Briggs: The force of history is power, but how is it used to direct events?
Translation:
III.
Going is an engine. It is asked, from what does it move? The peasant speaks: the devil moves it. Another speaks that the engine is going because of how on it moves wheels. The third states that the cause of the movements conclude in the smoke, attributable to the wind.
The peasant is irrefutable: he thought up a complete explanation. For him to be disproved, it is needed so that someone proves to him that there is no devil, or so that a different peasant explains that there is not a devil, but a German moving the engine. Only then from the contradiction will they see that they are both not right. Yet that one which speaks that the cause is the move of the wheels, itself is disproved, for if he marched into the soil of analysis, he should go farther and farther: he should explain the cause of the movements of the wheels. And while he will not come to the last reason of the movements of the engine, to the compressed in the engine time, he will not have the right to stay in finding causes. That same one which explained the move of the engine is attributable to backwards smoke, obviously entered so: noticing that the explanation about the wheels does not give causes, he takes the first caught sign and, with their parties, gave out it for the cause.
Only the concept, which may explain the move of an engine, is the concept of forces, equal to apparent movement.
Only the concept, through which may be explained the move of peoples, is the concept of forces, equal to all the movement of peoples.
Between that concept this is understood by various historians completely variously, and quite by the unequal apparent movement of forces. One sees in it force, directly inherent in the hero, as the peasant the devil in the engine; another, — a force produced from some other forces, as the move of the wheels; a third, — mental influence, as carries off smoke.
To those writing the history of individual persons, — be they Caesars, Aleksandrs or Luthers and Voltaires, but not the story of all, without one exception all, people, hosting participation in an event, — there is no opportunity to attribute the separate faces of the forces, forcing other people to direct their activity to one goal. And only to famous history is such a concept power.
This concept is only a knob, through which can be controlled the material history in the present to it statement, and that, which would break off this would know, as did Buckle, not upon learning another reception of treating historical material, then only would deprive would themselves the last opportunity to handle with it. The inevitable idea about authorities for the explanations of historical phenomena, is better only proven itself by general historians and historians of culture, imaginarily renouncing from the idea about authorities and inevitably in each step using it.
Historical science, by the relation to questions of humanity, is similar to the addressing of money, — banknotes and ringing coins. Biographical and private folk history is similar to banknotes. They may walk and be handled, satisfactory to appointment without the harm that would be or was, and even with benefit, while does not spring up a question about what they provide. It is worth only to forget about the question about in what way will heroes produces events, and the history of Thier will be interesting, instructive and, besides that, will have a shade poetry. Yet exactly so the same, as doubt in the valid worth of pieces of paper arises or from what they do is easy, then they begin to do much, or from that one wants to take them for gold, — exactly so the same arises doubt in the valid meaning of stories of this family or from what they are is too much, or from what someone, in simplicity of soul, asks: what the same forcibly did this to Napoleon? I.e. they will want to exchange the walking piece of paper to a pure gold valid idea.
The same general historians and historians of culture are similar to people that, recognizing the inconvenience of banknotes, would decide, instead of pieces of paper, to make a ringing coin from metal, not having the density of gold. And the coin really would excite in the ringing, but only the ringing. The note still could betray the ignorant; but the coin ringing, but not being valuable, may not deceive anybody. So the same as gold is then only gold when it may be used not only for barter, but for affairs, so the same general historians then will only be gold, when they will be forced to answer the substantial question of history: what such is power? General historians answer this question contradictingly, but historians of culture quite remove it, answering something really another. And as tokens, similar to gold, may be used only between people, agreeing to admit them for gold, and between those that do not know the properties of gold, so general historians and historians of culture, not answering the essential questions of humanity, serve for some kind of goals, walking in the coin of universities and a crowd of readers— hunters to serious books, as they call them.
Locations:
Mentioned: German
Pevear and Volokhonsky Notes: A "why does a locomotive move" analogy is used here and operates in the way that the apple analogy worked earlier in the novel.
History cannot work unless it includes "all the people" to describe the movement of mankind and historians only know the concept of power.
Tolstoy develops a paper money analogy (relevant to the novel because of the chapters that talk about how Napoleon forged currency) to show how historians do something that appear useful until you ask what the true meaning and force behind events are.
Characters (characters who do not appear, but are mentioned are placed in italics. First appearances are in Bold. First mentions are underlined. Final appearance denoted by *):
Alexander
Napoleon
Thiers
(Caesar, Voltaire, and Luther are also referenced. Buckle is also referenced again and historians are talked about in general. Also the hypothetical people including the peasant that try to figure out why the locomotive moves.)
Abridged Versions: End of chapter 1 in Bell.
Gibian: Line break instead of chapter break.
Additional Notes:
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