Book 2 Part 5 Chapter 8 (Chapter 150 overall)

Chapter Summaries: Dole: The opera. Natasha longs for Prince Andrei. In the Rostofs' box. Natasha's beauty. Gossip. The audience. Dolokhof in Persian costume. Countess Ellen.
Briggs: The Rostovs at the opera. Helene is in the next box.
Maude: The Rostovs at the Opera. Helene in the next box
Pevear and Volkhonsky (Chapters 8-10): The Rostovs at the opera. Helene's box. Her brother Anatole arrives. Meeting in Helene's box. Natasha's confusion.

VIII.

On this evening the Rostovs went to the opera, in which Marya Dmitrievna got a ticket.

Natasha did not want to go, but it could not be to refuse from the courtesy of Marya Dmitrievna, exclusively for her intention. When she, dressed, exited to the hall, waited for her father and saw in the great mirror that she was good, very good, she still more became sad; but sad in sweetness and lovingness.

"My God, should he be here, then I would not be so as before, with some stupid timidity before something, but would be new, simple, would hug him, would snuggle him, would force him to look at me with those seeking, curious eyes, which he so often watched me and then would force him to laugh, as he laughed then, and his eyes — how I see those eyes! — thought Natasha. — And what for me is the business before his father and sister: I love him alone, him, him, with his face and eyes, with his smile, male and together childish... No, it is better not to think about him, not to think, to forget, really to forget in this time. I do not carry out these expectations, I will now sob," — and she walked away from the mirrors, making above herself efforts so that not to cry. —"And how may Sonya be so smooth, so calmly loving Nikolinka, and wait so long and patiently!" she thought, looking at the entering, also dressed, with a fan in hand Sonya. "No, she is really another. I cannot!"

Natasha felt herself in this moment so softened and relaxed that to her it was little to love and know that she loved: she needed now, what she needed now was to embrace her favorite man and speak and hear from him the words of love, which were fully in her heart. While she rode in the carriage, sitting nearby with her father, and was thoughtfully looking at the flashing in frozen window lantern lights, she felt in herself still more in love and sadder and forgot with whom and where she rode. Hitting in the string of carriages, by slowly squealing wheels in the snow, the coach of the Rostovs drove to the theater. Hastily popped out Natasha and Sonya, picking up their dresses; got out the count, supported by lackeys, and between the included ladies and men and selling posters, all three went in the corridor of the benoir. From behind the feigned doors now was heard the sounds of music.

—Natasha, your hair,535 — whispered Sonya. The usher courteously and hastily slipped before the ladies and opened the door to the lodge. The music more brightly became audible at the door, the glimpse of the lighted ranks of the lodges with the naked shoulders and hands, and made the noise of the brilliant uniform parterre. A lady, entering into the adjacent benoir, looked around Natasha with a female, envious look. The curtain had still not risen and played the overture. Natasha, straightening her dress, passed together with Sonya and sat, looking around the lighted ranks of the opposite lodges. A long time not tested by her sensation, how hundreds of eyes watched her nude hands and neck, suddenly and nicely and unpleasantly swept her, called the whole swarm of these respective feelings of memories, desires and unrest.

Two wonderful pretty girls, Natasha and Sonya, with Count Ilya Andreich, whom for a long time had not been seen in Moscow, turned to themselves the common attention. Besides this all knew vaguely about the collusion of Natasha with Prince Andrey, and knew that since the Rostovs lived in the village, and with curiosity looked at the bride of one of the best grooms in Russia.

Natasha became prettier in the village, as all said about her, but on this evening, thanks to her excited condition, was especially good. She amazed with complete life and beauty, in connection with the indifference to all surroundings. Her black eyes looked at the crowd, looking for nobody, but her thin, nude above the elbow arm, leaned on the velvet ramp, obviously unconsciously, at the tact of the overtures, clenched and unclenched, crumbling the poster.

— Look, here is Alenina, — said Sonya, — with her mother it seems!

— Father! That Mihail Kirilych still became fat, — spoke old count.

— See! Our Anna Mihaylovna in what a toque!

— The Karagins, Juli and Boris with them. Now it is seen as a groom with bride.

