An excerpt from the original text.(complete · 931 words)
“arvara Andreevna, when I was very young, I set before myself the
ideal of the woman I loved and should be happy to call my wife. I have
lived through a long life, and now for the first time I have met what I
sought—in you. I love you, and offer you my hand.”
Sergey Ivanovitch was saying this to himself while he was ten paces
from Varvara. Kneeling down, with her hands over the mushrooms to guard
them from Grisha, she was calling little Masha.
“Come here, little ones! There are so many!” she was saying in her
sweet, deep voice.
Seeing Sergey Ivanovitch approaching, she did not get up and did not
change her position, but everything told him that she felt his presence
and was glad of it.
“Well, did you find some?” she asked from under the white kerchief,
turning her handsome, gently smiling face to him.
“Not one,” said Sergey Ivanovitch. “Did you?”
She did not answer, busy with the children who thronged about her.
“That one too, near the twig,” she pointed out to little Masha a little
fungus, split in half across its rosy cap by the dry grass from under
which it thrust itself. Varenka got up while Masha picked the fungus,
breaking it into two white halves. “This brings back my childhood,” she
added, moving apart from the children beside Sergey Ivanovitch.
They walked on for some steps in silence. Varenka saw that he wanted to
speak; she guessed of what, and felt faint with joy and panic. They had
walked so far away that no one could hear them now, but still he did
not begin to speak. It would have been better for Varenka to be silent.
After a silence it would have been easier for them to say what they
wanted to say than after talking about mushrooms. But against her own
will, as it were accidentally, Varenka said:
“So you found nothing? In the middle of the wood there are always
fewer, though.” Sergey Ivanovitch sighed and made no answer. He was
annoyed that she had spoken about the mushrooms. He wanted to bring her
back to the first words she had uttered about her childhood; but after
a pause of some length, as though against his own will, he made an
observation in response to her last words.
“I have heard that the white edible funguses are found principally at
the edge of the wood, though I can’t tell them apart.”
Some minutes more passed, they moved still further away from the
children, and were quite alone. Varenka’s heart throbbed so that she
heard it beating, and felt that she was turning red and pale and red
again.
To be the wife of a man like Koznishev, after her position with Madame
Stahl, was to her imagination the height of happiness. Besides, she was
almost certain that she was in love with him. And this moment it would
have to be decided. She felt frightened. She dreaded both his speaking
and his not speaking.
Now or never it must be said—that Sergey Ivanovitch felt too.
Everything in the expression, the flushed cheeks and the downcast eyes
of Varenka betrayed a painful suspense. Sergey Ivanovitch saw it and
felt sorry for her. He felt even that to say nothing now would be a
slight to her. Rapidly in his own mind he ran over all the arguments in
support of his decision. He even said over to himself the words in
which he meant to put his offer, but instead of those words, some
utterly unexpected reflection that occurred to him made him ask:
“What is the difference between the ‘birch’ mushroom and the ‘white’
mushroom?”
Varenka’s lips quivered with emotion as she answered:
“In the top part there is scarcely any difference, it’s in the stalk.”
And as soon as these words were uttered, both he and she felt that it
was over, that what was to have been said would not be said; and their
emotion, which had up to then been continually growing more intense,
began to subside.
“The birch mushroom’s stalk suggests a dark man’s chin after two days
without shaving,” said Sergey Ivanovitch, speaking quite calmly now.
“Yes, that’s true,” answered Varenka smiling, and unconsciously the
direction of their walk changed. They began to turn towards the
children. Varenka felt both sore and ashamed; at the same time she had
a sense of relief.
When he had got home again and went over the whole subject, Sergey
Ivanovitch thought his previous decision had been a mistaken one. He
could not be false to the memory of Marie.
“Gently, children, gently!” Levin shouted quite angrily to the
children, standing before his wife to protect her when the crowd of
children flew with shrieks of delight to meet them.
Behind the children Sergey Ivanovitch and Varenka walked out of the
wood. Kitty had no need to ask Varenka; she saw from the calm and
somewhat crestfallen faces of both that her plans had not come off.
“Well?” her husband questioned her as they were going home again.
“It doesn’t bite,” said Kitty, her smile and manner of speaking
recalling her father, a likeness Levin often noticed with pleasure.
