God Sees the Truth, but Waits {short story}

by Leo Tolstoy

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God Sees the Truth but waits has the subject matter that Dostoyevsky could have used. The difference is Dostoyevsky would have written it with a fist waving of anger and frustration leaping from the page while Tolstoy writes it with an accepting non-violent attitude relating to those abused with grievances. The protagonist has wrongly been accused of murder, separated from his family for 26 years, and by circumstance meets the real murder in Siberia. The protagonist has come to have an show more important role in the Siberian community, trusted by Warden and prisoners alike. He spies the murder trying to escape, is threatened, but still does not speak out when asked by the Warden. This profoundly moves the murderer who seeks forgiveness from the protagonist, who says, "Only God can give forgiveness." The protagonist becomes at peace with himself. The murderer confesses, the protagonist exonerated and ordered released from prison, but is dead when the notice comes. A classic Russian ending.

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3 reviews
Another short story winner from Tolstoy. Many think of Tolstoy as a master of the long novel, but I have really enjoyed his short stories and novelettes.
A sad little story of a man who spends a life in prison for a murder committed by another
I know it's Tolstoy, but my feeling toward this story was "blah."

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2,499+ Works 129,630 Members
Count Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy was born on September 9, 1828 in Russia. He is usually referred to as Leo Tolstoy. He was a Russian author who is regarded as one of the greatest authors of all time. Leo Tolstoy is best known for his novels War and Peace (1869) and Anna Karenina (1877). Tolstoy's fiction includes dozens of short stories and several show more novellas such as The Death of Ivan Ilyich, Family Happiness, and Hadji Murad. He also wrote plays and numerous philosophical essays. Tolstoy had a profound moral crisis and spiritual awakening in the 1870's which he outlined in his work, A Confession. His literal interpretation of the ethical teachings of Jesus, centering on the Sermon on the Mount, caused him to become a fervent Christian anarchist and pacifist. His ideas of nonviolent resistance which he shared in his works The Kingdom of God is Within You, had a profund impact on figures such as Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. On September 23, 1862 Tolstoy married Sophia Andreevna Behrs. She was the daughter of a court physician. They had 13 children, eight of whom survived childhood. Their early married life allowed Tolstoy much freedom to compose War and Peace and Anna Karenina with his wife acting as his secretary and proofreader. The Tolstoy family left Russia in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution and the subsequent establishment of the Soviet Union. Leo Tolstoy's relatives and descendants moved to Sweden, Germany, the United Kingdom, France and the United States. Tolstoy died of pneumonia at Astapovo train station, after a day's rail journey south on November 20, 1910 at the age of 82. (Bowker Author Biography) Count Leo Tolstoy was born in 1828 on the family estate of Yasnaya Polyana in the Tula province. He married in 1862 & was the father of 13 children. Tolstoy managed the estate of Yasnaya Polyana & ran its peasant schools, while writing his great novels, "War & Peace" (1869) & "Anna Karenina" (1877). He died in 1910. (Publisher Provided) show less

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Canonical title
God Sees the Truth, but Waits {short story}

Classifications

Genres
Fiction and Literature, General Fiction, Kids, Tween
DDC/MDS
891.73Literature & rhetoricLiteratures of other languagesEast Indo-European and Celtic literaturesRussian and East Slavic languagesRussian fiction
LCC
PG3366 .B64Language and LiteratureSlavic languages and literatures. Baltic languages. Albanian languageSlavic. Baltic. AlbanianRussian literatureIndividual authors and works1800-1870Tolstoi
BISAC

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Reviews
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Rating
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English, Turkish
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Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
ISBNs
9
ASINs
4