The greatest literary genius to ever live. No one will ever top him.

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>>8500563

Except someone did.

>>8500605
No.

>>8500563

Hamsun has a part in Mysteries where he writes that he is tired of Tolstoy's "skidne, sædelige savl", which translates to shitty, self-righteous drool.

I agree with the contention. The Kreutzer Sonata is as morally bankrupt as your average r9k post. His short stories hamfist painfully simple and trite christian themes.

He's still great, no doubt about it, one of the greatest of all time. But he's not flawless.

Also, Shakespeare.

>>8500663
Shakespeare is not flawless either, and you could claim that even if he had greater skill than cervantes, the better book/story/play/novel of that era is don quixote

>>8500663
>he is tired of Tolstoy's "skidne, sædelige savl", which translates to shitty, self-righteous drool.

Funny coming from him desu, because a lot of his work was also pretty self-righteous.

>>8500605

Who is that?

>>8501053
knausgård

>>8501053
some irrelevant nobody

>>8501053
Mark Twain

>>8501053

Curled-Over Noseguard

>>8500605
he looks like one of 'european villains' in american action movies

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>>8500563
J. R. R. Tolkien.
The olny true god.

>>8500663
>The Kreutzer Sonata is as morally bankrupt as your average r9k post.
I'm pretty sure that he wrote that with the same intention that Dostoevsky had with Notes From the Underground.

I keep Tolstoy and Chekhov on my Asian lit shelf and Murakami on my Western lit shelf. There is nothing you can do to stop me.

>>8500605
ayyyy!

>>8501168
>he has an Asian lit shelf

And that's how you spot the pleb. Only European books are worth reading.

Yeah, Dostoyevsky is pretty good. Finished Crime, working on Brothers soon.

>>8500663
I love Tolstoy but the Kreutzer Sonata was just shit. You're absolutely correct on that point.

I'd say Tolstoy is behind Shakespeare, Dante and Homer if you want to count him.

>>8501117

>Jewish Hollywood movies

>>8500663
>appealing to multiple audiences
>best writer yo ever live

>>8501514
does the usa even do non-jewish non-hollywood movies?

what's the best book i should read to improve my writing skills?

something i can mimic

>>8501168
I can't do anything, but your geography teacher can.

>>8501204
The Bible, the fundament of Western literature, is (Southwest) Asian, both Testaments.

Checkmate atheists.

Dosto is better

>>8501855
hello reddìt

>>8501874
>the Orthodox Christian one is reddit

>>8501366
keep on stroking yourself, we love hearing about it

>>8500563
Why do you think this, OP? As a pleb, I'm curious as to why Tolstoy is so well regarded. What distinguishes him from the other Russians?

Sam Delany, author of Dhalgren was a superior writer to Tolstoy

>>8502745
He's well regarded in popular culture and criticism because:
1. His shorter novels are enjoyable and well known. Ivan Ilych and Anna Karenina are widely read, and generally accepted to be good, though perhaps not as good as some of the other Russian titans.

2. His religious writings and "philosophy" give him a sort of credit that the average novelist doesn't have -- regardless of the actual quality of his religious work. He supported odd, alternative Christian views focused on the self, which was radical in a way. The Kingdom of God is Within You has a sort of life of its own as one of the major alt-Christianity texts.

3. Ultimately, War and Peace is likely why he is so prevalent in the west, even if few have actually read it. Like Proust, Tolstoy became a symbol of his entire country's body of literature by simply writing a huge, unforgettable, well-loved book. We can argue that Dostoyevsky or whomever else wrote better, more concise novels but the fact is that War and Peace is infectiously approachable, absolutely unforgettable, and iconic simply for its length and subject matter.

Tolstoy's legacy is built around the fact that he both has intellectual views outside of his literature that foreigners can understand(christianity), and picked subject matter that both communicated and represented his culture. War and Peace feels like everything we want Russia to be.

>>8502780
Sam Delany is a superior writer to Tolstoy

>>8502789
Sure, as I suggested in the portion of my post about Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy doesn't have to be the best to have his place as the most important Russian author. His writing had many facets - his religious writings have had huge life in alt christianity, his smaller novels are immensely approachable in the way they can be taught all around the world in schools, and War and Peace is iconic both as a piece of historical fiction and as one of the most read HUGE novels in the world. People feel a connection to Tolstoy, and Tolstoy communicates Russia better than any other well-read Russian.

>>8502795
Tolstoy wasn't even that good..he was the definition of White Mediocrity

Toni Morrison is a superior writer and intellect to Tolstoy

>>8502789
>>8502801
alright you can stop now

>>8502801
Silly, she can't be, she's a nigger cunt.

>>8502814

Toni Morrison is intellectually superior to Tolstoy, its a given fact

Tolstoy was a product of white mediocrity

>>8500563
but moondog was a musician not a writer

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>>8500563

>>8501168
patrician

>>8502823
I'm sure this must be bait but russians aren't "white".

>>8501618
Mimic authors you'd like to write like. Translations may not be the greatest choices though.

>>8500563
He's definitely among the greatest of all time. To say without a doubt that he is the best and will never be surpassed is entirely opinion.

I loved Anna Karenina, but Oblomov is a better book. Even Tolstoy loved Oblomov. But I have yet to read War & Peace. I don't even own a copy yet.