NOTE TO CHAPTER XL

Previous
graf Leo Tolstoy

The vocation of every man and woman is to serve other people. With this general proposition, I think all who are not immoral people will agree. The difference between men and women in the fulfilment of that vocation, is only in the means by which they attain it; that is to say, by which they serve men.

Man serves others by physical work,—procuring food; by intellectual work,—studying the laws of nature in order to master it; and by social work,—instituting forms of life, and establishing mutual relationships between people.

The means of serving others are various for men. The whole activity of mankind, with the exception of bearing children and rearing them, is open for his service to men. A woman, in addition to the possibility of serving men by all the means open to man is, by the construction of her body, called and inevitably attracted, to serve others by that which alone is excepted from the domain of the service of man.

The service of mankind is divided into two parts,—one, the augmentation of the welfare of mankind; the other, the continuation of the race. Men are called chiefly to the first, as they are deprived of the possibility of fulfilling the second. Women are called exclusively to the second, as they only are fitted for it. This difference one should not, one can not, forget or destroy; and it would be sinful to do so. From this difference proceed the duties of each,—duties not invented by men, but which are in the nature of things. From the same difference proceeds the estimation of virtue and vice for woman and man,—the estimation which has existed in every century, which exists now, and which will never cease to exist while reason exists in men.

It always has been the case, and it always will be, that a man who spends a great part of his life in the various physical and mental labours which are natural to him, and a woman who spends a great part of her life in the labour of bearing, nursing, and rearing children, which is her exclusive prerogative, will alike feel that they are doing their duty, and will alike rise in the esteem and love of other people, because they both fulfil what is appointed because such is the substance of the matter.

The vocation of man is broader and more varied; the vocation of woman more uniform and narrower, but more profound: and therefore it has always been, and always will be, the case, that man, having hundreds of duties, will be neither a bad nor a pernicious man, even when he has been false to one or ten out of them, if he fulfils the greater part of his vocation; while woman, as she has a smaller number of duties, if she is false to one of them, instantly falls lower than a man, who has been false to ten out of his hundreds of duties. Such has always been the general opinion, and such it will always remain,—because such is the substance of the matter.

A man, in order to fulfil God's will, must serve him in the domain of physical work, thought and morality: in all these ways he can fulfil his vocation. Woman's service to God consists chiefly and almost exclusively in bearing children (because no one except herself can render it). Only by means of work, is man called to serve God and his fellow-men: only by means of her children, is a woman called to serve them.

Therefore, that love to her own children which is inborn in woman, that exclusive love against which it is quite vain to strive by reasoning, will always be, and ought to be, natural to a woman and a mother. That love to a child in its infancy is not egotism, it is the love of a workman for the work which he is doing while it is in his hands. Take away that love for the object of one's work, and the work becomes impossible. While I am making a boot, I love it above everything. If I did not love it, I could not work at it. If anybody spoils it for me, I am in despair; but I only love it thus while I am working at it. When it is completed, there remains an attachment, a preference, which is weak and illegitimate.

It is the same with a mother. A man is called to serve others by multifarious labours, and he loves those labours while he is accomplishing them. A woman is called to serve others by her children, and she cannot help loving those children of hers while she is rearing them to the age of three, seven, or ten years.

In the general vocation of serving God and others, man and woman are entirely equal, notwithstanding the difference of the form of that service. The equality consists in the equal importance of one service and of the other,—that the one is impossible without the other, that the one depends upon the other, and that for efficient service, as well for man as for woman, the knowledge of truth is equally necessary.

Without this knowledge, the activity of man and woman becomes not useful but pernicious for mankind. Man is called to fulfil his multifarious labour; but his labour is only useful, and his physical, mental, and social labour is only fruitful, when it is fulfilled in the name of truth and the welfare of others.

A man can occupy himself as zealously as he will to increase his pleasures by vain reasoning and with social activity for his own advantage: his labour will not be fruitful. It will be so only when it is directed towards lessening the suffering of others through want and ignorance and from false social organization.

The same with woman's vocation: her bearing, nursing, and bringing up children will only be useful to mankind when she gives birth to children not only for her own pleasure, but when she prepares future servants of mankind; when the education of those children is done in the name of truth and for the welfare of others,—that is to say, when she will educate her children in such a manner that they shall be the very best men possible, and the very best labourers for others.

The ideal woman, in my opinion, is the one who,—appropriating the highest view of life of the time in which she lives, yet gives herself to her feminine mission, which is irresistibly placed in her,—that of bringing forth, nursing and educating, the greatest possible number of children, fitted to work for people according to the view which she has of life.

In order to appropriate the highest view of life, I think there is no need of visiting lectures: all that she requires is to read the gospel, and not to shut her eyes, ears, and, most of all, her heart.

Well, and if you ask what those are to do who have no children, who are not married, or who are widows, I answer that those will do well to share man's multifarious labour. But one cannot help feeling sorry that such a precious tool as woman is, should be bereft of the possibility of fulfilling the great vocation which it is given to her alone to fulfil.

