The Idiot

he prince now left the room and shut himself up in his own chamber.
Colia followed him almost at once, anxious to do what he could to
console him. The poor boy seemed to be already so attached to him that
he could hardly leave him.

“You were quite right to go away!” he said. “The row will rage there
worse than ever now; and it’s like this every day with us—and all
through that Nastasia Philipovna.”

“You have so many sources of trouble here, Colia,” said the prince.

“Yes, indeed, and it is all our own fault. But I have a great friend
who is much worse off even than we are. Would you like to know him?”

“Yes, very much. Is he one of your school-fellows?”

“Well, not exactly. I will tell you all about him some day.... What do
you think of Nastasia Philipovna? She is beautiful, isn’t she? I had
never seen her before, though I had a great wish to do so. She
fascinated me. I could forgive Gania if he were to marry her for love,
but for money! Oh dear! that is horrible!”

“Yes, your brother does not attract me much.”

“I am not surprised at that. After what you... But I do hate that way
of looking at things! Because some fool, or a rogue pretending to be a
fool, strikes a man, that man is to be dishonoured for his whole life,
unless he wipes out the disgrace with blood, or makes his assailant beg
forgiveness on his knees! I think that so very absurd and tyrannical.
Lermontoff’s Bal Masque is based on that idea—a stupid and unnatural
one, in my opinion; but he was hardly more than a child when he wrote
it.”

“I like your sister very much.”

“Did you see how she spat in Gania’s face! Varia is afraid of no one.
But you did not follow her example, and yet I am sure it was not
through cowardice. Here she comes! Speak of a wolf and you see his
tail! I felt sure that she would come. She is very generous, though of
course she has her faults.”

Varia pounced upon her brother.

“This is not the place for you,” said she. “Go to father. Is he
plaguing you, prince?”

“Not in the least; on the contrary, he interests me.”

“Scolding as usual, Varia! It is the worst thing about her. After all,
I believe father may have started off with Rogojin. No doubt he is
sorry now. Perhaps I had better go and see what he is doing,” added
Colia, running off.

“Thank God, I have got mother away, and put her to bed without another
scene! Gania is worried—and ashamed—not without reason! What a
spectacle! I have come to thank you once more, prince, and to ask you
if you knew Nastasia Philipovna before?”

“No, I have never known her.”

“Then what did you mean, when you said straight out to her that she was
not really ‘like that’? You guessed right, I fancy. It is quite
possible she was not herself at the moment, though I cannot fathom her
meaning. Evidently she meant to hurt and insult us. I have heard
curious tales about her before now, but if she came to invite us to her
house, why did she behave so to my mother? Ptitsin knows her very well;
he says he could not understand her today. With Rogojin, too! No one
with a spark of self-respect could have talked like that in the house
of her... Mother is extremely vexed on your account, too...

“That is nothing!” said the prince, waving his hand.

“But how meek she was when you spoke to her!”

“Meek! What do you mean?”

“You told her it was a shame for her to behave so, and her manner
changed at once; she was like another person. You have some influence
over her, prince,” added Varia, smiling a little.

The door opened at this point, and in came Gania most unexpectedly.

He was not in the least disconcerted to see Varia there, but he stood a
moment at the door, and then approached the prince quietly.

“Prince,” he said, with feeling, “I was a blackguard. Forgive me!” His
face gave evidence of suffering. The prince was considerably amazed,
and did not reply at once. “Oh, come, forgive me, forgive me!” Gania
insisted, rather impatiently. “If you like, I’ll kiss your hand.
There!”

The prince was touched; he took Gania’s hands, and embraced him
heartily, while each kissed the other.

“I never, never thought you were like that,” said Muishkin, drawing a
deep breath. “I thought you—you weren’t capable of—”

“Of what? Apologizing, eh? And where on earth did I get the idea that
you were an idiot? You always observe what other people pass by
unnoticed; one could talk sense to you, but—”

“Here is another to whom you should apologize,” said the prince,
pointing to Varia.

“No, no! they are all enemies! I’ve tried them often enough, believe
me,” and Gania turned his back on Varia with these words.

“But if I beg you to make it up?” said Varia.

“And you’ll go to Nastasia Philipovna’s this evening—”

“If you insist: but, judge for yourself, can I go, ought I to go?”

“But she is not that sort of woman, I tell you!” said Gania, angrily.
“She was only acting.”

