Sometimes Tolstoy uses analogies that I really don't entirely get. On this page, two military commanders are discussing whether Napoleon could easily attack instead of being attacked. One of them replies, "with the smile of a doctor being told by a wise woman how to treat a patient". What exactly is that supposed to mean? -- LolaLola Baltzell
from page 333-334 of original text
collage, acrylic paint
made 7/16/10
Tolstoy hated doctors, and believed they not only knew nothing, but that they also pretended they knew a lot. So, a wise woman talking about a patient--a woman who has worked with her children and community for years--is threatening to a doctor. His smile would be both condescending and scared. He knows the wise woman can expose his inexperience and lack of knowledge.
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