Volume 2: Book 10 - Chapter 6

Characters Present:

Anna Pávlovna
Countess Hélène Berzúkhova
General, Prince, Commander-in-Chief Kutúzov
Prince Vasíli Kurágin
Barclay de Tolley

Location:

Petersburg


The social circles are all gossiping about the war, and  Anna Pávlovna's circle has contradictory gossip to Countess Hélène Berzúkhova's social circle.

Prince Vasíli goes to visit Anna Pávlovna on several occasions, and General Kutúzov tends to be the topic of conversation.

Apparently Barclay de Tolley is doing a terrible job at commanding the army, but Kutúzov seems to be ok, though no one really commits to this idea.

Then, Kutúzov gets promoted to Prince Kutúzov, and then, on the same day, also promoted to Commander-in-Chief Kutúzov, even though the Tsar doesn't really like him. Kurágin says that he has always thought that Kutúzov was a man of great merit.

Book 3 - Chapter 4

Characters Present:

Old Prince Nicholas Bolkónski
Princess Mary Bolkónskaya (Prince Nicholas's daughter)
Princess Lisa Bolkónskaya (Prince Nicholas's pregnant daughter-in-law)
Prince Vasíli Kurágin
Prince Anatole Kurágin (Prince Vasíli's son)
Mademoiselle Bourienne

Location:

Bald Hill Estate. 

Prince Nicholas is taking his time to get dressed, as he is cranky that Prince Vasíli and his son have arrived, and he is also considering whether he wants to give his daughter, Princess Mary, over to marriage. 

Prince Nicholas joins the others and mildly interrogates Anatole, before taking Prince Vasíli off to shout at him, and says that if Anatole is to marry Mary, that he is to prove himself worthy.

Meanwhile, the three women - Princess Mary in particular - are enchanted by Prince Anatole, though he is described as good looking but without much to say.

Prince Antatole fails to find Princess Mary attractive but is falling for Mademoiselle Bourienne's charms.  Mary mistakes Mademoiselle Bourienne's intentions, and the scene is set for heartbreak and disappointment.

Book 3 - Chapter 3

Characters Present:

Old Prince Nicholas Bolkónski
Princess Mary Bolkónskaya (daughter of Prince Nicholas)
Prince Vasíli Kuragin
Anatole Kuragin (Vasíli's son)
Mademoiselle Bourienne (Mary's companion)
Princes Lisa Bolkónskaya (Prince Andrew Bolkónski's pregnant wife)

Location: 

Bald Hill Estate

Old Prince Nicholas receives a letter from Prince Vasíli, stating his intention to visit with his son in a fortnight.  It seems that Vasíli is to bring his son, Anatole, to meet Princess Mary with the intention of marrying them off.

Prince Nicholas dislikes Prince Vasíli and goes out of the house on the morning of their arrival to shout at the guards for clearing the driveway of snow, and orders them to replace it. 

Princess Mary is a bit nervous about the arrival of their guests and things are made worse when Princess Lisa and Mademoiselle Bourienne try to make her look attractive.  They go overboard, and Princess Mary ends up looking worse than before, and tells them to leave her alone.

Book 3 - Chapter 2

Characters Present:

Prince Vasíli Kuragin
Princess Aline Kuragina (Vasíli's wife)
Princess Anna Mikháylovna Drubetskáya
Anna Pávlovna
Count Pierre Bezukhov
Other guests

Location:

Prince Vasíli's house

It is Hélène's birthday and Vasíli and Aline are throwing her a small party.  Pierre has grown increasingly obsessed with Hélène and is now trying overcome his belief that she is a bit dim. 

It gets to the end of the evening and though they are sitting alone chatting, Pierre still cannot ask her to marry him.  Prince Vasíli Kuragin keeps being awkward and going over to see what is happening, and eventually pretends that he had heard from his wife that they were now engaged, and congratulates them both on their engagement very publicly.

Pierre and Hélène get married six weeks later.

Book 3 - Chapter 1

N.B For context go back to Book 1 - Chapters 19-24

Characters Present:

Prince Vasíli Kurágin
Count Pierre Bezukhov
Anna Pávlovna
Hélène Kuragina - daughter of Prince Vasíli Kuragin

Location: 

Moscow generally, then Anna Pávlovna's drawing room.

