peace has gone to a dark place . . . lots of hopelessness now. At the beginning, the people seemed to look at war as a glorious thing for the emperor and Russia.

Now, with the fall of Moscow . . . the people are desperate and are willing to turn on each other, back stab, etc.

The fall of Moscow and the aftermath are pretty interesting!

A strong theme in this section is the slowness of communication during this time. While Moscow is burning, people hundreds of miles away think the Russians are winning. Without quick communications and the ability to see images right away, these people don't understand what is going on or the horrors of war.

I may have just read one on my favorite quotes ever:

"But despite the fact that the doctors treated him, bled him, and gave him medicines to drink, he recovered."

Good one, Tolstoy!