Chapter 25
The next day Andrei is ready to depart. He’s pacing his room ruminating on going to war and leaving his wife when his sister, Marya, comes to talk with him. She compliments him on his lovely child-like wife who is so ‘sweet’ and ‘happy’, Andrei says nothing but his face takes on a look of ‘irony and scorn’.
Marya implores him to overlook his wives ‘little weaknesses’ and have some empathy for her position, but Andrei seems incapable of doing so.
Later he confesses to Marya that neither he nor Lise are happy in this marriage but he doesn’t know why. (Erm… Andrei, old chum, do you think maybe it’s because you can’t stand her and make no effort to hide the fact, do you think that might be a factor?)
The talk turns to ‘that woman Bourienne’ and it appears here is another woman who Andrei doesn’t like. Marya protests that, “She’s so kind, and so sweet”, but goes on to confess, “If you want to know the truth, she’s no use to me, in fact I find her oppressive.”
It transpires that Mademoiselle Bourienne was an orphan picked up off the streets by Prince Nikolai and she has become one of very few people he tolerates around him, indeed he likes her to read to him in the evenings.
This naturally leads them onto their father and Andrei touches on Marya’s living conditions, saying the Prince has, “always been on the stern side, but now I think he’s getting quite difficult,”
Princess Marya is horrified that Andrei can disparage their father in this way, and believes he must be teasing her or seeking to test her. She protests she has the deepest admiration for her father and is ‘pleased and happy to be with him.’ (That Stockholm syndrome goes deep man!) The only criticism of her father she is willing to concede is that he isn’t religious enough for her liking, but then I’m wondering who would be 🤷♀️ maybe Mother Theresa, but it’s touch and go.
Marya takes this opportunity to press upon Andrei a holy icon necklace that had been their grandfathers. She hopes it will keep him safe in battle, and whilst Andrei is amused by her beliefs, and doesn’t share her superstition, he promises to wear it always to make her happy:
“Her great wide eyes shone timidly with loving kindness. They lit up the whole of her thin, sickly face and turned it into a thing of beauty.”
(Again with the eyes, we get it, she’s got amazing eyes, we know already!)
It’s time for Andrei to leave but first he has a private audience with his father. His father is gruff and short, he seems to be having some difficulty containing his emotion, and is writing a letter getting ink blotches everywhere.
Andrei asks that a Moscow specialist be called to help with the birth when the time comes, and to ease Lise’s fears, his father consents to this although he clearly thinks it’s a ridiculous notion.
Andrei has a second request, if he doesn’t return from the war, and his child is a boy, he wants that son to be brought up at Bald Hills by his father. (Because obviously, that would be better for him than being in the sole care of a loving mother, wouldn’t want him to miss out on all that red blooded misogyny and indoctrination.) No such request is made if he has a daughter - Andrei doesn’t seem to have any qualms about a girl being brought up by Lise.
Time for what constitutes a Bolkonsky father/son heart to heart. Marriage, the old man states, is a ‘bad business’ and wives are all the same, still ‘can’t be helped ... you can’t get unmarried now. Don’t worry, I shan’t tell anyone, but you know it’s true’, he cheerfully concludes. (Women hey! Can’t live with ‘em, can’t live with ‘em.)
Prince Nikolai hands over the letter he has been frantically scribbling during their interview it is to General Kutuzov, basically a reference, and a plea to use his son well and promote him as soon as possible.
The interview is at an end:
“‘Well, goodbye then!’ He gave his son his hand to kiss and then embraced him. ‘Remember this, Prince Andrey, if you get killed, it will be a great sadness to me in my old age …’ He broke off sharply, and then bawled at him, ‘but if I hear that you have not behaved like the son of Nikolay Bolkonsky, I shall be … ashamed of you. ….
We’ve said goodbye … Just go!’ he said suddenly. ‘Go!’ he cried in a loud angry voice, opening the study door.”
It doesn’t take a psychiatrist to work out that Prince Nikolai is hiding his sadness and anxiety behind a mask of irritation and anger.
Now, having learnt it from the master, it’s Andrei’s turn to take a passively aggressive stance towards those who love him:
“‘Come on, then,’ he said, turning to his wife, and his ‘Come on, then’ sounded like a cold rebuke, as if he had said, ‘Let’s see you put on your little act.’
Lise duly turns pale, cries and faints against his shoulder. He peels her away from him and sits her down, kisses his sister (referring to her by the pet name ‘Masha’) ignores Mademoiselle Bourienne, and strides purposefully away. The women are left trying to comfort Lise.
The final word goes to old Prince Bolkonsky who can be heard from the study blowing his nose like ‘pistol shots’:
“The moment Prince Andrey left the room, his study door was flung open and out peered the forbidding figure of the old man in his white dressing-gown. ‘Has he gone? Good thing too!’ he said, glaring at the swooning princess. He shook his head in disapproval and slammed the door.”