“How doesn’t bite?”
“I’ll show you,” she said, taking her husband’s hand, lifting it to her
mouth, and just faintly brushing it with closed lips. “Like a kiss on a
priest’s hand.”
“Which didn’t it bite with?” he said, laughing.
“Both. But it should have been like this....”
“There are some peasants coming....”
“Oh, they didn’t see.”
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Let's Analyse the Pattern
The more we intellectualize life's meaning, the further we drift from actually experiencing it.
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to identify when thinking becomes a prison that prevents actual living and decision-making.
Practice This Today
This week, notice when you've been thinking about the same problem for more than 20 minutes without taking action—that's your cue to stop analyzing and start doing.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Key Quotes & Analysis
"He envied them their health and strength, their cheerfulness and their unquestioning faith."
Context: Levin observing the peasants as they work together in the fields
This reveals how education and privilege can sometimes be a burden rather than a blessing. Levin has everything materially but lacks the spiritual certainty that gives the peasants peace. It shows how overthinking can rob us of simple happiness.
In Today's Words:
He wished he could be as genuinely content and sure about life as they seemed to be.
"The harder he worked, the more peaceful he felt, but as soon as he stopped, the questions returned."
Context: Describing Levin's experience during the physical labor
This captures the temporary nature of using activity to avoid dealing with deeper issues. Physical exhaustion can quiet the mind temporarily, but it doesn't resolve underlying spiritual or emotional problems. The questions always return when the distraction ends.
In Today's Words:
Staying busy helped him not think about his problems, but they always came back when he slowed down.
"What did they know that he did not? What gave them such certainty?"
Context: Levin's thoughts while watching the peasants' easy faith
This shows the frustration of someone who believes knowledge should lead to answers, but finds that education has only given him more questions. He realizes that certainty might come from something other than intellectual understanding.
In Today's Words:
What was their secret? How could they be so sure about everything when he doubted everything?
Thematic Threads
Class
In This Chapter
Levin envies the peasants' simple faith while being trapped by his educated skepticism
Development
Evolved from earlier class tensions to show how education can become its own form of isolation
In Your Life:
You might find yourself overcomplicating situations that simpler people navigate with ease
Identity
In This Chapter
Levin loses himself in physical labor to escape the torment of his questioning mind
Development
His identity crisis deepens as he realizes his intellect might be his greatest obstacle
In Your Life:
You might feel most like yourself when you stop trying to figure out who you are
Personal Growth
In This Chapter
Physical exhaustion becomes a metaphor for the futility of purely intellectual spiritual seeking
Development
Growth through action and experience rather than analysis
In Your Life:
Your biggest breakthroughs might come from doing, not thinking
Human Relationships
In This Chapter
The gap between Levin and the peasants highlights different ways of knowing and being
Development
Relationships suffer when overthinking replaces genuine connection
In Your Life:
You might analyze your relationships to death instead of simply being present in them
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
Why does Levin turn to physical labor when his thoughts become overwhelming, and what does this tell us about the relationship between mind and body?
analysis • surface - 2
What specific differences does Levin notice between his own spiritual struggle and the peasants' simple faith, and why does this contrast torment him?
analysis • medium - 3
Where do you see this pattern today - people who know a lot about something but struggle to actually experience or live it?
application • medium - 4
When you're stuck overthinking a decision or life problem, what practical strategies could help you break the cycle and move toward action?
application • deep - 5
What does Levin's struggle reveal about the potential dangers of education and intelligence when they become disconnected from lived experience?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
Map Your Analysis Paralysis Triggers
Think of a current decision or problem you've been overthinking. Write down what you actually know versus what you're endlessly analyzing. Then identify one simple action you could take today, regardless of whether you have all the answers. Notice how much mental energy you're spending on thinking versus doing.
Consider:
- •What would someone with less education but more life experience tell you to do?
- •How is your overthinking protecting you from taking action or facing uncertainty?
- •What would you advise a friend in this exact same situation?
Journaling Prompt
Write about a time when you overthought yourself out of something good, or when simple action worked better than complex analysis. What did that teach you about the limits of thinking your way through life?
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 163
After the failed proposal, everyone pretends nothing happened. But Levin's happiness will be tested by an unwelcome visitor.
