Book 2 Part 5 Chapter 4 (Chapter 146 overall)

Chapter Summaries: Dole: Pierre informs Princess Mariya of Boris Drubetskoi's flattering attentions. Her surprise. Her tears. Discussion of Natasha.
Briggs: Pierre and Marya discuss Boris Drubetskoy and Natasha.
Maude: Pierre and Princess Mary discuss Boris and Natasha

Translation:

IV.

Princess Marya, sitting in the living room and listening to this talk and gossip of old people, understood nothing of what she heard; she thought only about whether or not all the visitors noticed the hostile relationship of her father to her. She even did not notice the particular attention and courtesies that to her in all the time of this dinner were manifested by Drubetskoy, now for the third time arriving at their house.

Princess Marya with a scattered, interrogative look turned to Pierre, who last of the guests, with a hat in hand and with a smile on his face, came up to her after the prince got out, and they alone stayed in the living room.

— Can I still sit? — he said, his thick body lying on a chair beside Princess Marya.

— Ah yes, — she said. "Did you not notice?" said her look.

Pierre was found in the pleasant, after dinner condition of spirit. He looked before himself and quietly smiled.

— For a long time have you known this young man, princess? — he said.

— Which one?

— Drubetskoy?

— No, recently...

— How do you like him?

— Yes, he is an agreeable young person... from what do you ask me this? — said Princess Marya, thinking about her morning conversation with her father.

— Because of how I made the observation, — young people of Petersburg usually come to Moscow on vacation only with the purpose to marry to a rich bride.

— You have made this observation? — said Princess Marya.

— Yes, — continued Pierre with a smile, — and this young person now holds himself so where there is a rich bride, — there it is. I as a book read him. He is now in indecision, whom he will attack: you or mademoiselle Juli Karagin. He is very attentive to her.525

— He rides to her?

— Yes, very often. And do you know the new manner to look after? — with a fun smile said Pierre, apparently found in this fun spirit of good-natured ridicule, for which he so often in his diary reproached himself.

— No, — said Princess Marya.

— Now so that to like Moscow girls — you need to be melancholic. He is very melancholic with her,526 — said Pierre.

—  Really?527 — said Princess Marya, looking at the good face of Pierre and not ceasing to think about her grief. —”It would be easier for me, — she thought, — should I decide to believe in someone everything that I feel. And I would want to Pierre to say all. He is so nice and noble. I would become easier. He would give me advice!"

— Would you go for him to get married? — asked Pierre.

— Ah, my God, count! There are such minutes that I would go for any, — suddenly unexpectantly for mostly herself, with tears in her voice, said Princess Marya. — Ah, how heavy it is to be in love with a human closely and feel that... nothing (she continued in a trembling voice) can be done for him besides grief, when you know that you cannot change this. Then only — to leave, but where am I to leave?

— What is with you, what is with you, princess?

Yet the princess, not finishing talking, cried.

— I do not know what is with me now. Do not listen to me, forget what I to you have said.

All the hilarity of Pierre disappeared. He was concerned and asked the princess, requesting her to express everything, believe in him her grief; but she only repeated that she asked him to forget what she said, that she did not remember what she said, and that in her was no grief, besides what he knows — the grief about how the marriage of Prince Andrey threatens to quarrel father with son.

— Whether you have heard about the Rostovs? — she asked, so that to change the conversation. — It was said to me that they soon will be here. André too I wait for everyday. I would want for them to be seen here.

— But how does he now watch this business? — asked Pierre, he concerning the old prince. Princess Marya shook her head.

— But what again is there to do? To the year stays only a few months. And this may not be. I would only want to rid my brother of the first minutes. I would want for them to rather have arrived. I hope to come together with her... You for a long time have known them, — said Princess Marya, — Say to me, putting hand on heart, all the truth, what is behind this girl and how do you find her? But all the truth; because of how you understand that Andrey risks so much, doing this is against the commitment of father, that I would want to know...

