Tolstoy's greatest drama is interior monologues, he invents stream of consciousness writing. He appears what he writes to me. Read it. One of the greatest passages of stream of consciousness, so fierce, and it's taken directly from Tolstoy's life. This is what happens when Levin is waiting for the birth of his wife, Kitty. It speaks to us all. How many parents in here? You're all parents, except for Kitch, who is going to be one, as well as the star. The scream was so terrible that Levin didn't even jump up, but holding his breath gave the doctor a frightened, questioning look. There'll be about
This is the second instalment of a three-part episode. Dickens. Tolstoy. Their names and reputations shake the ground – and so do their books, if you drop one. But whose legacy is more enduring? Whose vision truer and more relevant today? Should you embark on War and Peace or Our Mutual Friend? To battle it out, in 2018 Intelligence Squared brought two celebrated writers, John Mullan for Dickens and Simon Schama for Tolstoy, to our stage. They called on a cast of star actors, including Tom Hiddleston, to bring their arguments to life with readings from the authors’ finest works. The debate was chaired by author, playwright and broadcaster Bonnie Greer.
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