“I know that—I know that; but what a part to play! And think what she
must take you for, Gania! I know she kissed mother’s hand, and all
that, but she laughed at you, all the same. All this is not good enough
for seventy-five thousand roubles, my dear boy. You are capable of
honourable feelings still, and that’s why I am talking to you so. Oh!
do take care what you are doing! Don’t you know yourself that it will
end badly, Gania?”

So saying, and in a state of violent agitation, Varia left the room.

“There, they are all like that,” said Gania, laughing, “just as if I do
not know all about it much better than they do.”

He sat down with these words, evidently intending to prolong his visit.

“If you know it so well,” said the prince a little timidly, “why do you
choose all this worry for the sake of the seventy-five thousand, which,
you confess, does not cover it?”

“I didn’t mean that,” said Gania; “but while we are upon the subject,
let me hear your opinion. Is all this worry worth seventy-five thousand
or not?”

“Certainly not.”

“Of course! And it would be a disgrace to marry so, eh?”

“A great disgrace.”

“Oh, well, then you may know that I shall certainly do it, now. I shall
certainly marry her. I was not quite sure of myself before, but now I
am. Don’t say a word: I know what you want to tell me—”

“No. I was only going to say that what surprises me most of all is your
extraordinary confidence.”

“How so? What in?”

“That Nastasia Philipovna will accept you, and that the question is as
good as settled; and secondly, that even if she did, you would be able
to pocket the money. Of course, I know very little about it, but that’s
my view. When a man marries for money it often happens that the wife
keeps the money in her own hands.”

“Of course, you don’t know all; but, I assure you, you needn’t be
afraid, it won’t be like that in our case. There are circumstances,”
said Gania, rather excitedly. “And as to her answer to me, there’s no
doubt about that. Why should you suppose she will refuse me?”

“Oh, I only judge by what I see. Varvara Ardalionovna said just now—”

“Oh she—they don’t know anything about it! Nastasia was only chaffing
Rogojin. I was alarmed at first, but I have thought better of it now;
she was simply laughing at him. She looks on me as a fool because I
show that I meant her money, and doesn’t realize that there are other
men who would deceive her in far worse fashion. I’m not going to
pretend anything, and you’ll see she’ll marry me, all right. If she
likes to live quietly, so she shall; but if she gives me any of her
nonsense, I shall leave her at once, but I shall keep the money. I’m
not going to look a fool; that’s the first thing, not to look a fool.”

“But Nastasia Philipovna seems to me to be such a sensible woman,
and, as such, why should she run blindly into this business? That’s
what puzzles me so,” said the prince.

“You don’t know all, you see; I tell you there are things—and besides,
I’m sure that she is persuaded that I love her to distraction, and I
give you my word I have a strong suspicion that she loves me, too—in
her own way, of course. She thinks she will be able to make a sort of
slave of me all my life; but I shall prepare a little surprise for her.
I don’t know whether I ought to be confidential with you, prince; but,
I assure you, you are the only decent fellow I have come across. I have
not spoken so sincerely as I am doing at this moment for years. There
are uncommonly few honest people about, prince; there isn’t one
honester than Ptitsin, he’s the best of the lot. Are you laughing? You
don’t know, perhaps, that blackguards like honest people, and being one
myself I like you. Why am I a blackguard? Tell me honestly, now. They
all call me a blackguard because of her, and I have got into the way of
thinking myself one. That’s what is so bad about the business.”

“I for one shall never think you a blackguard again,” said the
prince. “I confess I had a poor opinion of you at first, but I have
been so joyfully surprised about you just now; it’s a good lesson for
me. I shall never judge again without a thorough trial. I see now that
you are not only not a blackguard, but are not even quite spoiled. I
see that you are quite an ordinary man, not original in the least
degree, but rather weak.”

Gania laughed sarcastically, but said nothing. The prince, seeing that
he did not quite like the last remark, blushed, and was silent too.

“Has my father asked you for money?” asked Gania, suddenly.

“No.”

“Don’t give it to him if he does. Fancy, he was a decent, respectable
man once! He was received in the best society; he was not always the
liar he is now. Of course, wine is at the bottom of it all; but he is a
good deal worse than an innocent liar now. Do you know that he keeps a
mistress? I can’t understand how mother is so long-suffering. Did he
tell you the story of the siege of Kars? Or perhaps the one about his
grey horse that talked? He loves to enlarge on these absurd histories.”
And Gania burst into a fit of laughter. Suddenly he turned to the
prince and asked: “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I am surprised to see you laugh in that way, like a child. You came to
make friends with me again just now, and you said, ‘I will kiss your
hand, if you like,’ just as a child would have said it. And then, all
at once you are talking of this mad project—of these seventy-five
thousand roubles! It all seems so absurd and impossible.”

