The narrative centers on the intersecting lives of five aristocratic families during the tumultuous period of the Napoleonic Wars in Russia. The protagonist figures, including Pierre Bezukhov and Prince Andrei Bolkonsky, seek personal meaning and moral clarity amidst the chaos of military campaigns and shifting social hierarchies. Tolstoy employs a third-person omniscient perspective to examine the tension between individual agency and the deterministic forces of history. The narrative framework oscillates between intimate domestic scenes and expansive, detailed accounts of battlefield maneuvers, grounding the philosophical inquiries in the physical realities of the era.

Readers and critics frequently discuss the work's immense scale and its ability to balance intimate character studies with broad historical analysis. Discussion often centers on Tolstoy's rejection of the 'great man' theory of history in favor of a more collective, deterministic view of events. Many highlight the effectiveness of the author's prose in capturing the mundane details of daily life alongside the high stakes of national survival. The pacing is often noted for its deliberate, expansive nature, which allows for deep immersion into the social and political atmosphere of 19th-century Russia. Scholars often emphasize the text's enduring relevance in its examination of how individuals maintain their humanity during periods of profound societal upheaval.