Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

  • A Confession

  • By: Leo Tolstoy
  • Narrated by: Mark Bowen
  • Length: 3 hrs and 13 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (5 ratings)
Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
A Confession cover art

A Confession

By: Leo Tolstoy
Narrated by: Mark Bowen
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £2.69

Buy Now for £2.69

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Kingdom of God Is Within You cover art
The Gospel in Brief cover art
The Uncensored Picture of Dorian Gray cover art
The Kingdom of God Is Within You cover art
Resurrection cover art
The Prince cover art
Anna Karenina cover art
The Possessed cover art
Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime and Other Stories cover art
Ode to a Nightingale cover art
Letters to a Young Poet cover art
The Picture of Dorian Gray: AOG Edition cover art
The Eve of St. Agnes cover art
Man's Search for Meaning cover art
Visions of Glory cover art
Memories, Dreams, Reflections cover art

Summary

A Confession, or My Confession, is a short work on the subject of melancholia, philosophy and religion by the acclaimed Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy. It was written in 1879 to 1880, when Tolstoy was in his early fifties.

The book is a brief autobiographical story of the author's struggle with a mid-life existential crisis. It describes his search for the answer to the ultimate philosophical question: "If God does not exist, since death is inevitable, what is the meaning of life?." Without the answer to this, for him, life had become "impossible".

The story begins with the Eastern fable of the dragon in the well. A man is chased by a beast into a well, at the bottom of which is a dragon. The man clings to a branch that is being gnawed on by two mice (one black, one white, representing night and day and the relentless march of time). The man is able to lick two drops of honey (representing Tolstoy's love of his family and his writing), but because death is inevitable, he no longer finds the honey sweet.

Tolstoy goes on to describe four possible attitudes towards this dilemma. The first is ignorance. If one is oblivious to the fact that death is approaching, life becomes bearable. The problem with this for him personally is that he is not ignorant. Having become conscious of the reality of death, there is no going back.

PLEASE NOTE: when you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2021 Strelbytskyy Multimedia Publishing (P)2021 Strelbytskyy Multimedia Publishing

What listeners say about A Confession

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

challenging and thought provoking

As someone who doesn't know what to believe, I found this manuscript helpful, challenging and thought provoking. Be aware, if you're looking for a firm conclusion you're maybe looking in the wrong place.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!