Especially as every woman, when she has finished bearing children, if she has strength left, will have time to occupy herself with help in man's labour. Woman's help in that labour is very precious; but it will always be a pity to see a young woman fit for child-bearing occupied by man's labour.To see such a woman, is the same as to see precious vegetable soil covered with stones as a place of parade or as a walking-ground. Still more a pity, because the earth could only produce bread, and a woman could produce that for which there cannot be any equivalent, than which there is nothing higher,—man. And only she is able to do this.

THE END

JUST PUBLISHED, PRICE 6d.

NEW STORIES by LEO TOLSTOY.

King Assarhadon,
and other Two Stories.

With Introduction, including quotations from the Letters of Leo Tolstoy.

Authorized Translation
BY
V. TCHERTKOFF (Editor of “The Free Age Press.”)
AND I. F. M.

With Frontispiece, on Plate Paper, of the latest Portrait of Tolstoy on Horseback, August, 1903.

By request of Tolstoy, the profits of this work will be devoted to the relief of the families of the Jews massacred in Russia.

The Free Age Press,
13, PATERNOSTER ROW, LONDON.

[1] RÉaumur.

[2] A sbiten-seller: sbiten is a hot drink made of herbs or spices and molasses

[3] The police certificate of registration as a prostitute.—Ed.

[4] An unfermented home-made liquor used by Russian peasants.—Ed.

[5] A home-made cheap fermented drink.—Ed.

[6] Tolstoy's village of Yasnaya Polyana is situated in this district.—Ed.

Transcriber's Note:

The following is a list of corrections made to the original. The first passage is the original passage, the second the corrected one.

