I wrote in the response to the article and many comments here which assumes that folktales were intended for kids. I'm not asserting anything about Tolstoys stories which I don't know (and I'm not sure the article gives a fair representation of them).
How does this apply? What is this in response to?
Tolstoy's stories weren't based on folk tales, and were specifically meant for children.
Yet they are, at times, pretty grim, and often lack a punchline or a clear point, other than "such is life".
Which might have been the point anyway.