— Drubetskoy made a proposal! How already, it is now found out, — said Shinshin, entering into the lodge of the Rostovs.

Natasha looked by that direction, which her father watched, and saw Juli, who with pearls on her thick red neck (Natasha knew, sprinkled with powder) sat with a happy look, nearby with her mother.

Behind her with a smile, tilted the ear and mouth of Juli, could be seen the smoothly combed beautiful head of Boris. He sneakily watched the Rostovs and smiled and spoke something to his bride.

"They speak about us, about me with him!" thought Natasha.

"And he rightly calms the jealousy of me to his bride: in vain they worry! Would they know how I to them have no affairs."

Sitting in the back in a green toque, devoting to the will of God and a happy, festive face, was Anna Mihaylovna. In their lodge stood that atmosphere — a groom with a bride, which was so known and loved by Natasha. She turned away and suddenly all that was humiliating in her morning visit was remembered by her.

"What right does he have not to want to accept me into his kinship? Ah, better not think about that, do not think before his arrival!" she said to herself and began to look around at the acquaintances and unfamiliar faces in the seats. Ahead of the parterre, in the very middle, leaning on the back of the ramp, stood Dolohov with a huge, combed up shock of curly hair, in a Persian costume. He stood at the very view of the theatre, knowing that he drew in himself attention throughout the halls, so the same free, as if he stood in his room. About him crowding stood the brilliant young people of Moscow, and he apparently excelled between them.

Count Ilya Andreich, laughing, pushed the blushing Sonya, pointing to her at the former adorer.

— Recognize? — he asked. — And where from did he take, — turned the count to Shinshin, — because didn’t he disappear somewhere?

— He disappeared, — was the response of Shinshin. — In the Caucasus he was, but there he ran, and, they say, was a minister of the sovereign prince in Persia, and killed there the brother of the shah: well, with all minds of the Moscow ladies he goes off! The Persian Dolohov,536 and all over. In us now are no words without Dolohov: they swear, in him are called as a sterlet, — spoke Shinshin. — Dolohov, and Kuragin Anatole — all of our mistresses have had their minds brought down.

At the adjacent benoir entered a high, beautiful lady with a huge oblique and very bare, white, complete shoulders and neck, on which were double thread large pearls, and for long sat in her noisy thick silk dress.

Natasha unwittingly peered at this neck, shoulders, pearls, and hairstyle and admired the beauty of the shoulders and pearls. In that time as Natasha now for a second time peered at her, the lady looked around and, meeting eyes with Count Ilya Andreich, nodded her head and smiled. This was Countess Bezuhova, the wife of Pierre. Ilya Andreich, knowing all in the world, bending over, began talking with her.

— A long time favored, countess? — he began talking. — I will come, will come, a hand to kiss. but I here have arrived by deeds and my girls with myself I have brought. It is incomparable, they say, to hear Semenova play, — spoke Ilya Andreich. — Count Petr Kirillovich we never forget. Is he here?

— Yes, he wanted to call for, — said Elen and carefully looked at Natasha.

Count Ilya Andreich again sat down in his place.

— All good? — he whisperingly said to Natasha.

— A miracle! — said Natasha, — Here one can fall in love! — at this time sounded the last chords of the overture and pounded the wand of the conductor. Into the seats passed into their places the late men and up went the curtain.

As only up went the curtain, in the lodges and seats all fell silent, and all men, old and young, in uniforms and tailcoats, all women in precious stones on naked bodies, with greedy curiosity directed all attention onto the scene. Natasha also began to look.

535 Nathalie, vos cheveux, (Nathalie, your hair,)

536 Dolochoff le Persan, (Dolochoff the Persian,)

Time: that evening

Locations: the opera
Mentioned: Moscow, Russia, Persian (Persan in the French.), Caucasus

Pevear and Volokhonsky Notes: The Rostovs go to the opera. Her inner monologuing reveals the difference between her love for Andrei and Sonya's love for Nikolai. She feels everyone looking at her and the narration tells us that for various reasons, the Rostovs were the center of attention at the opera.

About Boris and Julie, but perhaps she wants to tell herself this about everyone besides Andrei: "If only they knew how little I care about them all!"

