Briggs: A letter from Sonya sets Nikolay free. He still thinks fondly of Marya.
Pevear and Volokhonsky: News of Borodino reaches Voronezh. Uncertainty about Prince Andrei. Nikolai meets Princess Marya in church. His thoughts about her. He receives letters from Sonya and his mother. Princess Marya leaves for Yaroslavl. Nikolai returns to his regiment.
Translation:
VII.
The scary news about the Borodino battle, about our losses killed and wounded, and the still more scary news about the loss of Moscow were received in Voronezh in the middle of September. Princess Marya, upon learning only from the newspaper about the wound of her brother and not having about him any information, gathered to go look for Prince Andrey, as heard Nikolay (he had not seen her again).
Receiving the news about the Borodino battle and about the abandonment of Moscow, Rostov was not so that to feel despair, malice or revenge and that similar feeling, but he suddenly had become bored with all, annoyed at Voronezh, all as ashamed and awkward. To him seemed feigned all conversations which he heard; he did not know how to judge about all this and felt that only in the regiment all again will become clear to him. He hurried the ending of the purchasing horses and often unfairly came to hotness with his servant and the master sentinel.
A few days before the departure of Rostov, in the cathedral was appointed service by the occasion of victory gained by the Russian troops, and Nikolay went to mass. He began somewhat behind the governess and with the service sedateness, to ponder about the most diverse subjects, standing in the service. When the service finished, the governess beckoned him to herself.
— You saw the princess? — she said, with her head pointing to the lady in black, standing behind the choir.
Nikolay immediately again found out Princess Marya not so much by her profile, which was seen from below her hat, as much by that feeling of care, fear and pity, which immediately again overcame him. Princess Marya, obviously submerged in her thought, did the last crosses before exiting from the church.
Nikolay with surprise watched her face. This was that same face, which he saw before, that same common expression was on it, with fine, internal, spiritual work; but now it was completely otherwise illuminated. Touching expressions of sorrows, prayers and hopes were in him. As before happened with Nikolay in her presence, he, not waiting for the council of the governess came to her, not asking himself, whether it was okay or decent for him to appeal to her here at the church, came up to her and said that he heard about her grief and all of his soul condoled him. Barely only had she heard his voice, as suddenly a vivid light burned on her face, illuminating in one and that same time her sadness and joy.
— I only wanted to say to you, princess, — said Rostov, — that, should Prince Andrey Nikolaevich not be alive, then, as regimental commander, in the newspapers this now would be announced.
The princess watched him, not understanding his words, but the rejoicing expression of sympathetic misery was on his face.
— And I know so many examples, that the wound of a splinter (in the newspapers it said grenade) would be deadly now already, or oppositely very light, — spoke Nikolay. — You need to hope for the best, and I am sure...
Princess Marya interrupted him.
— Oh, this would be so horr... — she began and, not finishing talking from excitement, in a graceful movement (as all that she did to him) tilting her head and gratefully looking at him, went for her aunt.
This night Nikolay went nowhere as a visitor and stayed at home so that to do away with some calculations with the sellers of horses. When he did away with the affairs, it was already too late so that to go somewhere, but it was still too early so that to lie down to sleep, and Nikolay for long alone went back and forward by the room, pondering his life, what with him seldom happened.
Princess Marya produced in him a pleasant impression under Smolensk. Then how he met her in those special conditions and that how it was at her one time his mother pointed out to him as to a rich party, had made that he turned to her special attention. At Voronezh, in the time of his visits, this impression was not only pleasant, but strong. Nikolay was struck by that special moral beauty, which he in this time saw in her. However he was going to leave and in his head did not come pity about that he was going away from Voronezh, he lost the case to see the princess. Yet the present meeting with Princess Marya at the church (Nikolay felt this) sat down deeper in his heart than he foresaw, and deeper than he desired for his calmness. This pale, thin, sad face, this radiant look, these quiet, graceful movements and the main thing — this deep and tender sadness, expressed in all her outline, disturbed him and required his participation. In men Rostov could not stand to see the expression of a higher, spiritual life (because of it, he did not love Prince Andrey), he contemptuously called this philosophy and dreaminess; but in Princess Marya, it was in these sorrows, showing all the depth of this alien for Nikolay spiritual peace, he felt an irresistible attractiveness.
"Should be a wonderful girl! Here was an angel!" he spoke with himself. "From what am I not free, from what am I in a hurry with Sonya?" — and unwittingly he introduced in himself a comparison between the two: poverty in one and wealth in those other spiritual gifts, which Nikolay not having, and because of it he so highly appreciated. He tried to himself represent what would be, if only he was free. In what way would he make her a proposal and she would become his wife? No, he could not represent this to himself. He was made creepy and no clear images presented to him. With Sonya he for a long time already had made up to himself the future picture and all this was simple and clear, because of how all this was made up, and he knew all that was in Sonya; but with Princess Marya it could not be to represent to himself a future life, because of how he did not understand her, but only loved.
The daydreaming about Sonya had in itself a somewhat fun toy. Yet to think about Princess Marya always was difficult and a little fearful.
