The Plato Answer Is...
Tolstoy does present a spiritual perspective in the novella. Through the character of Ivan Ilyich, he shows the implications and consequences of living a life without a moral purpose. Ivan Ilyich’s approaching death drives him to review the purpose of his life. Tolstoy does not portray Ivan Ilyich as being religious. Yet Ivan thinks of God in his despair:
He wept on account of his helplessness, his terrible loneliness, the cruelty of man, the cruelty of God, and the absence of God.
"Why hast Thou done all this? Why hast Thou brought me here? Why, why dost Thou torment me so terribly?"
To advance this spiritual message, Tolstoy employs symbolism when describing Ivan’s struggle with a black sack and later his falling through a black hole.
Till about three in the morning he was in a state of stupefied misery. It seemed to him that he and his pain were being thrust into a narrow, deep black sack, but though they were pushed further and further in they could not be pushed to the bottom. And this, terrible enough in itself, was accompanied by suffering. He was frightened yet wanted to fall through the sack, he struggled but yet co-operated. And suddenly he broke through, fell, and regained consciousness.
The description of these struggles with the black sack and black hole represent a struggle in coming to terms with death. The struggles also offer imagery of rebirth; Ivan passes through and comes out into light on the other side with a new sense of spiritual peace. Ivan recognizes that his wasted life can be set right, allowing him to accept death in the end.
In addition, Tolstoy contrasts the character Gerasim and his emotional honesty and uncomplaining attitude with the superficial and self-centered attitude of Ivan Ilyich and his social circle. Through his interactions with Gerasim, Ivan Ilyich realizes that his life had been without a purpose; he has a sort of spiritual awakening. This final acceptance helps Ivan Ilyich die in peace:
Suddenly some force struck him in the chest and side, making it still harder to breathe, and he fell through the hole and there at the bottom was a light. What had happened to him was like the sensation one sometimes experiences in a railway carriage when one thinks one is going backwards while one is really going forwards and suddenly becomes aware of the real direction.
