Writers create their works in various genres. Some literary forms, such as epic, drama and lyrics, were used by ancient authors. Others appeared much later. Leo Tolstoy, combining several directions in his great book, created a new literary genre. “War and Peace” is an epic novel. This genre is a combination of elements of a family, philosophical and historical novel. Such a genre mix was first used by the Russian classic.
Family theme
In his great work, Tolstoy depicts the fate of several generations of representatives of the nobility. And although the lives of these people are inextricably linked with important historical events, the book traces the obvious features of such a literary trend as the family-everyday genre. “War and Peace” is a work in the plot of which the theme of the family plays an essential role. The writer devoted other works to this topic. But the image of the “ideal family” emerges only at the end of the epic novel.
Historicism
The book of Leo Tolstoy describes historical events and personalities, which indicates a particular genre. War and Peace is a historical work. The legendary characters in Tolstoy’s novel are Kutuzov and Napoleon. Although it should be said that the attitude to history of the Russian classic was peculiar. He believed that nothing depends on even the most prominent personalities in history. They are only vivid images. Historical events are spontaneous and cannot depend on the will of even the most active and talented people.
Image of battles and battles
The battle scenes in the work suggest that it is a military genre. War and Peace is a novel, much of which was dedicated to war, which the author himself called a "bloody massacre, a nasty human being." From these considerations, a different aspect of the genius work was born, thanks to which the novel became a reflection of the philosophical views of the author.
Philosophical ideas
One of the most patriotic books of Russian literature is War and Peace. The literary genre of this work is, first of all, a philosophical novel. The author criticizes the official church, conveying his ideas in the thoughts of the main characters.
To the questions that worried Pierre Bezukhov, he does not give instant answers. The search takes years and many perfect mistakes of the protagonist. But this character is not without a moral principle, which helps him find himself and find spiritual harmony. The highest task of man is to live without fuss, closeness to the people - Pierre comes to this belief at the end of the work.
Returning to the question of man’s inability to decide the fate of peoples and influence the course of events, Tolstoy argues that anyone who seeks to slow down or accelerate the historical process looks ridiculous and naive. The genre of Tolstoy’s War and Peace is not easy to define. This is an epic novel, full of philosophical judgments of the author, which make many years later re-read the work not only in his homeland, but also abroad.
Socio-psychological novel
This genre differs from others in the psychological depiction of heroes in difficult life situations, the multi-linear plot and large volume. What is the genre of War and Peace? This question does not deserve a definite answer. The brilliant book of Tolstoy is very multifaceted and extremely complex. But the features of the socio-psychological novel, along with the features of other genres, are present in it.
Problems of society and questions about its structure worried Leo Tolstoy. The relationship of the nobles to the peasants is examined by the author of the novel from a completely realistic point of view. His views in this regard are also ambiguous. But considerable importance for the writer was also the inner world of the individual. Using the image of the character’s appearance, the author conveyed his soul world. The friendly eyes of Bezukhov are associated with his gentleness and kindness. Helen Kuragina is the owner of "triumphantly acting beauty." But this beauty is dead and unnatural, because there is no internal content in this heroine.
The genre of the great work “War and Peace” is an epic novel. However, due to the scale of events and the global nature of the problems, this book is unique in the genre sense.