Anna Karenina · Chapter
IV explained
The chapter focuses on Dolly's profound distress in the aftermath of discovering Stiva's affair.
What happens
The chapter focuses on Dolly's profound distress in the aftermath of discovering Stiva's affair. She is torn between her desire to leave him and the practical impossibility of doing so, especially for the sake of their children. A tense confrontation occurs where Stiva, fresh and healthy, begs for forgiveness, but Dolly, emaciated and suffering, expresses her revulsion and calls him a 'stranger.' The argument is interrupted by a child's cry, which momentarily softens Dolly and highlights her maternal instincts. Stiva leaves the house, briefly reflecting on the vulgarity of the scene before shifting his attention to practical matters like preparing for Anna's arrival.
Themes in this chapter
Infidelity and Betrayal
The entire chapter is a raw examination of the aftermath of Stiva's affair, focusing on Dolly's shattered trust, emotional pain, and the wreckage of their domestic life.
Family and Domesticity
Dolly's identity is bound to her children and home management. The children are both her reason to stay ('their ruin') and a momentary solace that pulls her from despair.
Isolation and Misunderstanding
Dolly feels utterly alone in her suffering. Stiva's pity exasperates her because she interprets it as a lack of true love and understanding, deepening the chasm between them as they become 'strangers.'
Characters to notice
- Darya Alexandrovna Oblonskaya
Devastated by Stiva's infidelity, she is physically worn down and emotionally torn between leaving him and the practical needs of her children. Her love and hatred for him war within her.
- Stepan Arkadyevitch Oblonsky
Appears healthy and contrite, begging for forgiveness but also quickly returning to his lighthearted, practical self after the painful confrontation, showing his capacity for self-deception.
- Matvey
The valet who provides the phrase 'come round' that Stiva latches onto, and is given instructions to prepare for Anna Karenina's arrival.
- Matrona Philimonovna
Interrupts Dolly's grief with pressing domestic questions about the children's care, forcing Dolly back into her managerial role.
Key passages
“"He has gone! But has he broken it off with her?" she thought. "Can it be he sees her? Why didn't I ask him! No, no, reconciliation is impossible. Even if we remain in the same house, we are strangers—strangers forever!"”
Dolly is consumed by doubt about whether Stiva has ended the affair. She concludes that even cohabitation is impossible, as they are now permanent strangers.
Highlights the irreversible breach of trust and the central theme of alienation within marriage.
“"And how I loved him! my God, how I loved him!... How I loved him! And now don't I love him? Don't I love him more than before?"”
Dolly agonizes over the paradox of still loving the husband who has betrayed her, perhaps even more intensely now.
Reveals the complex, painful entanglement of love and hatred in the wake of betrayal.
“"Matvey says she will come round; but how? I don't see the least chance of it. Ah, oh, how horrible it is! And how vulgarly she shouted," he said to himself... "And very likely the maids were listening! Horribly vulgar! horrible!"”
After the fight, Stiva is more concerned with the vulgarity of the scene and his servant's opinion than with the depth of Dolly's pain.
Illustrates Stiva's superficiality and preoccupation with social appearances over genuine emotional reckoning.