In 1851, at the age of twenty-two, Tolstoy joined the Russian army and travelled to the Caucasus as a soldier. Begun in 1852 but unfinished for a decade, "The Cossacks" describes the experiences of Olenin, a young cultured Russian who comes to despise civilization after spending time with ...

In 1851, at the age of twenty-two, Tolstoy joined the Russian army and travelled to the Caucasus as a soldier. Begun in 1852 but unfinished for a decade, "The Cossacks" describes the experiences of Olenin, a young cultured Russian who comes to despise civilization after spending time with the wild Cossack people.