Book 4 Part 2 Chapter 17 (Chapter 293 overall)

Chapter Summaries: Dole: Kutuzof. Time and Patience. His views concerning the wounded Beast. The desire of his heart. Hearing the news. How affected.
Briggs: Kutuzov, awakened at night, thanks God for the salvation of Russia
Pevear and Volokhonsky: Kutuzov's thoughts during sleepless nights. He learns that the whole French army is in retreat. He praises God and weeps.

Translation:

XVII.

Kutuzov, as all old people, little slept at night. He in the afternoon often suddenly dozed off; but at night he, lying not undressed in his bed, for the most part did not sleep and thought.

So he lied now on his bed, on his elbows his heavy, big, disfigured head in his chubby hands and thinking, opening his one eye and looking closely to the dark.

From since Bennigsen, rewrote with the sovereign and had more of all the forces in the staff, avoided him, Kutuzov was calmer in this regard, that with his troops was not forced again to participate in useless offensive actions. The lesson of the Tarutinskaya battle and its eve, painfully memorable for Kutuzov, it also should be to act, he thought.

"They must understand that we only can lose, acting offensively. Patience and time, here are my warrior-heroes!" thought Kutuzov. He knew that it was not needed to pluck apples, while they are green. It will fall itself, when it will mature, but rip off the green, spoil the apple and the wood, and itself sorely break. He, as an experienced hunter, knew that the animal was injured, injured so as only could hurt all Russian power, but deadly or not, this was still an unexplained question. Now, by sending Lauriston and Bertelemi and by the informing of the partisans, Kutuzov almost knew that it was injured deadly. Yet was needed more evidence, it was needed to wait.

"They want to run to look, as they have killed it. Hold and see. All maneuvers, all offensive!" he thought. "Why? All to distinguish. Exactly something fun is in so that to fight. They are exactly children, from which will not achieve sense, as was the business, because of how all want to prove how they are able to fight. Yes not in this business now."

"And what skillful maneuvers offer me all this! To them it seems that when they thought the two-three randomness (he remembered about the overall plan from Petersburg), they thought their all. But they have not all the numbers!"

The unauthorized question about deadly or not deadly was the wound inflicted at Borodino, now for a whole month hung above the head of Kutuzov. With one part the French occupied Moscow. With another part undoubtedly to all his essence Kutuzov felt that that terrible stroke in which he together with all the Russian people strained all their forces, should be deadly. Yet in every case the need was evidence, and he was waiting for it now for a month and the farther passed the time, by that the more impatient he became. Lying on his bed in his sleepless night, he did that very thing that did these young people generals, that very thing for what he reproached them. He thought up all possible randomness so the same as the young people, but with that difference only, that he founded nothing in these assumptions, and that he saw them as not two and three, but a thousand. The farther he thought, by that the more they presented. He thought up any family of movements of the Napoleonic army, throughout its parts — to Petersburg, on him, in bypass of him, thought up (what he only more was afraid) that accident that Napoleon will begin to fight against him with his same weapons, that he will remain in Moscow, biding him. Kutuzov thought up even move the Napoleonic army backwards in Medyn and Yuhnov; but the only thing that he could not foresee, this is what was subjected, this insane, convulsive throwing of the troops of the Napoleon in the continuation of the first eleven days of its performances from Moscow, — throwing, which made possible that about all the same Kutuzov still did not dare to then think: the perfect decimation of the French. The reports of Dorohov about the division of Brucye, the news from the partisans about the disasters of the army of Napoleon, the gossip about the gathering to performance from Moscow — all confirmed the assumption that the French army was broken and collected to run; but these were only assumptions, appearing important for the youth, but not for Kutuzov. He with his sixty years of experience knew what weight was needed to attribute to rumors, knew how people are able, somewhat willing, to group all news so that they as if confirm the desired, and knew how in this case they were willing to miss all the contradicting. And the more desired this Kutuzov, by that less he allowed himself to believe this. This question occupied all the forces of his soul. All the rest was for him only the habitual execution of life. So the habitual execution and subordination of life were his conversations with the staff, letters to m-me Staël that he wrote from Tarutin, reading novels, distribution of awards, correspondence with Petersburg and so on but the death of the French, foreseen by him alone, was his soulful, only wish.

