Tolstoy's a Vassili's Only Concern

3min Snip

00:00

Play full episode

Summary

Transcript

Episode notes

"I don't despise vasili, but i feel very sorry for him," says author. Tolstoy's character invites us to hold up a mirror to our own lives and think about what is more important than money. Most great works of art on this topic are about a character who realizes that there's more to life than money. We'll come to smith he next nd.

Physician and careful reader Richard Gunderman of Indiana University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about how Adam Smith and Leo Tolstoy looked at greed. Drawing on Tolstoy's short story, "Master and Man," and adding some Thomas Hobbes along the way, Gunderman argues that a life well-lived requires us to rise above our lower desires. Join Gunderman and Roberts for a sleigh ride into a snowy blizzard, where you won't find your way by following rules, but rather by recognizing what needs to be seen.