Tolstoy's the Death of Ivanellich

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Vassili is a master of self deceptions. The brilliance of tolstoy, he doesn't say, look at this hypocrite. He just slowly gives you his inner thoughts and describes what he does. And we as the reader, see the man more fully than the man sees himself. It's really quite, quite amazing.

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.