Summary
During the quiet days after Christmas, Natasha finds herself consumed by restless energy and desperate longing for Prince Andrew. Unable to sit still, she wanders through the house, giving random orders to servants and testing her influence over the household staff. Her mother notices her agitation, and Natasha breaks down, crying that she wants 'him' - Andrew - immediately. She feels like she's wasting away waiting. Moving through the house like she's reviewing her domain, Natasha eventually settles in the ballroom with her guitar, playing music that reminds her of Andrew and their time together in Petersburg. When Sonya appears, Natasha experiences a strange moment of déjà vu, feeling like this exact scene has happened before. The familiar feeling unsettles her, but she can't solve its meaning. Her thoughts drift back to Andrew and her fear that he may never return, or worse, that she's growing older and losing whatever made him love her. She fantasizes that he might arrive any moment, then returns to find the family at tea - the same faces, same conversations, same routine that now fills her with horror and repulsion. The chapter ends with the young people gathering in their favorite corner for intimate conversation. This chapter captures the agony of waiting for love and how anticipation can make even comfortable surroundings feel like a prison.
Coming Up in Chapter 142
In their private corner, the three young people will share their deepest thoughts and feelings, leading to revelations that could change everything about their relationships with each other.
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An excerpt from the original text.(~500 words)
Christmas came and except for the ceremonial Mass, the solemn and wearisome Christmas congratulations from neighbors and servants, and the new dresses everyone put on, there were no special festivities, though the calm frost of twenty degrees Réaumur, the dazzling sunshine by day, and the starlight of the winter nights seemed to call for some special celebration of the season. On the third day of Christmas week, after the midday dinner, all the inmates of the house dispersed to various rooms. It was the dullest time of the day. Nicholas, who had been visiting some neighbors that morning, was asleep on the sitting-room sofa. The old count was resting in his study. Sónya sat in the drawing room at the round table, copying a design for embroidery. The countess was playing patience. Nastásya Ivánovna the buffoon sat with a sad face at the window with two old ladies. Natásha came into the room, went up to Sónya, glanced at what she was doing, and then went up to her mother and stood without speaking. “Why are you wandering about like an outcast?” asked her mother. “What do you want?” “Him... I want him... now, this minute! I want him!” said Natásha, with glittering eyes and no sign of a smile. The countess lifted her head and looked attentively at her daughter. “Don’t look at me, Mamma! Don’t look; I shall cry directly.” “Sit down with me a little,” said the countess. “Mamma, I want him. Why should I be wasted like this, Mamma?” Her voice broke, tears gushed from her eyes, and she turned quickly to hide them and left the room. She passed into the sitting room, stood there thinking awhile, and then went into the maids’ room. There an old maidservant was grumbling at a young girl who stood panting, having just run in through the cold from the serfs’ quarters. “Stop playing—there’s a time for everything,” said the old woman. “Let her alone, Kondrátevna,” said Natásha. “Go, Mavrúshka, go.” Having released Mavrúshka, Natásha crossed the dancing hall and went to the vestibule. There an old footman and two young ones were playing cards. They broke off and rose as she entered. “What can I do with them?” thought Natásha. “Oh, Nikíta, please go... where can I send him?... Yes, go to the yard and fetch a fowl, please, a cock, and you, Misha, bring me some oats.” “Just a few oats?” said Misha, cheerfully and readily. “Go, go quickly,” the old man urged him. “And you, Theodore, get me a piece of chalk.” On her way past the butler’s pantry she told them to set a samovar, though it was not at all the time for tea. Fóka, the butler, was the most ill-tempered person in the house. Natásha liked to test her power over him. He distrusted the order and asked whether the samovar was really wanted. “Oh dear, what a young lady!” said Fóka, pretending to frown at Natásha. No one in the house sent...
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Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Restless Heart - When Anticipation Becomes Prison
When we can't control what matters most, we obsessively control what doesn't matter at all.
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how unfulfilled desires create restless energy that gets redirected into controlling whatever is available, never addressing the real need.
Practice This Today
This week, notice when you're being unusually controlling or busy - ask yourself what you're actually waiting for that you can't control.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
Réaumur
A temperature scale used in 18th and 19th century Europe, where water freezes at 0 degrees and boils at 80 degrees. Twenty degrees Réaumur equals about 77 degrees Fahrenheit - quite cold. This detail shows how Tolstoy grounds his story in specific, realistic details.
Modern Usage:
Like when weather apps give you the 'feels like' temperature - writers use specific details to make scenes feel real and immediate.
Patience
A card game played alone, what we now call solitaire. In aristocratic households, it was a common way to pass time during long, quiet afternoons. The game represents the slow, repetitive nature of waiting.
Modern Usage:
Like scrolling through your phone when you're bored or anxious - mindless activities we do when we can't settle our thoughts.
Buffoon
Not a clown, but a household entertainer kept by wealthy families to provide amusement and companionship. Nastásya Ivánovna fills this role - part servant, part family member, existing in social limbo.
Modern Usage:
Like the office comedian or family member who's always 'on' - someone whose job it is to lighten the mood but who might feel lonely behind the performance.
Drawing room
The formal living room where families gathered for conversation and quiet activities like embroidery or reading. Different from bedrooms or dining rooms, this was the social heart of upper-class homes.
Modern Usage:
Like the family room where everyone ends up gravitating - the central space where daily life happens and family dynamics play out.
Déjà vu
The strange feeling that you've experienced the exact same moment before, even though you know you haven't. Natasha experiences this unsettling sensation while in the ballroom, which adds to her emotional turmoil.