An obscure instinct said to Pierre that in these reservations and repeated requests to say all the truth, expressed a grudge of Princesses Marya to her future sister-in-law, that she wanted, so that for Pierre to not approve of the choice of Prince Andrey; but Pierre said what he felt rather than thought.

— I do not know how to respond to your question, — he said, blushing, himself not knowing from what. — I resolutely do not know what is behind this girl; I in no way can analyze her. She is charming. But from what, I do not know: here is all that I can say about her. — Princess Marya sighed and the expression of her face said: "Yes, this I awaited and was afraid."

— Is she smart? — asked Princess Marya. Pierre thought.

— I think no, — he said, — but however, yes. She does not honor being smart... yes, no, she is charming, and nothing more. — Princess Marya again disapprovingly shook her head.

— Ah, I so want to love her! To her say this, if you see her before me.

— I hear that they will be here in another day, — said Pierre.

Princess Marya reported to Pierre her plan about how she, only when the Rostovs come, will get closer with her future sister-in-law and will try to accustom the old prince to her.

525 Il est très assidu auprès d’elle. (He is very assiduous with her.)

526 il faut être mélancolique. Et il est très mélancolique auprès de m-lle Karagin (one must be melancholy. And he is very melancholy with Miss Karagin)

527 Vraiment? (Really?)

Time: see previous chapter

Locations: see previous chapter
Mentioned: St. Petersburg. Moscow

Pevear and Volokhonsky Notes: Marya's response to these political conversations, not understanding them. "she was thinking only of whether the guests had noticed her father's hostile attitude towards her."

Pierre informs her that Boris' intention must be to come try to marry her.

"Nowadays, in order to please Moscow girls, one must be melancholy."

"Pierre said what he felt rather than what he thought."

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 *):

Princess Mariya

Boris Drubetskoi (only by last name. Could argue he is just mentioned.)

Prince Nikolai (“father” and “old prince”)

Pierre

Mademoiselle Julie Karaguine (Garnett, Weiner, and Maude keep “Karagin” while Briggs puts “Karagina”. Edmonds keeps “Karagin” but drops “Julie”. Bell uses “Mlle. Karaguine” and “Mlle. Julie”.)

Prince Andrei (also “Andre” and “brother”)

Natasha (not by name. “prospective sister-in-law”. Rostofs are also referenced in general.)

(the guests and men of last chapter are mentioned in general, but I’ve only put the ones that were specifically referenced above)

Abridged Versions: End of Chapter 16 in Bell.
Gibian: Chapter 4.

Fuller: Entire chapter is cut

Komroff: Almost the entire chapter is preserved, it breaks off when Mary says “that’s what I expected and feared.” Followed by a break.

Kropotkin: Entire chapter is cut.

Bromfield: Pierre and Marya do not talk about Natasha and chapter 9 ends with Marya thinking angry thoughts about her father.
Simmons: Chapter 4: The intro of the chapter is removed to get to the Mary and Pierre conversation quicker.

Additional Notes:

Speirs Page 17: The struggle, the war that War and Peace is about, is that between two fundamental attitudes which may be adopted

to the world -- that of the Westernised Prince Andrew, a product of Petersburg, and that of Pierre, Count Bezukhov, a product of Russia’s

ancient oriental capital,”

Page 41: Book Eight...also concludes the first half of the novel, Every one of the main characters appears, and every one of them has become a bit older and a bit dull. The city is Moscow, a city about which everything is known. War and Peace has been filled exclusively with disappointments...We know so much that we are getting world-weary. Tolstoy never stops creating new acquaintances, though by now the circle of people who are intimately known will not be enlarged.”

 

Richard F. Gustafson (States of Human Awareness): This consciousness does not stop at the boundary of his personal interest...

Natasha in both her knowing and loving, Princess Mary in her lack of anything personal...Knowledge through affective awareness

is a way of knowing the reality in which one exists...Such knowledge is knowledge by participation….