War & Peace Podnotes, A Study Guide

Pierre wins the Duel and thereafter cannot stand to be in the presence of his wife. The night after the conflict he avoids the marital bedroom in preference of his late father’s room. Pierre desires to fall asleep and forget all. Yet a storm of emotions prevents any rest. Pierre relives his rash decision to marry, which he now realizes would inevitably lead to dreadful consequences. He acknowledges that even when he first expressed love for Hélène, it was not a genuine. Tolstoy brings you into Pierre’s soul. Pierre recognizes his own sinful pride in his wife’s majestic beauty and appreciation of how she glides through Society. She is so out-of-reach that he could not resist. Yet at her core, he knows her to be depraved. He recalls how her corrupt brother, Anatole, would come to borrow money and take un-natural liberties, like kissing her naked shoulders. He notes how she would assent to the affection. He then relives the time he asked if she felt any symptoms of pregnancy. She belittled him, laughing contempt