Modern Usage:
We still use this French term today for that eerie 'I've been here before' feeling that can make ordinary moments feel mysterious or significant.
Restless longing
The physical and emotional agitation that comes from wanting something intensely but being unable to act. Natasha can't sit still, can't focus, can't find peace because her desire for Andrew consumes her thoughts.
Modern Usage:
Like waiting for test results, or for someone to text you back, or for a job interview callback - that anxious energy that makes everything else feel meaningless.
Characters in This Chapter
Natasha
Protagonist in emotional crisis
She's consumed by desperate longing for Prince Andrew, unable to settle or find peace. Her restless energy drives her through the house like a caged animal, and she breaks down crying to her mother about wanting 'him' immediately.
Modern Equivalent:
The friend who can't stop checking her phone waiting for her boyfriend to call
The countess
Concerned mother
Natasha's mother notices her daughter's agitation and tries to provide comfort. She's playing patience (solitaire) and observes Natasha's wandering with maternal concern, asking why she's acting 'like an outcast.'
Modern Equivalent:
The mom who knows something's wrong but isn't sure how to help
Sónya
Quiet observer
She's calmly doing embroidery work when Natasha appears to her in the ballroom, triggering Natasha's strange déjà vu moment. Her presence represents the normal, steady life that Natasha can no longer access.
Modern Equivalent:
The level-headed friend who stays calm while everyone else is having drama
Nicholas
Absent family member
He's sleeping on the sofa after visiting neighbors, representing the normal rhythms of social life that continue around Natasha's emotional storm. His peaceful rest contrasts with her inability to settle.
Modern Equivalent:
The sibling who's oblivious to your crisis because they're living their normal life
Nastásya Ivánovna
Household entertainer
The family's buffoon sits sadly by the window, her usual cheerfulness dampened. Even the person whose job it is to provide entertainment seems affected by the household's subdued mood.
Modern Equivalent:
The usually funny coworker who's having an off day
Key Quotes & Analysis
"Why are you wandering about like an outcast?"
Context: Natasha's mother asks this when she notices her daughter restlessly moving through the house
The word 'outcast' reveals how emotional turmoil can make us feel disconnected from normal family life. Natasha's longing has isolated her from the peaceful routine everyone else enjoys.
In Today's Words:
Why are you acting like you don't belong here?
"Him... I want him... now, this minute! I want him!"
Context: Her desperate response when her mother asks what she wants
The repetition and urgency show how desire can become physically painful. Natasha can't even say Andrew's name - he's just 'him' - showing how completely he occupies her thoughts.
In Today's Words:
I need him here right now - I can't stand waiting anymore!
"Don't look at me, Mamma! Don't look; I shall cry directly."
Context: When her mother studies her face with concern
This shows how vulnerable we become when consumed by longing. Even loving attention feels unbearable because it threatens to break down the fragile control she's maintaining.
In Today's Words:
Don't stare at me like that - I'm barely holding it together and you're going to make me lose it.
Thematic Threads
Waiting
In This Chapter
Natasha's desperate anticipation for Andrew's return transforms her comfortable home into a prison of routine
Development
Evolved from earlier romantic excitement into consuming anxiety about time passing
In Your Life:
You might recognize this when you're constantly checking your phone while waiting for important news or decisions.
Control
In This Chapter
Unable to control Andrew's return, Natasha tests her power over household staff with random orders
Development
New manifestation of her need for agency in an uncertain situation
In Your Life:
You might find yourself micromanaging small details when facing larger uncertainties you can't influence.
Time
In This Chapter
Natasha fears she's aging and losing whatever made Andrew love her during their separation
Development
Builds on earlier themes about youth and beauty as social currency
In Your Life:
You might worry about missing opportunities or becoming less valuable while waiting for life to begin.
Routine
In This Chapter
The familiar family tea and conversations now fill Natasha with horror and repulsion
Development
Contrasts with earlier comfort in family life, showing how anticipation changes perception
In Your Life:
You might feel trapped by normal routines when you're desperate for change or resolution.
Memory
In This Chapter
Natasha experiences strange déjà vu, feeling like scenes have happened before in exactly the same way
Development
New element suggesting how intense emotion can create psychological echoes
In Your Life:
You might feel like you're living the same day repeatedly when stuck in cycles of waiting or worry.
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
What specific behaviors does Natasha display when she can't have what she wants most?
analysis • surface - 2
Why does Natasha start giving orders to servants and testing her influence over the household staff?
analysis • medium - 3
When have you seen someone (or yourself) become controlling in small areas when they felt powerless about something big?
application • medium - 4
How could Natasha channel her restless energy in ways that actually help her situation instead of making it worse?
application • deep - 5
What does this chapter reveal about how anticipation can become its own form of suffering?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
Track Your Displacement Behaviors
Think of a time when you were waiting for something important - a job decision, medical results, someone to text back, or a relationship to change. Write down three specific things you did while waiting that had nothing to do with the actual situation. Then identify what you were really trying to control and why those substitute actions felt necessary in the moment.
Consider:
- •Look for patterns in how you handle powerlessness - do you clean, reorganize, criticize others, or pick fights?
- •Notice whether your displacement behaviors actually made you feel better or just created more problems
- •Consider what direct actions (if any) you could have taken instead, or whether acceptance was the only realistic option
Journaling Prompt
Write about a current situation where you're waiting for something beyond your control. What displacement behaviors are you tempted to engage in, and how could you redirect that energy more productively?
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 142: Memories, Dreams, and Winter Magic
The coming pages reveal shared memories create deeper bonds between people, and teach us philosophical conversations often happen in intimate, quiet moments. These discoveries help us navigate similar situations in our own lives.