Truly awful. OK, the 1950's weren't the same as the 1960's, but were people that ernest? Ir does remind me of "War and Peace". The victory over Napoleon/Hitler was achieved mainly by the aristocracy plus a bit-part by the working-class. 5 aristocratic families plus Kraton Plateyev. How tedious... All his works could be subtitled "Don't middle class properly have interesting lives?"