On the night of the 11th of October he lied, leaning on his hand, and thought about this.

In the neighboring room was a stir and he heard the steps of Toll, Knonovnitsyn and Bolhovitinov.

— Hey, who is there? Enter, enter! What is new? — called out the field marshal to them.

While a lackey lit the candle, Toll talked of the content of the news.

— Who brought it? — asked Kutuzov with a face startling Toll, when burned the candle, with its cold rigor.

— There may not be a doubt, your lordship.

— Call, call him here!

Kutuzov sat, one leg down from the bed and his big stomach leaning on the other, bent leg. He screwed up his sighted eye, so that to better consider the sent, as if in his outline he wanted to read that what occupied him.

— Say, say, my friend, — he said to Bolhovitinov in his quiet, senile voice, closing his wide open at the breast shirt. — Come on, come on closer. What news have you brought me? Ah? Napoleon from Moscow gone? Truly so? Ah?

Bolhovitinov in detail reported first all that what he was ordered.

— Say, say sooner, do not weary the soul, — Kutuzov interrupted him.

Bolhovitinov told all and fell silent, expecting orders. Toll started to speak something, but Kutuzov interrupted him. He wanted to say something, but suddenly his face squinted and wrinkled; he, waving his hand at Toll, turned to the opposite side, to the red corner of the hut, blackened from images.

— Lord, my creator! You heeded our prayer... — he said in a trembling voice, folding his hand. — You saved Russia. Thank you, Lord! — and he cried.

Time: October 11th
Mentioned: night, daytime, the preceding day

Locations: Tarutino
Mentioned: Russia (and Russian), St. Petersburg, Borodino, French, Moscow, Medyn, Yukhnov (Yukhnova in Briggs)

Pevear and Volokhonsky Notes: Kutuzov is having problems sleeping "like all old people".
"He knew that an apple should not be picked while it is green. It will fall by itself when it is ripe, but if you pick it green, you will spoil the apple and the tree, and you will set your teeth on edge." Another analogy of a wounded beast follows. Kutuzov imagines every situation except the one that happens, Napoleon retreating in the same direction he came from. Once Kutuzov hears the news of the retreat, he cries that Russia is saved.

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 *):

Kutuzof (also "serene highness")

Benigsen

Alexander ("sovereign")

Lauriston

Berthemi ("Barthelemy" in Dunnigan, Briggs, and Edmonds. "Bertemy" in Garnett.)

Napoleon (also his army.)

Dorokhof

Broussier

Madame Stahl (Dole puts a footnote of "Mme. de Stael?" It is spelled this latter way in Mandelker, Wiener, and Maude. See notes below.)

Toll

Konovnitsuin

Bolkhovitinof

(also the theoretical huntsman and children and the guerrillas. The metaphor of the Wild Beast permeates the chapter. Generals are spoken about in general.)

Abridged Versions: Line break instead of chapter break in Bell.

Gibian: line break instead of chapter break.

Fuller: Entire chapter is cut.

Komroff: Chapter basically preserved. Followed by a line break.

Kropotkin: A little of Kutuzof's reflections on what Napoleon might do is removed. End of Chapter 5.

Simmons: Most of the reflections on Kutuzov and the French's retreating decisions are removed. Line break instead of chapter break.

Edmundson: Act 4 Scene 17: A very brief scene that just has Kutuzov praising God and weeping that Russia is saved. 

Additional Notes: Garnett note makes a connection to the hunt Nikolai and Natasha go on as opening up the metaphor of the wounded beast used throughout the rest of the novel. Also Garnett: "Madame de Stael was...A disciple of Rousseau, she had initially welcomed Napoleon's ascension..but eventually became one of his most bitter and outspoken opponents. He reciprocated by banishing her from Paris in 1803....de Stael was well received by Alexander...and was a supporter of Kutuzov."