Andres, an Estonian peasant, purchases a smallholding in a marshy part of the country, which the novel is named after. He takes his young wife, and an incident with their cow sets the tone for a life of struggle in which the family grows and gradually lifts itself out of extreme poverty. They don’t only have to strive against the elements, but also against their neighbour Pearu, a wily and ruthless man. This Tolstoyan epic amongst the peasantry and the restless city (in volumes 2 – 4) tells the story of how Tsarist Estonia developed into the First Republic through the experiences of a family and in particular the partly autobiographical character of Indrek, who leaves the land to get an education at the end of this volume. This monumental work by Estonia’s greatest writer is a European classic which has for too long been neglected in the English-speaking world.

This second volume of A.H. Tammsaare’s monumental pentalogy portrays the education of Indrek who emerges here as the protagonist and will remain so throughout the next three volumes. The author writes with his trademark wit and deep understanding of human nature, and we find ourselves in the company of a vast gallery of larger-than-life characters who jostle, scheme and argue over both trivialities and the great issues of the human condition. They may do the latter out of their own intellectual narcissism or simply for the joy of debate, but the ensuing dialogues rival those of the great Russian novelists. Indrek is the story of moving to the polyglot city and abandoning the countryside which at that time was the heartland of the Estonian language. This new environment is a vortex of prejudices and national rivalries nevertheless held together in practice by a strange and very human tolerance. The boarding school is as dysfunctional as any Dickensian one, but it is a great deal more benevolent. Russians, Germans, Poles, Latvians and Caucasians mix with the Estonian majority, and somehow compromises are nearly always arrived at in spite of – or possibly because of – some extraordinary theatrics, in which Mr Maurus must outperform not only all the other characters in the book but all other celebrated headmasters created by European literature over the centuries. Indrek not only has to come to terms with this world so utterly unsuited to his shy and innocent rural upbringing, but he also has to deal with his first encounters with love and death.

The book series can be seen as a thorough overview of developments of Estonian society from about 1870 to about 1930; it presents an epic panorama of both the rural and urban societies of that era. Tammsaare's primary conception was that under the then-applicable conditions, reaching a harmony of both truth and justice is impossible, and thus, while many characters will seek it, none will reach this destination.

Neljas osa kujutab inimese võitlust iseendaga. Läbi sügavamõtteliste dialoogide ja tegelaste pihtimuste saab lugeja heita pilgu nende teadvusse ja hinge. Esimese maailmasõja ajal rikkaks saanud Eesti Vabariigi tõusikseltskonnas lokkab korruptsioon, mustad tehingud ja isiklike kirgede rahuldamine. Sellises atmosfääris peab Indrek rasket võitlust iseenda ja oma õnne pärast. Indreku ja Karini suhetes peegeldub ka üks Tammsaare lemmikteemasid – mehe-naise võimetus teineteist mõista. Karin ja Indrek moodustavad samasuguse vastandite paari nagu Andres ja Pearugi. Nimelt tahab Indrek maailma mõistusega kontrollida, seda süstematiseerida ja analüüsida, kuid Karin on kahtleja ja tõdedega mängija. Tema eesmärk on jõuda lõpliku tõeni ning paljastada ka kõik varjatu, kuid samas ei rahuldu ta ühegi tõega. Tihti peegeldab Karin lugejale Indreku sisemaailma. Karinis ilmnevad inimest juhtivad irratsionaalsed tungid: armastus, võimuiha ja süütunne ning ta vallandab neid ka teistes. Indreku provotseerimisega saavutab ta viimase vabanemise sisemisest paigalseisust ja avab tema hingeelu keerukuse. Indreku naise Karini iseloomus on nähtud sarnasusi Tammsaare naise Käthe Hanseni omaga ja tegelikult ongi teos pühendatud Käthele. Mõned kriitikud hindavad "Tõe ja õiguse" IV raamatut parimaks osaks pärast I jagu, mõned on seda pidanud lausa terve romaanitsükli parimaks osaks.

The book series can be seen as a thorough overview of developments of Estonian society from about 1870 to about 1930; it presents an epic panorama of both the rural and urban societies of that era. Tammsaare's primary conception was that under the then-applicable conditions, reaching a harmony of both truth and justice is impossible, and thus, while many characters will seek it, none will reach this destination.

“Tõde ja õigus” on A. H. Tammsaare viieosaline romaanisari, kus kujutatakse Eesti ühiskonna arengut 19. teisest poolest kuni 20. sajandi teise kümnendini. Monumentaalteos käsitleb inimese suhet maa, jumala, ühiskonna ja iseendaga. Selles kogumikus on koos kõik "Tõde ja õiguse" viis raamatut. See raamat on spetsiaalselt valmistatud seadmete jaoks, mis toetavad EPUB3 formaati. 1.1