Leo Tolstoy, The Death of Ivan Ilyich, (1886)
Reading The Death of Ivan Ilyich for class meant it was inevitably selected to fit in a wider discussion. This follows The Gift, The Gilead and Master and Man. As another Tolstoy work it fits in with the messaging of Master and Man and is certainly another piece that addresses the value of life and what a good life can constitute. This post is going to reference the other works that the class included as the message from all the stories largely concern what it means to be generous and engage in a gift relationship. The Death of Ivan Ilyich has a more abstract perspective on the gift relationship than that of The Gift by Lewis Hyde or We Come To Life with Those we Serve but is representative of the more academic approach of the two books mentioned.
The long story short, Ivan is faced with death and comes to realize what is truly important about life and it is not his constant push for promotion or material wealth. This aligns with lessons from Master and Man and in The Death of Ivan Ilyich the reader can observe those around Ivan falling into habits and perspectives that are not conducive to a fulfilling life. This is especially true of Ivan’s wife and the lack of compassion she shows her husband, however, this is also similar to the distain Ivan feels towards his wife. As he contemplates whether his life was truly lived well, Ivan struggles accepting that regardless of how well you live, death is an inevitability and living in compassion and support for others provides far more meaning than the artificial life he himself has lived.
If a reader were to read this story I would also suggest Master and Man as they ultimately feed into much of the same messaging. Material wealth, possessions and status are seen as superficial and in this case almost artificial and in The Death of Ivan Ilyich this is seen in Ivan juxtaposing his own life with that of his servant Gerasim. The lessons discussed in class ultimately center around how being faced with death is a reflective experience. In addition, the early sections that focus on Ivan’s reflection there is the idea that working hard and living unoffensively largely means a good life. One of Tolstoy’s finest works this story presents a masterful consideration of the meaning of life and facing terminal illness. Furthermore, Ivan is shown to resent his family for not discussing death and their lack of acceptance of his situation.
The story also considers the spiritual implications of Ivan’s situation and the pacing encourages the reader to reflect on their own perspectives. The Death of Ivan Ilyich fed into the lessons from other readings for my class and acts as a great way of wrapping up messaging from the other stories mentioned. The key questions are what it means to live a good life, how to reflect on your own life, how to forgive others and through Ivan’s experience how accepting death can be freeing. Since it is a shorter story I would again recommend reading this with Master and Man and perhaps other academic research on gift relationships.
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