Resurrection by Leo Tolstoy
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In the following passage from Chapter 11 in Part 2 from “Resurrection”, Tolstoy critiques intellectual elitism and empty philosophical debates. The lawyer dismisses deep questions with sarcasm. He reduces profound moral inquiries to mere "abstract problems" for weekend salons. His tone—mocking yet self-satisfied—reveals a societal hypocrisy. That the educated class enjoys theorizing about life’s big questions while ignoring real suffering. Tolstoy exposes how such conversations often serve vanity rather than truth. The passage challenges its reader to ask: Do we debate philosophy to understand—or to perform wisdom? The passage is a biting commentary on Tolstoy’s central theme. That privilege corrupts, and true "resurrection" requires acting on conscience, not just discussing it:
“What questions you do ask! Well, that, my dear sir, is philosophy. But there is no reason why we shouldn’t discuss philosophy. You must come along on Saturday. You will meet scholars at my house, writers, painters. And then we will discuss these abstract problems together, said the lawyer, with ironical feeling on the words abstract problems……..’Thank you, I will try to,’ said Nekhlyudov, conscious that he was not telling the truth…..if he tried to do anything it would be to keep away from the lawyer’s literary evenings and his circle of scholars, writers and painters..”