“Well, what conclusion have you reached?”

“That you are rushing madly into the undertaking, and that you would do
well to think it over again. It is more than possible that Varvara
Ardalionovna is right.”

“Ah! now you begin to moralize! I know that I am only a child, very
well,” replied Gania impatiently. “That is proved by my having this
conversation with you. It is not for money only, prince, that I am
rushing into this affair,” he continued, hardly master of his words, so
closely had his vanity been touched. “If I reckoned on that I should
certainly be deceived, for I am still too weak in mind and character. I
am obeying a passion, an impulse perhaps, because I have but one aim,
one that overmasters all else. You imagine that once I am in possession
of these seventy-five thousand roubles, I shall rush to buy a
carriage... No, I shall go on wearing the old overcoat I have worn for
three years, and I shall give up my club. I shall follow the example of
men who have made their fortunes. When Ptitsin was seventeen he slept
in the street, he sold pen-knives, and began with a copeck; now he has
sixty thousand roubles, but to get them, what has he not done? Well, I
shall be spared such a hard beginning, and shall start with a little
capital. In fifteen years people will say, ‘Look, that’s Ivolgin, the
king of the Jews!’ You say that I have no originality. Now mark this,
prince—there is nothing so offensive to a man of our time and race than
to be told that he is wanting in originality, that he is weak in
character, has no particular talent, and is, in short, an ordinary
person. You have not even done me the honour of looking upon me as a
rogue. Do you know, I could have knocked you down for that just now!
You wounded me more cruelly than Epanchin, who thinks me capable of
selling him my wife! Observe, it was a perfectly gratuitous idea on his
part, seeing there has never been any discussion of it between us! This
has exasperated me, and I am determined to make a fortune! I will do
it! Once I am rich, I shall be a genius, an extremely original man. One
of the vilest and most hateful things connected with money is that it
can buy even talent; and will do so as long as the world lasts. You
will say that this is childish—or romantic. Well, that will be all the
better for me, but the thing shall be done. I will carry it through. He
laughs most, who laughs last. Why does Epanchin insult me? Simply
because, socially, I am a nobody. However, enough for the present.
Colia has put his nose in to tell us dinner is ready, twice. I’m dining
out. I shall come and talk to you now and then; you shall be
comfortable enough with us. They are sure to make you one of the
family. I think you and I will either be great friends or enemies. Look
here now, supposing I had kissed your hand just now, as I offered to do
in all sincerity, should I have hated you for it afterwards?”

“Certainly, but not always. You would not have been able to keep it up,
and would have ended by forgiving me,” said the prince, after a pause
for reflection, and with a pleasant smile.

“Oho, how careful one has to be with you, prince! Haven’t you put a
drop of poison in that remark now, eh? By the way—ha, ha, ha!—I forgot
to ask, was I right in believing that you were a good deal struck
yourself with Nastasia Philipovna.”

“Ye-yes.”

“Are you in love with her?”

“N-no.”

“And yet you flush up as red as a rosebud! Come—it’s all right. I’m not
going to laugh at you. Do you know she is a very virtuous woman?
Believe it or not, as you like. You think she and Totski—not a bit of
it, not a bit of it! Not for ever so long! Au revoir!”

Gania left the room in great good humour. The prince stayed behind, and
meditated alone for a few minutes. At length, Colia popped his head in
once more.

“I don’t want any dinner, thanks, Colia. I had too good a lunch at
General Epanchin’s.”

Colia came into the room and gave the prince a note; it was from the
general and was carefully sealed up. It was clear from Colia’s face how
painful it was to him to deliver the missive. The prince read it, rose,
and took his hat.

“It’s only a couple of yards,” said Colia, blushing.

“He’s sitting there over his bottle—and how they can give him credit, I
cannot understand. Don’t tell mother I brought you the note, prince; I
have sworn not to do it a thousand times, but I’m always so sorry for
him. Don’t stand on ceremony, give him some trifle, and let that end
it.”

“Come along, Colia, I want to see your father. I have an idea,” said
the prince.