Summary
Princess Mary locks herself away after her father's funeral, consumed by guilt and grief. She believes she's spiritually worthless because she sometimes wished for her father's death during his difficult illness. While she wallows in self-recrimination, her French companion Mademoiselle Bourienne tries to convince her to stay and seek protection from the advancing French army, even producing an official proclamation. But the moment Mary realizes what this would mean—living under French protection in her own home, watching enemy soldiers occupy her brother Andrew's study—her family pride kicks in. She imagines what her father and brother would think, and suddenly she's no longer just grieving Mary but the representative of the Bolkonski family honor. She immediately decides they must flee, despite the dangers. When the village elder Dron tells her the peasants are starving, Mary finds purpose beyond her grief. She orders all the family grain distributed to the hungry villagers, speaking in her brother's name. This chapter shows how grief can paralyze us, how others might exploit our vulnerability, but also how remembering our values and helping others can snap us back to life. Mary transforms from a guilt-ridden mourner into someone taking decisive action, though Dron's strange request to be discharged suggests complications ahead.
Coming Up in Chapter 201
Dron's mysterious refusal to accept Mary's generous order hints at deeper problems brewing among the peasants. Mary's attempt to help her people may not go as smoothly as she hopes.
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An excerpt from the original text.(~500 words)
After her father’s funeral Princess Mary shut herself up in her room and did not admit anyone. A maid came to the door to say that Alpátych was asking for orders about their departure. (This was before his talk with Dron.) Princess Mary raised herself on the sofa on which she had been lying and replied through the closed door that she did not mean to go away and begged to be left in peace. The windows of the room in which she was lying looked westward. She lay on the sofa with her face to the wall, fingering the buttons of the leather cushion and seeing nothing but that cushion, and her confused thoughts were centered on one subject—the irrevocability of death and her own spiritual baseness, which she had not suspected, but which had shown itself during her father’s illness. She wished to pray but did not dare to, dared not in her present state of mind address herself to God. She lay for a long time in that position. The sun had reached the other side of the house, and its slanting rays shone into the open window, lighting up the room and part of the morocco cushion at which Princess Mary was looking. The flow of her thoughts suddenly stopped. Unconsciously she sat up, smoothed her hair, got up, and went to the window, involuntarily inhaling the freshness of the clear but windy evening. “Yes, you can well enjoy the evening now! He is gone and no one will hinder you,” she said to herself, and sinking into a chair she let her head fall on the window sill. Someone spoke her name in a soft and tender voice from the garden and kissed her head. She looked up. It was Mademoiselle Bourienne in a black dress and weepers. She softly approached Princess Mary, sighed, kissed her, and immediately began to cry. The princess looked up at her. All their former disharmony and her own jealousy recurred to her mind. But she remembered too how he had changed of late toward Mademoiselle Bourienne and could not bear to see her, thereby showing how unjust were the reproaches Princess Mary had mentally addressed to her. “Besides, is it for me, for me who desired his death, to condemn anyone?” she thought. Princess Mary vividly pictured to herself the position of Mademoiselle Bourienne, whom she had of late kept at a distance, but who yet was dependent on her and living in her house. She felt sorry for her and held out her hand with a glance of gentle inquiry. Mademoiselle Bourienne at once began crying again and kissed that hand, speaking of the princess’ sorrow and making herself a partner in it. She said her only consolation was the fact that the princess allowed her to share her sorrow, that all the old misunderstandings should sink into nothing but this great grief; that she felt herself blameless in regard to everyone, and that he, from above, saw...
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Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Road Back from Paralysis - How Crisis Reveals Your True Values
When overwhelmed by guilt or grief, reconnecting with core values provides clarity and energy that emotions cannot.
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to recognize when people use your emotional vulnerability to push their own agenda.
Practice This Today
Next time someone pressures you to make big decisions while you're grieving or overwhelmed, ask yourself: 'What would I decide if I felt completely clear-headed right now?'
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
French occupation
When Napoleon's army invaded Russia in 1812, they took control of territories and expected local nobles to cooperate. Many aristocrats faced the choice of fleeing or staying under enemy protection.
Modern Usage:
Like when a company gets bought out and employees must decide whether to work for the new owners or quit on principle.
Family honor
The reputation and principles passed down through generations that defined a family's identity. For nobles like the Bolkonskis, this meant never compromising with enemies or betraying their country.
Modern Usage:
When people say they won't do something because 'that's not how we were raised' or 'our family doesn't act that way.'
Noblesse oblige
The idea that wealthy, powerful people have a duty to help those less fortunate. Princess Mary feels responsible for her peasants' welfare even during her own crisis.
Modern Usage:
Like wealthy people who donate to charity or business owners who feel obligated to take care of their employees during hard times.
Spiritual baseness
Mary's harsh judgment of herself for having impure thoughts during her father's illness, believing she's morally corrupt for sometimes wishing he would die.
Modern Usage:
The guilt people feel when they have 'bad' thoughts about sick relatives or wish difficult situations would just end.
