Book 2 Part 5 Chapter 17 (Chapter 159 overall)

Chapter Summaries: Dole: Anatol's farewell. The gypsy girl, Matriona (Matriosha) Matveyevna and the fox-skin shuba. The signal. Betrayed.
Briggs: The abduction begins but is frustrated by a footman
Maude: Anatole sets off to abduct Natasha, but encounters Marya Dmitriena's footman
Pevear and Volokhonsky: Anatole and Dolokhov set off. Met by Marya Dmitrievna's enormous footman.

Translation:

XVII.

Anatole got out of the room and through a few minutes returned girded in a silver belt coat and sable hat, smartly wearing it aslant and very marching to his handsome face. Seeing in the mirror that very pose, which he took before the mirror, before coming to Dolohov, he took a glass of wine.

— Well, Fedya, goodbye, thanks for all, goodbye, — said Anatole. — Well, comrades, friends... — he thought... — My youth...farewell, — he turned to Makarin and the others.

Despite that they all rode with him, Anatole apparently wanted to do something touching and solemn in this treatment of his friends. He spoke in a slow, loud voice and putting up his chest rocked one foot.

— All take glasses; and you, Balaga. Well, comrades, friends of my youth, we shopped, lived, shopped. Ah? Now, when will I see you? For abroad I will leave. We lived, goodbye guys. For health! Hoorah!.. — he said, drinking his glass and slamming it on the ground.

— Be healthy, — said Balaga, also drinking his glass and wiping his handkerchief. Makarin with tears in his eyes embraced Anatole.

— Oh, prince, really it is so sad for me to part with you, — he spoke.

— Go, go! — shouted Anatole.

Balaga went from the room.

— No, stop, — said Anatole. — Shut the door, we need to sit. So here. — the door was shut, and all sat down.

— Well, now march, guys! — said Anatole getting up.

The lackey Joseph gave Anatole a bag and saber, and all came out into the hall.

— But where is the fur coat? — said Dolohov. — Hey, Ignatka! Go to Matrena Matveevna, ask for the fur coat, the sable coat. I have heard how to take away, — said Dolohov, winking. — Because she will pop out alive, or dead, sitting in the house; a little bit hesitating, here and tears, and dad, and mother, and now chilled and backwards, — but you in a fur coat take her right away and carry her to the sleigh.

The lackey brought a female fox coat.

— Fool, I said to you the sable. Hey, Matreshka, the sable! — he so shouted that long away from the room rang out his voice.

A beautiful, thin and pale gypsy, with brilliant, black eyes and with a black, curly gray tide of hair, in a red shawl, ran out with the sable cloak in hand.

— What are you not pitying me for, you take it, — she said, apparently shy before the lord and pitying the coat.

Dolohov, not answering her, took the fur coat, threw it on Matresha and wrapped her up.

— Here so, — said Dolohov. — and then here so, — he said, and raised her about the head and collar, leaving only her face a little open. — Then here so, you see? — and he pushed the head of Anatole to the hole left by the collar, from which could be seen the brilliant smile of Matresha.

— Well goodbye, Matresha, — said Anatole, kissing her. — Oh, walk over here! To Stepka bow down. Well, goodbye! Goodbye, Matresha; you wish me happiness.

— Well, that God gives you, prince, much happiness — said Matresha, with her gypsy accent.

At the porch were standing two carriages, two well done coachmen held them. Balaga sat down in the hall of the carriage, and, highly raising his elbows, leisurely disassembled the reins. Anatole and Dolohov sat down to him. Makarin, Hvostikov and the lackey sat down in another carriage.

— Whether that is ready? — asked Balaga.

— Let it go! — he shouted, wrapping his hands around the reins, and the carriage carried and beat downwards by Nikitsky Boulevard.

— Whoa! go, Hey!... Whoa, —  was heard only the shout of Balaga and the fine fellow sitting in the box. At the Arbat square the carriage hooked another carriage, something tore apart, was heard a shout, and the carriage flew by the Arbat.

Giving the two ends by Podnovisnky, Balaga had become restrained and, returning backwards, stopped the horses at the crossroads of old Konyushennaya.

The well done jumped off to keep the horses under the bridles, Anatole with Dolohov went by the sidewalk. Coming up to the gate, Dolohov whistled. The whistle responded to him and following behind that ran out the maid.

