War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide

Pierre is taken to the inner sanctum of his father's magnificent estate. The room was filled with family, physicians, and servants. The once powerful Kirill Bezukhov is on the precipice of death.  The name Kirill i derives from the Greek name Kyrillos (Κύριλλος), which comes from Kyrios (κύριος), meaning “lord,” or “lordly.”  He is represented as one of Catherine the Great’s grandees, meaning a person of very high rank. In giving the character this particular name, Tolstoy captures the nature of his first character to die. The Count was representative of a dying class. In one sense, the age of serfdom is heading towards its own demise and the Count owned tens of thousands of people tied to the soil. New social arrangements are coming, exemplified by other characters, including the chief adversary of the novel, NapoleonThe Count is positioned in an invalid’s chair, propped up by pillows.  Tolstoy is highlighting the frailty of the human condition, showing how even the most powerful have limited strength an