Summary
Levin arrives at his brother Nikolai's deathbed, where he witnesses the final moments of a man who has lived a tortured, searching life. Despite their complicated relationship and Nikolai's difficult personality, Levin feels profound grief watching his brother slip away. The death forces Levin to confront his own mortality and the meaning of existence in a visceral way that all his philosophical reading never could. He realizes that watching someone die changes you - it strips away abstract theories about life and death and makes everything brutally real. Kitty proves herself remarkable during this crisis, showing practical compassion and strength that surprises even Levin. She tends to Nikolai with genuine care, bringing comfort to his final hours without the awkwardness or fear that paralyzes others around death. This experience becomes a turning point for Levin's understanding of what really matters. All his intellectual struggles about the purpose of life suddenly seem less important than the simple human acts of love and care he witnesses. The chapter explores how death clarifies life's priorities and how facing mortality together can deepen relationships. Levin sees Kitty's character revealed under pressure and feels his love for her grow stronger. The death also represents the end of Levin's complicated relationship with his brother - all their arguments and misunderstandings now seem petty in the face of this final reality. Tolstoy uses this moment to show how death strips away pretense and forces us to see what truly matters: human connection, compassion, and the courage to love despite knowing we will lose those we care about.
Coming Up in Chapter 110
In the aftermath of Nikolai's death, Levin and Kitty must navigate their grief while making practical decisions about the future. The experience has changed them both, but will it bring them closer together or reveal new challenges in their marriage?
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An excerpt from the original text.(~500 words)
Alexey Alexandrovitch, on coming back from church service, had spent the whole morning indoors. He had two pieces of business before him that morning; first, to receive and send on a deputation from the native tribes which was on its way to Petersburg, and now at Moscow; secondly, to write the promised letter to the lawyer. The deputation, though it had been summoned at Alexey Alexandrovitch’s instigation, was not without its discomforting and even dangerous aspect, and he was glad he had found it in Moscow. The members of this deputation had not the slightest conception of their duty and the part they were to play. They naïvely believed that it was their business to lay before the commission their needs and the actual condition of things, and to ask assistance of the government, and utterly failed to grasp that some of their statements and requests supported the contention of the enemy’s side, and so spoiled the whole business. Alexey Alexandrovitch was busily engaged with them for a long while, drew up a program for them from which they were not to depart, and on dismissing them wrote a letter to Petersburg for the guidance of the deputation. He had his chief support in this affair in the Countess Lidia Ivanovna. She was a specialist in the matter of deputations, and no one knew better than she how to manage them, and put them in the way they should go. Having completed this task, Alexey Alexandrovitch wrote the letter to the lawyer. Without the slightest hesitation he gave him permission to act as he might judge best. In the letter he enclosed three of Vronsky’s notes to Anna, which were in the portfolio he had taken away. Since Alexey Alexandrovitch had left home with the intention of not returning to his family again, and since he had been at the lawyer’s and had spoken, though only to one man, of his intention, since especially he had translated the matter from the world of real life to the world of ink and paper, he had grown more and more used to his own intention, and by now distinctly perceived the feasibility of its execution. He was sealing the envelope to the lawyer, when he heard the loud tones of Stepan Arkadyevitch’s voice. Stepan Arkadyevitch was disputing with Alexey Alexandrovitch’s servant, and insisting on being announced. “No matter,” thought Alexey Alexandrovitch, “so much the better. I will inform him at once of my position in regard to his sister, and explain why it is I can’t dine with him.” “Come in!” he said aloud, collecting his papers, and putting them in the blotting-paper. “There, you see, you’re talking nonsense, and he’s at home!” responded Stepan Arkadyevitch’s voice, addressing the servant, who had refused to let him in, and taking off his coat as he went, Oblonsky walked into the room. “Well, I’m awfully glad I’ve found you! So I hope....” Stepan Arkadyevitch began cheerfully. “I cannot come,” Alexey Alexandrovitch said coldly, standing...
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Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Road of Death's Clarity
Facing mortality strips away pretense and reveals what truly matters in relationships and life choices.
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to recognize people's true nature by observing their behavior during difficult, high-stakes moments.
Practice This Today
Next time someone faces a crisis—illness, job loss, family emergency—notice who shows up with actions, not just words, and who disappears when things get uncomfortable.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
Deathbed vigil
The practice of staying with someone during their final hours, providing comfort and witnessing their passing. In 19th century Russia, this was considered a sacred duty and profound human experience that changed those who participated.
Modern Usage:
We still see this in hospice care, when families gather in hospital rooms, or when we stay with dying pets at the vet.
Mortality crisis
The psychological shock that comes from confronting death directly, forcing someone to question their own life's meaning and priorities. It strips away abstract thinking and makes existence feel urgently real.
Modern Usage:
This happens after losing a parent, surviving an accident, or getting a serious diagnosis - suddenly your problems feel different.
Practical compassion
Love shown through action rather than words - actually doing the uncomfortable, necessary work of caring for someone. It's compassion that gets its hands dirty and doesn't worry about looking good.
Modern Usage:
The person who cleans up when someone's sick, drives them to chemo, or handles the paperwork during a family crisis.
Character under pressure
How someone's true nature is revealed during crisis or stress. Tolstoy believed that extreme situations strip away social masks and show who people really are underneath.