Dolokhov and Anatole Kuragin have entered the picture, with Dolokhov having another absurd story attached to him. Helene is also there and they talk briefly about Pierre.

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 *):

Marya Dmitrievna

Natasha (also “Nathalie”)

Count Ilya Andreyitch (“father” and “old count”)

Prince Andrei

Prince Nikolai (“father”)

Princess Mariya (“sister”)

Sonya (also “cousin”)

Nikolai (“Nikolenka”)

Alenina (seen at the opera and noticed by Sonya, with her mother. “Miss Alenin” in Weiner. “Mme. Alenine” in Bell.)

Mikhail Kiriluitch (seen by Count Rostof. “Mihail Kirillich” in Edmonds. “Mikhail Kirilich” in Dunnigan. “Michael Kirilovich” in Maude. “Mihail Kirillitch” in Garnett. “Mikhail Kirillych” in Briggs. “Mikhail Kirilovich” in Mandelker.
“Mikhail Kirillych” in Weiner. “Michael Kirilovitch” in Bell.)

Anna Mikhailovna

Boris Drubetskoi

Julie Karagin

Shinshin

Dolokhof (also “Dolohoff le Persan”)

Anatol Kuragin

Countess Ellen Bezukhaya (also “Pierre’s wife”)

Pierre (“Count Piotr Kirillovitch”)

(also a lady who gives Natasha an envious look. Also the reigning prince in Persia and the Shah’s brother mentioned in relation to Dolokhof. And the gentlemen who arrive late to the opera)

Abridged Versions: Start of Chapter 19 in Bell, no break.
Gibian: Chapter 8.

Fuller: The conversations about the other people there before it gets to Dolohov is removed. Shinshin and the count’s conversation about him is also gone. No break.

Komroff: Natasha’s inner monologue and a lot of the description of the carriage is removed. Some other details are removed or shortened, but the rest of the chapter is preserved and followed by a line break.

Kropotkin: Chapter 5: Chapter is preserved but no break.

Bromfield: Chapter 12: Of course, it is Count Ilya Andreevich who acquires the tickets instead of Marya Dmitrievna. Natasha’s reaction to going, dressing up, and thinking about Andrei goes on a little longer but the
description of the carriage and the ride over there is not here. The “Nathalie your hair” episode is not there. Reminder and connection of Dolokhov’s former love for Sonya. No break.
Simmons: Chapter 8: slightly shortened with the gossip, but otherwise preserved.

Edmundson: Act Three Scene 7: Strangely, Anatole does some singing in the scene. The opera singers also pick up on Anatole's song. Sonya and Natasha talk about Anatole and Sonya calls him "handsome".

Additional Notes: Maude: “Nymphodora Semenova, Russian opera singer noted for her acting”

Garnett: “Dolohov exemplifies the dandy aesthetic that, in Tolstoy's moral algebra, signifies moral shabbiness.”

Bayley: Opera for example--and Wagner’s opera in particular--is ludicrous in itself, because of the grotesque artificiality of the way it works and the effects it sets out to achieve. By describing the

goings-on of opera literally and in a dead-pan manner, Tolstoy seeks to ridicule them, as he had ridiculed the ballet through the eyes of Natasha in War and Peace, by the device known to Russian critics

as “making it strange”: that is to say, by gravely describing the antics of the performers as a child without preconceptions might perceive them...His notorious denunciation of King Lear is really caused

by what he regards as an intensely painful, distasteful, and embarrassing incongruity between high poetic language and artifice and the stark horror of the action.”

Letters (Christian): Page 538: “Yesterday evening I went to the theatre, and heard Wagner’s famous modern music, Siegfried, the opera. I couldn’t even sit through one act, and rushed out like a madman.

And I can’t talk about it calmly even now. It’s a stupid farce, not suitable for children over 7, pretentious, sham, utterly false and with no music. And several thousand people sit there and admire it.”

Mandelker: "It is worth noticing that Natasha speaks French only at one point in the novel: that is when, attending the opera, she emulates Helene and falls in with the social world of the Kuragins.

She writes in French only once, when breaking her engagement to Andrei."