What Shall We Do?

Leo Tolstoy (1828 - 1910)

A vivid description of wealth and poverty in Russia in Tolstoy's day, an inquiry into the root causes of economic inequality, and a vision of a more just way of living.

Tolstoy recounts his own disturbing encounters with extreme poverty in Moscow, his initial idea of making the problem disappear by generous financial contributions, and his subsequent realization that the problem of poverty was much more intractable than he had imagined. He concludes that poverty is fundamentally linked with the luxurious lifestyle to which he and his class were accustomed, and that both are detrimental both to the rich and to the poor. He goes on to investigate the roots of power imbalances, both in the state and in markets, and to make suggestions for a fundamental social and economic reform in the interest of justice and well-being. Both his social critique and his proposed reforms are grounded in a deeply held and somewhat unorthodox religious faith, as well as in a vigorously applied but somewhat unconventional view of science.

Unfortunately he also expresses some views on the role and duties of women and the use of birth control which some readers may find offensive. This material is mostly contained in Chapter 40, the last chapter. (Summary by Joanna Michal Hoyt)

Genre(s): Business & Economics, Political Science

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 00 Epigraph Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:02:59
Play 01 Chapter I Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:08:35
Play 02 Chapter II Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:14:28
Play 03 Chapter III Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:13:30
Play 04 Chapter IV Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:06:36
Play 05 Chapter V Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:09:05
Play 06 Chapter VI Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:07:02
Play 07 Chapter VII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:06:32
Play 08 Chapter VIII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:12:42
Play 09 Chapter IX Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:06:05
Play 10 Chapter X Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:12:05
Play 11 Chapter XI Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:06:51
Play 12 Chapter XII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:09:36
Play 13 Chapter XIII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:16:13
Play 14 Chapter XIV Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:14:12
Play 15 Chapter XV Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:13:55
Play 16 Chapter XVI Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:11:12
Play 17 Chapter XVII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:21:03
Play 18 Chapter XVIII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:30:08
Play 19 Chapter XIX Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:14:04
Play 20 Chapter XX Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:28:32
Play 21 Chapter XXI Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:36:38
Play 22 Chapter XXII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:11:41
Play 23 Chapter XXIII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:08:03
Play 24 Chapter XXIV Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:27:59
Play 25 Chapter XXV Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:20:56
Play 26 Chapter XXVI Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:17:18
Play 27 Chapter XXVII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:18:00
Play 28 Chapter XXVIII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:11:29
Play 29 Chapter XXIX Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:17:27
Play 30 Chapter XXX Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:20:34
Play 31 Chapter XXXI Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:14:35
Play 32 Chapter XXXII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:10:39
Play 33 Chapter XXXIII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:06:18
Play 34 Chapter XXXIV Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:23:42
Play 35 Chapter XXXV Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:03:38
Play 36 Chapter XXXVI Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:19:59
Play 37 Chapter XXXVII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:15:45
Play 38 Chapter XXXVIII Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:45:01
Play 39 Chapter XXXIX Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:36:05
Play 40 Chapter XL Joanna Michal Hoyt
00:29:04