Modern Usage:
You see this during job layoffs, family emergencies, or natural disasters - some people step up, others fall apart.
Philosophical vs. lived experience
The gap between thinking about life's big questions intellectually versus actually experiencing them. Tolstoy shows how reading about death is nothing like watching someone die.
Modern Usage:
Like the difference between reading parenting books and actually having a screaming toddler, or studying grief versus losing someone you love.
Reconciliation through loss
How death can heal broken relationships by making past arguments seem trivial. The finality of loss puts conflicts in perspective and highlights what really mattered.
Modern Usage:
Families often reunite at funerals, or estranged friends reach out after hearing someone died - loss clarifies what's important.
Characters in This Chapter
Levin
Grieving brother
Watches his brother die and experiences a profound shift in his understanding of life and death. His intellectual approach to existence is shattered by the raw reality of mortality, forcing him to value human connection over abstract philosophy.
Modern Equivalent:
The overthinker who finally understands something through experience rather than analysis
Nikolai
Dying brother
Levin's troubled older brother who dies after a life of searching and struggle. His death represents the end of their complicated relationship and forces Levin to confront mortality directly.
Modern Equivalent:
The difficult family member whose death still hits you hard despite all your conflicts
Kitty
Compassionate caregiver
Proves herself during the crisis by providing practical, fearless care to the dying man. Her natural compassion and strength surprise Levin and deepen his love for her.
Modern Equivalent:
The partner who steps up during a family emergency and shows you who they really are
Key Quotes & Analysis
"Death destroyed all the complicated lies of life and left only the simple truth."
Context: As Levin processes watching his brother's final moments
This captures how death strips away all the artificial complexities we create and forces us to see what actually matters. It's Tolstoy's insight that mortality clarifies life's real priorities.
In Today's Words:
When someone's dying, all the drama and complications suddenly don't matter - only love and connection do.
"He felt that his love for his wife was strengthened by seeing her true nature revealed."
Context: Levin watching Kitty care for his dying brother
Crisis reveals character, and Kitty's fearless compassion shows Levin who she really is. This moment deepens their relationship through shared experience of life's hardest realities.
In Today's Words:
Seeing how she handled the worst situation made him love her even more.
"All his questions about the meaning of life seemed suddenly unimportant beside this simple human suffering."
Context: Levin's realization as he witnesses his brother's death
This shows how intellectual struggles pale beside real human experience. Levin's philosophical searching is replaced by immediate understanding of what matters: alleviating suffering and showing love.
In Today's Words:
All his deep thinking about life's purpose felt pointless when faced with actual pain and loss.
Thematic Threads
Mortality
In This Chapter
Nikolai's death forces Levin to confront the reality of human fragility and finite time
Development
Introduced here as a visceral experience that changes Levin's philosophical understanding
In Your Life:
You might recognize this when a health scare makes you suddenly appreciate ordinary moments with loved ones.
Human Connection
In This Chapter
Kitty's compassionate care for Nikolai reveals the power of simple human presence during suffering
Development
Builds on earlier themes of authentic relationships versus social performance
In Your Life:
You see this when someone shows up for you during your worst moments without trying to fix or judge.
Personal Growth
In This Chapter
Levin's intellectual understanding of life and death is transformed by witnessing actual death
Development
Continues his journey from abstract thinking to lived experience
In Your Life:
You experience this when theory meets reality—like reading about parenting versus actually having a child.
Class
In This Chapter
Death equalizes everyone—Nikolai's social struggles become irrelevant in his final moments
Development
Shows how mortality transcends social divisions explored throughout the novel
In Your Life:
You notice this in hospital rooms where CEO and janitor families wait with the same fear and hope.
Identity
In This Chapter
Levin sees Kitty's true character revealed under pressure, deepening his understanding of who she really is
Development
Builds on the theme of discovering authentic self versus social persona
In Your Life:
You witness this when crisis reveals who people really are beneath their everyday masks.
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
How does watching his brother die change what Levin thinks is important in life?
analysis • surface - 2
Why does Kitty's behavior during Nikolai's death surprise Levin and strengthen their relationship?
analysis • medium - 3
When have you seen people's true priorities emerge during a crisis or loss? What changed about how they treated relationships?
application • medium - 4
If you knew someone important to you only had weeks to live, what conversations would you prioritize having with them?
application • deep - 5
What does this chapter suggest about the difference between thinking about life's meaning versus experiencing it directly?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
Priority Reality Check
Think of someone you care about who you've been taking for granted or having ongoing tension with. Write down what you would say to them if you knew they only had a month to live. Then consider what's stopping you from having that conversation now. Notice how imagining loss changes your perspective on what matters in the relationship.
Consider:
- •Focus on what you'd want them to know, not what you want to prove or win
- •Consider whether your current conflicts would matter if time was limited
- •Think about what you'd regret not saying or doing if it was too late
Journaling Prompt
Write about a time when you gained clarity about what really mattered during a difficult situation. How did that experience change how you approach relationships or priorities now?
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 110
In the next chapter, you'll discover key events and character development in this chapter, and learn thematic elements and literary techniques. These insights reveal timeless patterns that resonate in our own lives and relationships.