Identity area
Reference code
ZA COM NMPP 2009/57-9-2
Title
War and Peace [_nTT3YpG1QI]
Date(s)
- 1992-12-21 (Creation)
Level of description
page
Extent and medium
1 audio clip
In-point: 43:39
Out-point: end of CD, 47:03
In-point: 43:39
Out-point: end of CD, 47:03
Context area
Name of creator
Name of creator
(1955-)
Biographical history
Editor and author. Collaborated with Mandela on his autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom (published 1994). Co-producer of the documentary Mandela, 1996. Editor of TIME magazine.
Repository
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Rick Stengel
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Nelson Mandela is a great reader. At school he read widely, and while in the anti-apartheid struggle, particularly as he was trying to establish a liberation army, he devoured whatever he could on armed struggles all over the world. In prison, he read whatever books he could get his hands on. He is also a great strategist, whether as a young boxer when he strategised about how to outwit his foes in the ring or as a chess player or a political activist, he would always think through his next move. He often spoke of non-violence as a strategy, rather than as a principle. Here he focuses on the strategy of the Russian army.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Access by permission of the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory
Conditions governing reproduction
Copyright held by the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory
Language of material
- English
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Notes area
Note
MANDELA: War and Peace was a tremendous book indeed and ... [INTERRUPTION]... now you were saying that, you were asking a question about War and Peace?
STENGEL: Yes, if you saw, did you see parallels in the books, between your situation and the stories in War and Peace or in The Old Man and the Sea, or The Grapes of Wrath, were they inspiring?
MANDELA: Well, oh yes, they were very inspiring, all these well-written books. Well-written indeed and you were able to gain something from them. The parallels, of course, on very broad lines, because the situation, you know, was not identical. War and Peace deals with high society compared to that of the ordinary people. And the different styles of life. And, but what interested me there, was the portrayal of Kutuzov, who was the Commander of the Russian forces against Napoleon. When Napoleon attacked, the Russians withdrew, retreated, in order. But when they came to Moscow, in front of Moscow, the Generals then said, ‘we cannot now allow Napoleon to take Moscow, that is the capital of the Soviet Union’ [sic], and Kutuzov said, ‘what do we care about buildings, what is important is to save the Russian army until winter comes, that will be the right moment for us to attack. I’m not interested in buildings; I’m interested you see in defeating Napoleon. If Napoleon can take Moscow, and then I’m assured of being able to crush him, that is what is important.’ And he resisted all efforts from his generals, that they must defend Moscow, he says, ‘no I will not because if we did, we would be crushed. I am going to retreat, but I’ll make sure that Napoleon does not find a grain of food in Moscow. So we must retreat and take out all foodstuffs from Moscow’. So he did.
STENGEL: Yes, if you saw, did you see parallels in the books, between your situation and the stories in War and Peace or in The Old Man and the Sea, or The Grapes of Wrath, were they inspiring?
MANDELA: Well, oh yes, they were very inspiring, all these well-written books. Well-written indeed and you were able to gain something from them. The parallels, of course, on very broad lines, because the situation, you know, was not identical. War and Peace deals with high society compared to that of the ordinary people. And the different styles of life. And, but what interested me there, was the portrayal of Kutuzov, who was the Commander of the Russian forces against Napoleon. When Napoleon attacked, the Russians withdrew, retreated, in order. But when they came to Moscow, in front of Moscow, the Generals then said, ‘we cannot now allow Napoleon to take Moscow, that is the capital of the Soviet Union’ [sic], and Kutuzov said, ‘what do we care about buildings, what is important is to save the Russian army until winter comes, that will be the right moment for us to attack. I’m not interested in buildings; I’m interested you see in defeating Napoleon. If Napoleon can take Moscow, and then I’m assured of being able to crush him, that is what is important.’ And he resisted all efforts from his generals, that they must defend Moscow, he says, ‘no I will not because if we did, we would be crushed. I am going to retreat, but I’ll make sure that Napoleon does not find a grain of food in Moscow. So we must retreat and take out all foodstuffs from Moscow’. So he did.