Volume 3: Book 15 - Chapter 20

Characters Present:


Pierre Bezukhov
Princess Mary Bolkónskaya
Natasha Rostova

Location: 

Moscow

After Pierre leaves dinner, Natasha begs Mary to tell her what she and Pierre spoke about.

Mary sees a light, previously extinguished, reignite in Natasha's eyes, and tries to ignore the niggling feeling that Natasha has gotten over her brother too quickly.

Mary relates the conversation to Natasha and Natasha is upset that Pierre will go to Petersburg on the following day, and is both satisfied and agitated by the state of things.

-END OF BOOK 15-

Volume 3: Book 15 - Chapter 19

Characters Present:


Pierre Bezukhov

Location: 

Moscow

Pierre continues to be in love with Natasha, but does not occupy himself with worries that he has said the wrong thing; he only worries that he may be dreaming. 

He feels pity for Prince Vasilí as he pays off his dead wife's debts.

Pierre has reached a point where he loves everyone with his whole heart before even knowing them, which is much changed from his previous approach.

Volume 3: Book 15 - Chapter 18

Characters Present:


Pierre Bezukhov
Princess Mary Bolkónskaya
Natasha Rostova

Location: 

Moscow

Pierre puts off his trip to Petersburg, and returns to Mary's house for dinner over several evenings.  He is infatuated with Natasha and he is overstaying his welcome with Mary, who seems tired of his long visits.

Eventually he gets to speak to Mary alone, and asks her if there is any chance for him and Natasha.  As Natasha is still in mourning black, Mary thinks it unwise for him to make any moves, but says that she will facilitate the union.  She tells Pierre to go to Petersburg the following day.

Volume 3: Book 15 - Chapter 17

Characters Present:


Pierre Bezukhov
Princess Mary Bolkónskaya
Natasha Rostova

Location: 

Moscow

Pierre stays for dinner, and Natasha and Mary insist on hearing about Pierre's experiences in the war. 

He relates them, and finishes just after 3am.   Mary sees that love is possible between Pierre and Natasha.

When Mary and Natasha go to bed, Natasha remarks on what an impressive man Pierre has become.

Volume 3: Book 15 - Chapter 16

Characters Present:


Pierre Bezukhov
Princess Mary Bolkónskaya
Natasha Rostova

Location: 

Moscow


The three friends discuss the deaths of Petya Rostóv and Prince Andrew.  

Natasha leaves the room and Mary remarks that this is the first time that Natasha had spoken of the lead up to Prince Andrew's death.

Volume 3: Book 15 - Chapter 15

Characters Present:


Pierre Bezukhov
Princess Mary Bolkónskaya
Natasha Rostova

Location: 

Moscow

Pierre stays in the unburnt portion of his house in Moscow, and receives many visitors. 

He goes to visit Mary, and finds her in her apartments with a companion.  They begin to speak, and doesn't recognise that Mary's companion is Natasha.  Mary tells Pierre that her companion is Natasha, and Pierre suddenly recognises her as a thinner, much more solemn, kinder version of her former self.

Pierre is reminded that he is in love with her, and betrays himself by getting flushed and stuttery.  

Volume 3: Book 15 - Chapter 13

Characters Present:


Pierre Bezukhov
The Princess (?)
Count Willarski

Location: 

Orël


The people around Pierre notice the change in him, and find him more likeable.  He has long conversations with Willarski, though, does not speak very much, as opposed to letting Willarski speak upon all manner of things.

He lost quite a lot of money and real estate in the sacking of Moscow, and his wife is in a lot of debt.  His head steward suggests that if he ignores the debts, and doesn't rebuild, he would save almost three-quarters of his income. 

Pierre agrees, but upon requests from Prince Vasilí to pay his daughters debts, Pierre decides that the best path is to pay them, and to rebuild his houses in Moscow.  

Volume 3: Book 15 - Chapter 12

Characters Present:

Pierre Bezukhov

Location: 

Orël

As soon as Pierre arrives in Orël, he gets what the doctors call "bilious fever" for three months.   Despite being treated with medicine and ointments and being bled a lot, Pierre recovers. 

He finds that he has lost his aim in life, as he now has a closer faith in God.  Previously, he had faith that God would reveal what his aim should be. Now, Pierre now feels that what he had been looking for through a telescope was actually at his feet the whole time.  

Volume 3: Book 14 - Chapter 15

Characters Present:

Pierre Bezukhov

Location: 

From Vyázma to Dorogobúzh

Pierre dreams that he is told the nature of life by a former teacher in Switzerland. He is awoken by a French soldier asking him if he understands.

He lapses back into a dreamy thoughtfulness, and seems to understand that Karatáev is dead and his mind floats around for a while. 

The Russians come and attack, and he sobs as he is freed. 

Pétya Rostóv is buried in the morning.

Volume 3: Book 14 - Chapter 14

Characters Present:

Pierre Bezukhov
Karatáev

Location: 

From Vyázma to Dorogobúzh


There is some excitement in the French army, probably caused by the Russians who are about to attack them.

Karatáev, who is still unwell sits under a tree.  Pierre keeps moving, and then hears a gunshot, and then Karatáev's dog begins to howl.  Karatáev has been shot.

Volume 3: Book 14 - Chapter 13

Characters Present:

Pierre Bezukhov
Karatáev

Location: 

From Vyázma to Dorogobúzh


Karatáev tells Pierre a story about an old merchant who was framed for murder, then mutilated and then sent to Siberia for hard labour as punishment.