Vasíli has taken it upon himself to manage Pierre's riches, and is taking advantage of Pierre's trust by paying himself with several thousand rubles, taken from Pierre's peasants.  He is also trying to get Pierre to marry his daughter, Hélène. 

Pierre attends a tea at Anna Pávlovna's house and she purposefully places him in conversation with Hélène.  She stands rather advantageously to her figure and he gets wooed by her cleavage, thinking that he must, must marry her.   He leaves and is pulled between thoughts of her beauty, and how stupid he thinks she is.

Volume1: Book 1 - Chapter 24

Characters Present:

Pierre Bezukhov

Princess Anna Mikháylovna Drubetskáya

Prince Vasíli Kurágin

Count Bezukhov´s horrid daughters

Location: 

The tea room at Count Berzúkhov´s house.

Everyone, except for one of the daughters, is in the tea room having refreshments after the previous night.

The missing daughter appears holding a portfolio which contains a forgotten version of the count´s will. Princess Anna Mikháylovna Drubetskáya attempts to take the portfolio off the daughter, who keeps a tight grip on it. There is an argument between them which Prince Vasíli Kurágin breaks up. News that the count has died is then delivered into the tea-room.

Book 1 - Chapter 22

Characters Present:

Princess Anna Mikháylovna Drubetskáya

Pierre Bezukhov
Prince Vasíle Kurágin

Location:  

Count Bezúkhov´s house

Anna insists on accompanying Pierre to his dying fathers house. She constantly reassures him that he is like a son to her and that she will help him through it all.

They arrive and while walking through a hall, they catch a glimpse of Vasíle and and one of the Count's daughters scheming. The daughter gets up and slams the door.

Pierre composes himself and is about to go into his fathers chambers.

Book 1 - Chapter 21

Characters Present:

Prince Vasíli Kurágin

Princess Catish Semënovna (The dying Count Bezúkhov´s eldest daughter)

Location:

Count Bezukhov´s house.

While the party is happening at the Rostov´s, Count Bezukhov has his sixth stroke and it is not expected that he will live through the night.

Vasíli goes to Catish's rooms and they have a heated discussion about the will and the inheritance. Apparently Princess Anna Mikháylovna Drubetskáya went to the house during the previous year and told horrid stories about all three of the counts daughters. It was at this time that the Count changed his will so that his illegitimate son, Pierre Bezukhov would inherit everything.

Vasíli and Catish start to scheme about how they will challenge Pierre´s claim to the fortune.

Book 1 - Chapter 16

Characters Present:

Princess Anna Mikháylovna Drubetskáya

Boris Drubetskóy

Prince Vasíli Kurágin

Count Cyril Bezukhov's three horrid daughters

Pierre Bezukhov

Location: 

Count Berzúkhov house.

Pierre arrives back and requests of his half-sisters to see their father, but they are nasty, and say that the Count is too ill and upset about the bear incident. We also learn that Pierre was expelled from Petersburg over the bear incident, and so has had to come back to Moscow.

Anna sends Boris upstairs to visit Pierre, who doesn´t recognise him at first. Boris invites Pierre to the Rostóv´s for dinner that evening. Boris also makes a point of telling Pierre that he is not wanting the Count´s money.

Book 1 - Chapter 15

Characters Present:

Princess Anna Mikháylovna Drubetskáya

Pierre Bezukhov
Prince Vasíli Kurágin

Location:  

Count Bezúkhov´s house

Princess Anna Mikháylovna Drubetskáya insists on accompanying Pierre to his dying fathers house. She constantly reassures him that he is like a son to her and that she will help him through it all.

They arrive and while walking through a hall, they catch a glimpse of Prince Vasíle Kurágin and and one of the Count's daughters scheming. The daughter gets up and slams the door.

Pierre composes himself and is about to go into his fathers chambers.

Volume 1: Book 1 - Chapter 1

Characters Present:

Anna Pávlovna (Maid of Honour to Empress Marya Fyodorovna)

Prince Vasíli Kurágin

Location: 

Anna Pávlovna's house for tea

The prince is the only one there so far. They discuss Napoleon for a bit and mention that England and the rest of Europe are not doing enough to stop him, Austria are bastards and Russia alone must save Europe.

They then move onto other topics, including the Prince´s three children, of which only two are charming. In other social matters, Prince Vasíli requests to be set up in an affair with Prince Andrew Bolkónski´s new wife, Lisa, who is bored.