The Death of Ivan Ilyich

By: Leo Tolstoy

Narrated by: Simon Prebble

Hailed as one of the world’s masterpieces of psychological realism, The Death of Ivan Ilyich is the story of a worldly careerist, a high-court judge who has never given the inevitability of his death so much as a passing thought. But one day death announces itself to him, and to his shocked surprise, he is brought face-to-face with his own mortality. How, Tolstoy asks, does an unreflective man confront his one and only moment of truth?

The first part of the story portrays Ivan Ilyich’s colleagues and family after he has died, as they discuss the effect of his death on their careers and fortunes. In the second part, Tolstoy reveals the life of the man whose death seems so trivial. The perfect bureaucrat, Ilyich treasured his orderly domestic and office routine. Diagnosed with an incurable illness, he at first denies the truth but is influenced by the simple acceptance of his servant boy, and he comes to embrace the boy’s belief that death is natural and not shameful. He comforts himself with happy memories of childhood and gradually realizes that he has ignored all his inner yearnings as he tried to do what was expected of him. Will Ilyich be able to come to terms with himself before his life ebbs away?

This short novel was the artistic culmination of a profound spiritual crisis in Tolstoy’s own life, a nine-year period following the publication of Anna Karenina, during which he wrote not a word of fiction. A thoroughly absorbing glimpse into the abyss of death, it is also a strong testament to the possibility of finding spiritual salvation.

Public Domain (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Written more than a century ago, Tolstoy’s work still retains the power of a contemporary novel." ( Publishers Weekly)

Elegant, simple, and true

"But however much he thought, he found no answer [why he was dying]. And when it occurred to him, as it often did, that it was all happening because he had not lived right, he at once recalled all the correctness of his life and drove the strange thought away." This is the elegant story of the agonizing decline of a most average of men until his premature death. Ivan Ilyich leads the life most of us lead, driven by career, climbing the social ladder, and supporting his family, never stopping to reflect until bedridden by his illness. His perspective of life and the world around him changes profoundly when he finally begins to question brutal truths, causing him to lose tolerance for the attitudes and ways of those closest to him, including his former healthy self. "I am leaving life with the consciousness that I have lost all that was given me, and there's no correcting it, then what?" Meanwhile, those around him show no interest in the least to understand his circumstances or to understand what he has come to know as sacred truth, and the frustration he suffers from their denials cause him more suffering than his illness. Meanwhile, they anticipate his death and upon its arrival do not rejoice, but rather use it as their own means to achieve the same things which he had previously been working towards: career advancement, climbing the social ladder, and supporting their families. In short, they treat his death for the purposes of those things in which he had finally seen the folly in the last months of his life.

At it's essence, the story is about the human capacity to change and learn as lives evolve, and that it's never too late to find peace. Any person who has undergone profound transformation, either through effort on their own part or through drastic life experiences, will relate to Ivan Ilyich's struggle, and especially to the profound shift in relationships he experiences with those around him, whose lives remain static and unchanged in the face of his own evolution, and how difficult it is to evolve when one is surrounded by friends, family, and colleagues who do not.

This story is also about the virtue of being able to tell hard truths, and the comfort that the truth can bring even when it communicates bad news. No one around Ivan Ilyich would admit that he was dying despite his own inner feeling that it was so, except for one of his peasant servants, who spoke bluntly and truthfully, endearing him to Ilyich as the only person he could stand to be around until his death, the only other healthy person so enlightened as a dying man. And when you're dying, there's no time for anything except blunt, simple truths.

Short story. very deep meaning

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

So many favorite authors and teachers reference this book, I felt I needed to read/listen for myself. I enjoyed it, got depressed, asked alot of questions of myself, and shed tears when he considered his life and his lack of connection with his kids in particular ... tough mirror to look into.

Any additional comments?

I likely will listen again from time to time. It's a short story, but profoundly insightful!

2.5 Hours with a self-absorbed dying Russian Judge

The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy is a very vivid depiction of a 19th century self-absorbed Russian Judge dying of an unspecified condition. Tolstoy is a master at capturing the mood of what is happening. His depiction of friends, family, and the dying one will resonate with anyone who has been close to someone facing his or her own mortality.

A brilliant performance of a brilliant work.

It is impossible to imagine how these Russian authors can dissect and present the essence of human condition - in all of its horror and splendor - such as they do.

To all - enjoy (and hug your children)

Every inch a Tolstoy

Exactly what I've come to expect from a novel by Tolstoy. Except that it's so short, I listened to it twice in a row. A scathing criticism of the expectations and lifestyle of high society. Causes the reader to pause and reflect on the meaning of life, and how it can be lived well.