While in Siberia, the criminals share stories as to why they were there and the merchant says that he has sinned, but did not commit the murder.  The person who did commit the murder happens to be in the chain-gang, and writes his confession to free the old man, for he feels he has taken too many people's lives.  The Tsar frees the old merchant, but by the time the release comes, the merchant has already died. 

Karatáev remarks that only those who God has forgiven, and who do not want to die, get freedom from life in the end. 

Volume 3: Book 14 - Chapter 12

Characters Present:

Pierre Bezukhov
Karatáev

Location: 

From Vyázma to Dorogobúzh


From Vyázma the French army consolidates to a single column, down from three.  At Dorogobúzh, some of Pierre's fellow prisoners escape, only to be recaptured and shot. 

The prisoners are down from more than three-hundred to less than a hundre due to poor conditions, starving, and being shot if they lagged behind.

Pierre philosophises that there is little difference between the unhappiness between someone sleeping on a bed of rose petals with a crumpled petal, and his own unhappiness at sleeping on a cold, hard ground.  

Karatáev gets the same fever that he had in Moscow, and it seems like he will die soon.

Volume 3: Book 14 - Chapter 11

Characters Present:

Fedor Ivanovich Dólokhov
Pétya Rostóv
Denísov
Pierre Bezukhov

Location: 

Shámshevo


Horses are selected and the band of soldiers ride in to attack the French.  

Pétya is very excited, but keeps missing out on actually killing anyone, so he rides into the thick of things.  His horse stops suddenly and Pétya falls off, arms and legs twitching, and a Cossack notices that he has been shot in the head. 

Dólokhov and Denísov see his body, and Denísov, is heartbroken.

Pierre Bezukhov is among the prisoners rescued. 

Volume 3: Book 13 - Chapter 14

Characters Present:

Pierre Bezukhov

Location: 

Moscow


Pierre and the rest of the prisoners are in the parade of people, carts and looted goods leaving Moscow.

The French soldiers begin to treat the prisoners quite badly, and give then horse-flesh for dinner after a full day of marching at a fast pace.

Pierre sits by himself and laughs uncontrollably, as while the French have his body as a prisoner, they cannot imprison his immortal soul.

Volume 3: Book 13 - Chapter 13

Characters Present:

Pierre Bezukhov

Location: 

Moscow

The French have started to evacuate Moscow, and are intent on taking the prisoners along with them.

Pierre's friend Sokolóv lays dying in the shed, and Pierre goes to try and talk to an officer to find out if he can take him to the hospital.  The officer, who he thought that he was in good standing with, suddenly doesn't recognise Pierre, and tells Pierre that Sokolóv can walk. 

They leave the shed and walk past a church, where they see a dead, sooty man propped up against the church wall.

Volume 3: Book 13 - Chapter 12

Characters Present:

Pierre Bezukhov

Location: 

Moscow

It has been four weeks since Pierre was imprisoned, and rather than feeling trapped, Pierre feels more at peace than he has ever felt.

In not having control of basic needs such as cleanliness  and good food and also having shed any need for pretence as to his actual identity or occupation, he is able to focus on higher things such as philanthropy and inner freedom.

He also thinks on his romantic love for Natasha.

Volume 3: Book 13 - Chapter 11

Characters Present:

Pierre Bezukhov
Karatáev

Location: 

Moscow

Pierre is still a prisoner in the shed, but seems to be allowed to go around in the yard outside.  He has lost weight, but, has maintained a look of manly strength about him.

Pierre has become a favourite with the French, since he speaks French very well, and also, is educated.  

A French soldier who gave some linen to one of the prisoners, Karatáev, to make into a shirt, returns to pick up the shirt.  The Frenchman wants to keep the scraps, but then understands that Karatáev would like to keep them to turn into leg straps, and lets him keep them.

Volume 3: Book 12 - Chapter 13

Characters Present:

Count Pierre Bezukhov
Platón Karatáev
23 soldiers
3 officers
2 officials

Location: 

Moscow 

Pierre remains in confinement in the shed for four weeks.

In this time, he comes to admire Platón as the epitome of simpleness and truth.

Volume 3: Book 12 - Chapter 12

Characters Present:

Count Pierre Bezukhov
Platón Karatáev

Location: 

Moscow 

Pierre is taken to a dark shed, where he is confined with a number of Russian soldiers.  Pierre has lost all sense of order in the universe since witnessing the murders by men who didn't want to commit them, and has even lost hope in God.

He is befriended by Platón Karatáev, who has such a kindly voice that it makes Pierre want to weep.   Platón tells Pierre his life story, and gives Pierre some potatoes and salt to eat.

When Platón falls asleep, Pierre listens to the man's snoring, and begins to discover a new beauty in the universe.

Volume 3: Book 12 - Chapter 11

Characters Present:

Count Pierre Bezukhov

Location: 

Moscow 

Pierre is sixth in line in a queue of prisoners waiting to get executed, and the French commanding officer says that they will be shot in pairs.

Pierre is unable to look at the first two pairs who are shot and pushed into a pit. He realises as the fifth in line is led away alone, that he and the remaining prisoners had been brought along to watch, as a kind of warning. 

He makes himself watch the young man get executed, and tries to be close to him as they start throwing soil into the pit, but is ushered away by French soldiers, keen to cover up their crime. 

Pierre overhears one of them trying to justify the murders by saying that they shouldn't have lit fires, but upon looking at who said it, realises that the soldier feels dreadful about it.