Village elder
An appointed leader who managed local peasant affairs and served as intermediary between the noble landowner and the common people.
Modern Usage:
Like a union representative or community leader who speaks for a group to management or authority figures.
Proclamation
An official announcement from Napoleon's administration promising protection to Russians who cooperated with French rule during the occupation.
Modern Usage:
Like propaganda leaflets or official announcements from occupying forces trying to win over local populations.
Characters in This Chapter
Princess Mary
Grieving protagonist
She's paralyzed by guilt over her father's death until her family pride kicks in. When faced with French protection, she chooses dangerous flight over comfortable compromise.
Modern Equivalent:
The person who's falling apart after a loss but finds strength when their values are threatened
Mademoiselle Bourienne
Manipulative companion
Mary's French companion who tries to convince her to stay and accept French protection, possibly for her own safety and comfort rather than Mary's best interests.
Modern Equivalent:
The friend who gives advice that benefits them more than you
Dron
Village elder
He reports that the peasants are starving and makes a strange request to be discharged from service, suggesting underlying tensions Mary doesn't fully understand.
Modern Equivalent:
The middle manager delivering bad news while hinting at bigger problems
Alpátych
Loyal steward
The family's trusted manager who seeks orders about departure, representing the practical concerns Mary must face despite her grief.
Modern Equivalent:
The reliable employee trying to keep things running while the boss deals with personal crisis
Key Quotes & Analysis
"Yes, you can well enjoy the evening now! He is gone and no one will hinder you."
Context: She speaks bitterly to herself, feeling guilty for noticing the beautiful evening after her father's death
This shows how grief can make us feel guilty for any moment of peace or beauty. Mary tortures herself for being alive and capable of enjoying anything when her father is dead.
In Today's Words:
Great, now I can enjoy myself since he's not here to stop me - what kind of terrible person am I?
"I cannot and will not leave my father's house in such a way."
Context: Her response when she realizes staying would mean accepting French protection
This moment transforms Mary from a guilt-ridden mourner into someone defending family honor. She'd rather risk death than betray her father's principles.
In Today's Words:
I won't sell out everything my family stands for just to stay safe.
"Distribute the grain to them. Give them all our stores. I give this order in my brother's name."
Context: Her command to help the starving peasants before they flee
Mary finds purpose beyond her grief by helping others. She acts with authority, invoking her brother's name to give weight to her generosity during crisis.
In Today's Words:
Give them everything we have - my brother would want us to take care of our people.
Thematic Threads
Identity
In This Chapter
Mary transforms from guilt-ridden individual to family representative when her values are threatened
Development
Building on earlier themes of how crisis shapes who we become
In Your Life:
You might discover who you really are when someone threatens what you care most about
Class
In This Chapter
Mary's aristocratic pride prevents her from accepting French protection, even when practical
Development
Continues exploration of how social position shapes moral choices
In Your Life:
Your background might give you principles that seem impractical but define who you are
Personal Growth
In This Chapter
Mary moves from self-absorbed grief to taking decisive action for others
Development
Shows how growth often comes through external challenges rather than internal work
In Your Life:
You might grow most when forced to act for others rather than focusing on your own problems
Human Relationships
In This Chapter
Mademoiselle Bourienne tries to manipulate Mary's vulnerability for her own safety
Development
Explores how crisis reveals people's true motivations and loyalties
In Your Life:
You might discover who really has your back when you're at your most vulnerable
Social Expectations
In This Chapter
Mary feels bound by what her father and brother would expect, even after death
Development
Shows how family expectations continue to guide behavior across generations
In Your Life:
You might find yourself making choices based on what deceased loved ones would want
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
What snaps Princess Mary out of her guilt spiral, and how does her decision-making change once she stops focusing on her grief?
analysis • surface - 2
Why does imagining French soldiers in her brother's study have such a powerful effect on Mary when logical arguments about safety didn't work?
analysis • medium - 3
Where have you seen people get manipulated when they're grieving or overwhelmed? What makes someone vulnerable in those moments?
application • medium - 4
When you're paralyzed by guilt or stress, what external anchors could you use to regain perspective and make decisions?
application • deep - 5
What does Mary's transformation reveal about the relationship between emotions and values when we're making important decisions?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
Map Your Value Anchors
Think of a time when you were overwhelmed by emotions - grief, stress, anger, or fear. Write down three core values or principles that could have guided you through that situation, even when your feelings were chaotic. Then identify one person whose opinion you respect who could serve as an external anchor when you can't trust your own emotional state.
Consider:
- •Values work as anchors because they exist outside your current emotional state
- •The people whose respect matters to you often represent your deeper values
- •External perspective can cut through internal chaos when you're too close to the problem
Journaling Prompt
Write about a current situation where you feel stuck or overwhelmed. What would someone you deeply respect advise you to do? What values would they remind you that you stand for?
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 201: When Good Intentions Meet Resistance
As the story unfolds, you'll explore miscommunication can derail even the most generous offers, while uncovering people sometimes reject help, even when they desperately need it. These lessons connect the classic to contemporary challenges we all face.