  • Advertisement:
    eradicate, each from himself, those false ideas, alse feelings,
    eradicate, each from himself, those false ideas, false feelings,
  • Advertisement:
    cloth-bound volumes,
    cloth-bound volumes.
  • Page 5:
    put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
    put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?”
  • Page 5:
    (Matt.vi, 19–25.)
    (Matt.vi. 19–25.)
  • Page 5:
    a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” (Lukexviii. 25).
    a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” (Lukexviii. 25.)
  • Page 12:
    aside by a big, black, hook-nosed bare-headed fellow,
    aside by a big, black, hook-nosed, bare-headed fellow,
  • Page 12:
    me out of the crush,. But the crowd that formerly had
    me out of the crush. But the crowd that formerly had
  • Page 16:
    the state of pauperism in Moscow, and te help exterminate
    the state of pauperism in Moscow, and to help exterminate
  • Page 20:
    with his air of decreptitude, feebleness, and poverty.
    with his air of decrepitude, feebleness, and poverty.
  • Page 29:
    He was evidently pleased to have intercouse with the
    He was evidently pleased to have intercourse with the
  • Page 29:
    approached them, Ivan Fedotitch said, “Now, here's
    approached them, IvÁn Fedotitch said, “Now, here's
  • Page 34:
    No: it is that woman's there.”
    “No: it is that woman's there.”
  • Page 38:
    Rzhanoff's house; where, however, three-forths of the men
    Rzhanoff's house; where, however, three-fourths of the men
  • Page 39:
    And, strange to say, thought it might seem that to do
    And, strange to say, though it might seem that to do
  • Page 40:
    He did not notice me and said hurredly,—
    He did not notice me and said hurriedly,—
  • Page 54:
    Chistmas-tree, and so on. Yet a man who needs ten
    Christmas-tree, and so on. Yet a man who needs ten
  • Page 57:
    poor people some work to do.
    poor people some work to do.”
  • Page 62:
    if as, it often happened, he shed tears in relating his misfortune,
    if, as it often happened, he shed tears in relating his misfortune,
  • Page 63:
    else to the poor,, and in my adventures among the town
    else to the poor, and in my adventures among the town
  • Page 66:
    able to do a little good ;such as, for instance, the poor
    able to do a little good; such as, for instance, the poor
  • Page 68:
    take place in a ant-hill if the society of ants should lose
    take place in an ant-hill if the society of ants should lose
  • Page 69:
    instead of being, as formerly, intricate, incomprehensible
    instead of being, as formerly, intricate, incomprehensible,
  • Page 72:
    thus, rent (the value of the ground) belongs to the land.owner;
    thus, rent (the value of the ground) belongs to the land-owner;
  • Page 77:
    cause of the fact that some men by means of money,
    cause of the fact that some men, by means of money,
  • Page 81:
    to try to raise money in Melbourne among the mrechants,
    to try to raise money in Melbourne among the merchants,
  • Page 86:
    This phenomena repeats itself in America, in China, in
    This phenomenon repeats itself in America, in China, in
  • Page 89:
    If the object of this sham pseudo—science of Political
    If the object of this sham pseudo-science of Political
  • Page 90:
    violence..
    violence.
  • Page 100:
    assessors of direct taxation, supervisers, custom-house
    assessors of direct taxation, supervisors, custom-house
  • Page 101:
    Its advantages for the oppressed is only that he is
    Its advantage for the oppressed is only that he is
  • Page 101:
    This third method of enslaving men is also very old,,
    This third method of enslaving men is also very old,
  • Page 109:
    against his will, has been obiged to pay a sovereign for
    against his will, has been obliged to pay a sovereign for
  • Page 111:
    The violent seizures of the labourers' land has been
    The violent seizure of the labourers' land has been
  • Page 115:
    to the work of Peter, Ivan, Sidor. But wherever money
    to the work of Peter, IvÁn, Sidor. But wherever money
  • Page 115:
    on Ivan, at the same time it removes all those human
    on IvÁn, at the same time it removes all those human
  • Page 116:
    rouble; I cut off coupons and live apart from all the
    ruble; I cut off coupons and live apart from all the
  • Page 122:
    other men surrounding him, there exists a most clear
    other men surrounding him, there exists a most clear,
  • Page 129:
    beggars with whom Moscow is filled, and the woman into
    beggars with whom Moscow is filled, and the women into
  • Page 130:
    no girl and no women who is not yet depraved would,
    no girl and no woman who is not yet depraved would,
  • Page 133:
    velvets, sweatmeats, cigarettes, and clean shirts, when
    velvets, sweetmeats, cigarettes, and clean shirts, when
  • Page 134:
    It maybe that I shall eat human flesh when urged by
    It may be that I shall eat human flesh when urged by
  • Page 140:
    ears, and understand with their heart, and turn again, and be healed
    ears, and understand with their heart, and turn again, and be healed.
  • Page 141:
    struggle.
    struggle?
  • Page 143:
    A great many justifications have been invented
    A great many justifications have been invented.
  • Page 145:
    the Middle ages and their citizens, knights, priests, and
    the Middle Ages and their citizens, knights, priests, and
  • Page 146:
    from work, and having by violence appropriated the the
    from work, and having by violence appropriated the
  • Page 149:
    by them. On what grounds do they believe this. To the
    by them. On what grounds do they believe this? To the
  • Page 156:
    CHAPTER XXII
    CHAPTER XXIX
  • Page 158:
    “Where did it come from”? “With what purpose?”
    “Where did it come from?” “With what purpose?”
  • Page 164:
    separate organism; so, for instance, out of a swarm of
    separate organisms; so, for instance, out of a swarm of
  • Page 170:
    that exists, therefore it must exist in human societies too.”
    that exists, therefore it must exist in human societies too.
  • Page 170:
    still remains, To whom is the power given, to Catharine
    still remains, To whom is the power given, to Catherine
  • Page 172:
    in compensation for what the y ask him to do for them.
    in compensation for what they ask him to do for them.
  • Page 175:
    already become accustomed. Give me bodily food, and and
    already become accustomed. Give me bodily food, and
  • Page 187:
    schools? They they will be still poorer, and will want
    schools? Then they will be still poorer, and will want
  • Page 189:
    who have freed themselves from labour bceause they
    who have freed themselves from labour because they
  • Page 195:
    destiny, and what that of other cells similar to you
    destiny, and what that of other cells similar to you.
  • Page 205:
    phenomna of life surrounding me became of a sudden
    phenomena of life surrounding me became of a sudden
  • Page 209:
    and complicated To the question, “What have we to
    and complicated. To the question, “What have we to
  • Page 213:
    of Schopenhauer and Hartman. “If such is life,” then
    of Schopenhauer and Hartman. “If such is life, then
  • Page 238:
    your children. You do well if you spend one-tenth of
    your children? You do well if you spend one-tenth of





End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of What Shall We Do?, by Leo Tolstoy

*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WHAT SHALL WE DO? ***

***** This file should be named 38690-h.htm or 38690-h.zip *****
This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
/3/8/6/9/38690/

Produced by Jana Srna, Bryan Ness and the Online Distributed
Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
produced from images generously made available by The
Internet Archive/American Libraries.)


Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
will be renamed.

Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules,
set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project
Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you
do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is
subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
redistribution.



*** START: FULL LICENSE ***

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK

To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
/license).


Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic works

1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.

1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be
used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few
things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See
paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works. See paragraph 1.E below.

1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the
collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an
individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.

1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in
a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check
the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning
the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
States.

1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:

1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
copied or distributed:

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org

1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
1.E.9.

1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked
to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.

1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.

1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
Gutenberg-tm License.

1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or
distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.

1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.

1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
that

- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is
owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments
must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."

- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License. You must require such a user to return or
destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
Project Gutenberg-tm works.

- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
of receipt of the work.

- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.

1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the
Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.

1.F.

1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
your equipment.

1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
DAMAGE.

1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you
received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with
the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy
is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing withou
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

Clyx.com


Top of Page
Top of Page