"Tolstoy On Shakespeare: A Critical Essay On Shakespeare" is a non-fiction work by the renowned Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, published in 1906. In this essay, Tolstoy presents a comprehensive critique of the works of William Shakespeare, arguably the most celebrated playwright in the English language. Tolstoy's assessment of Shakespeare's plays is characterized by both admiration and criticism. While he acknowledges Shakespeare's literary genius and the universal appeal of his works, Tolstoy also questions their moral and artistic value. One of Tolstoy's main criticisms of Shakespeare is centered on what he perceives as the lack of moral clarity and coherence in his plays. Tolstoy argues that Shakespeare's characters and plots lack moral integrity and fail to convey a clear moral message. He accuses Shakespeare of promoting moral relativism and portraying human behavior in a morally ambiguous light, which he views as detrimental to society. Furthermore, Tolstoy criticizes Shakespeare's portrayal of life as a series of chaotic and meaningless events, devoid of any higher purpose or moral order. He contrasts this with his own belief in the importance of moral principles and the pursuit of a meaningful life guided by moral ideals. In addition to his moral objections, Tolstoy also critiques Shakespeare's writing style, particularly his use of complex language and intricate plots, which he finds excessive and unnecessary. Tolstoy advocates for simplicity and clarity in literature, arguing that Shakespeare's verbosity and ornate language detract from the true essence of his characters and themes. Despite his criticisms, Tolstoy acknowledges Shakespeare's immense influence on world literature and culture. He recognizes the enduring popularity of Shakespeare's plays and the profound impact they have had on subsequent generations of writers and artists. Overall, "Tolstoy On Shakespeare" offers a thought-provoking analysis of Shakespeare's works from the perspective of one of the greatest writers of the 19th century. Tolstoy's essay reflects his own moral and aesthetic principles, as well as his profound engagement with the philosophical questions of human existence and the nature of art.

I remember the astonishment I felt when I first read Shakespeare. I expected to receive a powerful aesthetic pleasure, but having read, one after the other, works regarded as his best: "King Lear," "Romeo and Juliet," "Hamlet" and "Macbeth," not only did I feel no delight, but I felt an irresistible repulsion and tedium, and doubted as to whether I was senseless in feeling works regarded as the summit of perfection by the whole of the civilized world to be trivial and positively bad, or whether the significance which this civilized world attributes to the works of Shakespeare was itself senseless. My consternation was increased by the fact that I always keenly felt the beauties of poetry in every form; then why should artistic works recognized by the whole world as those of a genius,-the works of Shakespeare,-not only fail to please me, but be disagreeable to me? For a long time I could not believe in myself, and during fifty years, in order to test myself, I several times recommenced reading Shakespeare in every possible form, in Russian, in English, in German and in Schlegel's translation, as I was advised. Several times I read the dramas and the comedies and historical plays, and I invariably underwent the same feelings: repulsion, weariness, and bewilderment. At the present time, before writing this preface, being desirous once more to test myself, I have, as an old man of seventy-five, again read the whole of Shakespeare, including the historical plays, the "Henrys," "Troilus and Cressida," the "Tempest," "Cymbeline," and I have felt, with even greater force, the same feelings,-this time, however, not of bewilderment, but of firm, indubitable conviction that the unquestionable glory of a great genius which Shakespeare enjoys, and which compels writers of our time to imitate him and readers and spectators to discover in him non-existent merits,-thereby distorting their aesthetic and ethical understanding,-is a great evil, as is every untruth.

Count Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy (1828-1910) commonly referred to in English as Leo Tolstoy, was a Russian writer - novelist, essayist, dramatist and philosopher - as well as pacifist Christian anarchist and educational reformer. He was the most influential member of the aristocratic Tolstoy family. His first publications were three autobiographical novels, Childhood, Boyhood, and Youth (1852-1856). They tell of a rich landowner's son and his slow realization of the differences between him and his peasants. As a fiction writer Tolstoy is widely regarded as one of the greatest of all novelists, particularly noted for his masterpieces War and Peace (1869) and Anna Karenina (1877). In their scope, breadth and realistic depiction of 19th-century Russian life, the two books stand at the peak of realist fiction. As a moral philosopher Tolstoy was notable for his ideas on nonviolent resistance through works such as The Kingdom of God is Within You (1894). During his life, Tolstoy came to the conclusion that William Shakespeare is a bad dramatist and not a true artist at all. Tolstoy explained his views in a critical essay on Shakespeare written in 1903.