Primary sourceBook1886 (written 1882)
The Death of Ivan Ilyich
Leo Tolstoy · 1886 (written 1882)
A novella by Tolstoy about a dying official confronting the emptiness of his life, written after Tolstoy's own religious conversion.
Tolstoy wrote this novella, his first major fiction after his religious conversion, exploring death and a hollow life.
About this source
What it is
The Death of Ivan Ilyich is a novella by Leo Tolstoy, published in 1886, written shortly after his religious conversion of the late 1870s. It tells of a high-court judge who faces a painful terminal illness and must confront whether he has truly lived well.
Why it matters
It is considered one of the finest examples of the novella form and one of the masterpieces of Tolstoy's late fiction. The story turns his new religious and ethical beliefs into an exploration of an artificial, status-driven life versus an authentic, compassionate one, reflecting the moral theories Tolstoy developed after his personal crisis.
Look closer
- Why does Tolstoy contrast Ivan's family with his servant Gerasim?
- What does the story suggest Tolstoy believed about how most people live?
- How might Tolstoy's own life experiences have shaped this story about facing death?
This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Leo Tolstoy on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.
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