"How she prayed!" he remembered. "It was seen that all her soul was in prayer. Yes, this is that prayer which moves mountains and I am sure that her prayer will be executed. From what do I not pray about what I need?" he remembered. "What do I need? Freedom, resolved from Sonya. It is the truth said" — he remembered the words of the governess, —"besides misfortunes nothing will be from that I marry her. Confusion, the grief of maman (mama)... Affairs...confusion, terrible confusion! Yes and I do not love her. Yes, I do not so love as I need to. My God! Take me out of this terrible, hopeless situation!" he started to suddenly pray. "Yes, prayer will move a mountain, but I need to believe and not so pray as we children prayed with Natasha about so that snow was made sugar and ran out to the yard to try whether was made snow to sugar. No, yet I pray about nothing now," he said, placing in the corner his pipe and, folding his hands, standing before the way. And touching the memory about Princess Marya, he started to pray as he for a long time did not pray. Tears were in his eyes and in his throat, when in the door entered Lavrushka with some papers.
— Fool! For what do you climb when I do not ask you! — said Nikolay, fastly changing position.
— From the governor, — in a sleepy voice said Lavrushka, — the courier had arrived, a letter for you.
— Well, okay, thanks, go on!
Nikolay took two letters. One was from his mother, another from Sonya. He found out by their handwriting the unsealed first letter of Sonya. Not having time he read several lines, as his face became pale and his eyes were scared and happily uncovered.
— No, this may not be! — he spoke out loud. Not in his forces to sit in a location, he with the letter in his hands, reading it, began to walk by the room. He ran over the letter, then read it a time, another and, holding up his shoulders and taking it around his hands, he stopped in the middle of the room with an open mouth and stopped eyes. Then, about when he only prayed with the certainty that God would carry out his prayer, it was executed; but Nikolay was so surprised by this as if this was something extraordinary and as if he never saw this, and as if it was that this was so fastly subjected, proving that this was a happening not from God, whom he requested, but from ordinary randomness.
That seemingly insoluble knot, which tied the freedom of Rostov, was allowed by this unexpected (as it seemed to Nikolay), uncaused letter of Sonya. She wrote that the last miserable circumstances, the loss of almost the only property of the Rostovs in Moscow, and not a time expressing the willingness of the countess about so that Nikolay married to Princess Bolkonskaya, and his silence and coldness for the latter time, all this together made her decide to deny from him the promises and to give him complete freedom.
"It was too heavy for me to think that I can be the cause of grief or strife in the family, which benefited me," — she wrote, —"and my love has only the purpose of happiness of those whom I love; and because of it I beg you, Nicolas, count yourself free and know that despite that, no one stronger may love you, as your Sonya."
Both letters were from Trinity. The other letter was from the countess. In this letter was described the last day in Moscow, the departure, the fire and the death of the only estate. In this letter between the way the countess wrote about how Prince Andrey was in the number of wounded riding together with them. His position was very dangerous, but now the doctor spoke that there are more hopes. Sonya and Natasha as nurses looked after him.
With this by letter on the next day Nikolay went to Princess Marya. Nikolay nor Princess Marya said words about what could mean the words: "Natasha is caring for him"; but, thanks to this letter, Nikolay suddenly got close with the princess in an almost kindred relationship.
On the next day Rostov spent Princess Marya to Yaroslav and across a few days himself left to the regiment.
Mentioned: a few days
Locations: Voronezh, the cathedral
Mentioned: Borodino, Moscow, Russian, Smolensk, Troitsa, Yaroslav (Yaroslavl in Briggs, Pevear and Volokhonsky, and Maude.)
Pevear and Volokhonsky Notes: Marya hears Andrei is wounded and is planning to go look for him. Nikolai on the other hand, feels empty without his regiment and hopes to go back so he can feel whole again, as we've seen previously in the novel. Nikolai approaches her in church and tries to comfort her.
"Rostov could not bear to see an expression of higher spiritual life in men (that was why he did not like Prince Andrei), he referred to it contemptuously as philosophy, dreaminess; but in Princess Marya it was precisely in that sorrow, which revealed the whole depth of a spiritual world foreign to him, that Nikolai felt an irresistible attraction."
Nikolai, unusual for him as even the text says, spends the majority of the chapter in self-reflection. "he did not understand her, but only loved her." Nikolai falls into praying unlike he had ever done before, only to be interrupted by Lavrushka, who brings him letters from Sonya, who tells him he is free, and from his mother, who tells him about Andrei and Natasha taking care of him. Nikolai sees Marya one more time and then they both leave, knowing this new development may make their love something they cannot act upon.
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 Bolkonskaya
Prince Andrei Nikolayevitch (also "brother" and "regimental commander".)
Nikolai Rostof (also Nicolas. also his servant and quartermaster.)
The governor
The governor's wife
Countess Rostova ("mother" and "maman".)
Sonya
Natasha
Lavrushka (also called "Idiot-durak".)
Abridged Versions: Start of chapter 2 in Bell. No break at the end.
Gibian: line break instead of chapter break
Fuller: The reflections and comparisons on Marya versus Sonya is removed, as is the praying section, making Lavrushka's arrival less contentious. Sonya's letter is cut and only the countess's letter remains. Followed by a line break.
Komroff: The section where Nicholas prays is removed. Chapter otherwise preserved and followed by a line break.
Kropotkin: Chapter 5: The bit with Nikolai and the horse dealers is removed. A lot of his self-reflection before the prayer is shortened or removed.
Bromfield: No corresponding chapter.
Simmons: Chapter is preserved, followed by a line break rather than a chapter break.
Additional Notes: Mandelker: "that news of the battle fought on 26 August only reached Voronezh (about 175 miles south of Moscow) nearly three weeks later indicates how slow communication was at that time in Russia."
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