The Slavery of Our Times

What it is

This is a printed book, an essay written by Leo Tolstoy and published in 1900. It discusses working-class life, the labour movement, poverty, and non-resistance to evil, reflecting Tolstoy's developing ideas on anarchism and social reform.

Why it matters

Written in his later years, this essay shows Tolstoy as a moral and political thinker, not only a novelist. It reflects his turn toward Christian anarchism, his criticism of modern economic systems, and his influence on later thinkers interested in non-violent resistance.

Look closer

• What does the title suggest about Tolstoy's view of working people's lives?
• Why might a famous novelist choose to write essays about labour and poverty instead of fiction?
• What does the scanned library copy, with its stamps and markings, tell you about how this text has travelled and been preserved over time?