— In the yard entered, but that is seen, now coming, — she said.

Dolohov stayed at the gate. Anatole entered behind the maid in the yard, turned behind the corner and ran onto the porch.

Gavrilo, the huge exiting lackey of Marya Dmitrievna, met Anatole.

— To the mistress please, — said the bass lackey, blocking the road of the door.

— To which mistress? And who are you? — out of breath whisperingly asked Anatole.

— Please, I am ordered to bring.

— Kuragin! Backwards, — shouted Dolohov. — Treason! Backwards!

Dolohov at the gate at which he had stopped, fought with the servant, trying to lock up behind the entering the gate Anatole. Dolohov’s last effort pushed back the servant and grabbing for the hand of the running out Anatole, pulled him out behind the gate and ran with him backwards to the carriage.

Time: see previous chapter

Locations: see previous chapter, Nikitski Boulevard (Nikitsky Boulevard in Briggs, Dunnigan, and Pevear and Volokhonsky), Arbat Square, Podnovinski Boulevard (Podnovinsky in Pevear and Volokhonsky, Mandelker, and Dunnigan (the latter two add Boulevard)), Old Mews

Pevear and Volokhonsky Notes: They drive up to the house, realize that Marya Dmitrievna knows about them, and run away to leave.

Characters (characters who do not appear, but are mentioned are placed in italics. First appearances are in Bold. First mentions are underlined. Final appearance denoted by *):

Anatol

Dolokhof (also “Fedya”)

Makarin

Balaga

Joseph (the valet)

Ignatka (another valet, the one that brings the coat. Dunnigan prints “Ignashka”.)

Matriona Matveyevna (as in Dole and Edmonds. the one that has the coat. “Matryona...” in Briggs and Garnett. “Matryona Matveevna” in Mandelker. “Matryona Matrevna” in Dunnigan. “Matrena Matrevna” in Maude. Also

“Matrioshka”. “Matryosha” in Briggs and Mandelker. Edmonds, Maude, and Dunnigan do not use a second name. “Matrena Matfeievna” in Bell. “Matrena Matvyeevna” in Wiener.)

Stioshka (“Styoshka” in Garnett, Mandelker, and Briggs. “Steshka” in Maude and Wiener. Bell cuts the reference.)

Khvostikof

Gavrilo (“Marya Dmitrievna’s colossal footman”, so unlikely any of the previous Gavrilos. Bell doesn’t use the name.)

Marya Dmitrievna (also “mistress”)

(also the “dvornik” or “yard-porter” as in Edmonds who wrestles with Dolokhov over the gate.)

Abridged Versions: Line break instead of chapter break in Bell.
Gibian: Chapter 17

Fuller: The business with the mistress and the fur coat is removed. Rest of the chapter is basically preserved.

Komroff: The big goodbye Anatole gives Dolohov for some reason (even though he goes with him) is removed but the rest of the chapter seems preserved. Line break.

Kropotkin: Chapter 12: Chapter is preserved, but no break.
Simmons: Chapter 17: entire chapter is cut and replaced with: "Marya Dmitrievna learns of the elopement plan and prevents it."

Edmundson: Act Three Scene Eleven: The attendant character that has reoccurred and a been a stand-in for all the servant characters is the one that stops Anatole and Dolohov.

Natasha watches the event happen and the Count even yells at Anatole and Dolohov as they run away. The Count is also the one that castigates Natasha for her actions.

Additional Notes: Garnett: "Styoshka: Anatole is referring to a gypsy singer popular in Moscow at that time.”

You can see a possible route Dolohov and Anatole might have taken based on Tolstoy's description and a modern map of Moscow

Gypsies play a minor role in some Tolstoy works, particularly and perhaps most prominently in the play "The Living Corpse", where they are simultaneously portrayed as a symbol of

a nobleman entering a dissolute life and as a proud group of conservative people that do not want to be taken advantage of. Like most of Europe, the Romani people arrived

over large periods of time, but there was certainly an influx of movement in the 19th century.

Sitting down before taking a journey is a long-time Russian superstition, and it appears later in the novel before the Rostovs leave Moscow. While the latter, especially in the

Soviet Union film, is portrayed as somber. Here, as with everything related to Anatole, it is shown to be empty-headed and meaningless. A readable article on the possible

origins of the superstition, including giving the advice to put in practice, can be found here.