.......It is July 1805. While Napoleon Bonaparte prowls Europe with his seemingly invincible army, Russian nobles in the capital city of St. Petersburg enjoy their lavish parties and *bleep*. They believe war will remain outside the Russian borders, although the czar’s troops are mobilized to fight at the side of Austria.
.......At a grand soirée in St. Petersburg, hostess Anna Pavlovna Scherer–a spinster on intimate terms with the Russian empress and therefore an important society luminary–discusses the French emperor with an influential aristocrat, Prince Vassily Kuragin. The French emperor, she declares, is the Antichrist. If Kuragin disagrees with her on this matter, she tells him playfully, she will no longer be his friend. Vassily kisses her hand and sits down, and they talk further of society matters and war while other guests begin to arrive. It is up to Russia, Anna Pavlovna says, to save Europe from the French:
......."Our good and wonderful sovereign has to perform the noblest role on earth, and he is so virtuous and noble that God will not forsake him. He will fulfill his vocation and crush the hydra of revolution, which has become more terrible than ever in the person of this murderer and villain!"
.......Vassily brings up the subject of court politics and political appointments, as he is wont to do, for he is a schemer ever seeking advantages for himself and his friends. During their talk, Anna Pavlovna suggests a match between Vassily's profligate son, Anatole, and Princess Marya Bolkonsky, whose father is wealthy. The drawing room begins to swell as guests arrive–both regular attendees at such affairs, including Vassily's beautiful daughter, Hélène, as well as new guests, such as the Vicomte de Mortemart, an émigré from France, and the Abbé Morio, a great thinker. During the party and on other social occasions, two of the principal characters of the novel begin to come into focus:
Pierre Bezuhov
.......Pierre Bezuhov, the novel's protagonist, is a tall, stout young man looked down upon in drawing rooms because of his awkward manner and his birth: He is the illegitimate son of a Russian count in Moscow. But unlike so many other St. Petersburg partygoers, he speaks his mind directly and honestly. One of his opinions–certainly not a popular one–is that Napoleon is a great man. Others, like Anna Pavlovna, disdainfully refer to the French emperor by his original Italian name–Buonaparte (spelled with a u after the b), to underscore his origin as the son of Corsicans of Italian heritage–rather than by his august French title. One reason Pierre admires Napoleon, apparently, is that the great military leader is so sure of himself; he knows who he is and what his destiny is, and he acts decisively to fulfill that destiny. Pierre, on the other hand, is not at all sure of himself, for his illegitimacy has provided him no identity and no clear destiny. Even his own father has treated him like an outsider. Consequently, Pierre is a man in search of himself, a man who thirsts to learn all he can about life and, in so doing, discover himself. He roves for meaning in the same way that Napoleon roves for the spoils of war.
Prince Andrey Bolkonsky
.......Prince Andrey is a cultured, intelligent, patriotic, and at times arrogant man who has just received a commission in the army from authorities in St. Petersburg. Although he is Pierre Bezuhov’s best friend, he is in some ways his opposite, his foil. For example, Andrey has family identity as the legitimate son of an old-school aristocrat, Prince Nikolay Andreivitch Bolkonsky (mentioned above as the father of Princess Marya Bolkonsky). Prince Nikolay is a retired military man who lives at an estate called Bald Hills, about 100 miles from Moscow. Andrey resides at Bogucharovo, about 26 miles from Bald Hills, in a home he built on an estate his father had given him. The old prince values honor and duty and expects his son to uphold these values even if doing so means he must sacrifice himself on the battlefield. He would rather have his son die honorably than live dishonorably. Prince Andrey is also different from his friend, Pierre, in what really counts in Russian high society: looks, elegant demeanor, charisma. Andrey is in every way the handsome, dashing nobleman.
.......On the other hand, he is like Pierre in that his father has been cold and distant to him while bringing up Andrey as a member of the nobility–a nobility which, Andrey has come to realize, is shallow and artificial in its tired traditions and in its corrupt political machinations. Andrey knows that he is a nobleman, but he wonders whether he is a noble man? Is his life in upper-class society really worth living? And so he broods, unsmiling, living in a dark corner of his soul. Making matters worse is his bad marriage. He despises his pregnant wife, Lise. She is pretty enough and winsome in her manner, but she lives for the one thing that Andrey despises: Russian high society. Lise attends Anna Pavlovna Scherer’s party with Andrey, enjoying its dazzling ambience, while Andrey looks forward to the military service that will give him a respite from his marriage.
Other Important Russian Characters
.......Pierre and Andrey are well known to the other families in the St. Petersburg and Moscow social circles, and the lives of both men become intertwined with the lives of the members of these families–in particular, the Rostov and Kuragin families.
.......The Rostovs–who live at an estate at Otradnoe, near Moscow–are well-meaning and likable. The head of the family, Count Ilya Rostov, is genuinely interested in the welfare of his wife and his children, including Natasha (the most important female character in the novel), an altogether charming teenager who brims with zest for life; Nikolay, a decent, fun-loving young chap who, as a cadet in the colorful hussars (cavalrymen), is ready to go to war against the French; Petya, a boy who looks up to his older brother, as all little boys do; and Vera, the distant and unfriendly older sister of Natasha. Also staying with the Rostovs is Sonya, a poor teenage relative who lives as a ward of the Rostovs and enjoys their affection. Count Ilya is kind, sincere, and loving to his family and friends, but he and his wife are spendthrifts. Eventually, their prodigality–and the gambling habits of Nikolay–plunge the family into debt.
.......The Kuragins, headed by the Prince Vassily, are self-centered and unprincipled. Vassily, as previously mentioned, is ever scheming for advantages for himself and his hedonistic son, Anatole, and status-seeking daughter, the beautiful Hélène. Vassily also has another son, Hippolyte, who is a quiet fool and therefore of little interest to Vassily.
The Story Continued: Pierre's Inheritance
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Topic: Game for April (Read 355406 times)
April 20, 2009, 02:48:07 pm