A Confession

A Confession, or My Confession, by Leo Tolstoy is a profound exploration of melancholia, philosophy, and religion, penned between 1879 and 1880 during his early fifties. This autobiographical work details Tolstoy's mid-life existential crisis as he grapples with the meaning of life in the face of inevitable death, beginning with a symbolic Eastern fable. He examines four responses to this existential dilemma, ultimately revealing the struggle he faces between seeking meaning and confronting the reality of mortality.