War and Peace · Chapter
Chapter XVI explained
Pierre Bezukhov, recently exiled from Petersburg, is staying at his dying father's Moscow house, where he is treated with hostility by his father's nieces.
What happens
Pierre Bezukhov, recently exiled from Petersburg, is staying at his dying father's Moscow house, where he is treated with hostility by his father's nieces. Prince Vasili Kuragin has arrived to manage the situation. Boris Drubetskoy visits Pierre to deliver a dinner invitation from the Rostovs. Their conversation reveals the intense gossip in Moscow about Count Bezukhov's fortune. Boris pointedly declares his and his mother's independence from such scheming, which Pierre admires. The chapter ends with Boris and his mother, Princess Anna Mikhaylovna, discussing their precarious financial dependence on the dying count.
Themes in this chapter
Family and Legacy
The central drama revolves around the impending death of Count Bezukhov and the intense speculation over his vast fortune, which will define the futures of Pierre and the scheming relatives.
Social Class and Privilege
Boris's proud poverty and his mother's desperate calculations highlight the material dependence and social maneuvering required to maintain status in aristocratic Moscow.
Corruption and Morality
The atmosphere is thick with opportunism. Boris's speech is a calculated performance of integrity amidst the widespread expectation of venal behavior from those around the dying count.
Characters to notice
- Count Pyotr Kirílych Bezúkhov
Awkward, impulsive, and oblivious to social maneuvering. He is isolated in his father's house, fantasizing about Napoleon, and is genuinely impressed by Boris's directness.
- Prince Borís Drubetskóy
Calculating, self-possessed, and ambitious. He expertly navigates a delicate conversation with Pierre, asserting his family's pride while delivering a social invitation.
- Prince Vasíli Sergéevich Kurágin
Has taken charge at the Bezukhov house, warning Pierre to behave. His presence underscores the high stakes surrounding the count's impending death.
- Anna Pávlovna
Not present in this chapter. The 'princesses' referenced are Count Bezukhov's nieces, not Anna Pavlovna Scherer.
Key passages
“"Moscow has nothing else to do but gossip," Borís went on. "Everybody is wondering to whom the count will leave his fortune..."”
Boris states that the sole preoccupation of Moscow society is speculating about the inheritance of the dying Count Bezukhov.
Highlights the pervasive greed and idleness of the aristocracy.
“"...for the very reason that your father is rich, I don’t regard myself as a relation of his, and neither I nor my mother would ever ask or take anything from him."”
Boris declares that he and his mother, despite being poor, will not seek financial help from the wealthy Bezukhovs out of pride.
A strategic declaration of independence meant to distinguish himself from other fortune-hunters.
“"Oh, my dear! He is so rich, and we are so poor!"”
Princess Anna Mikhaylovna explains to Boris that their hope for an inheritance is based purely on their financial need versus the count's wealth.
A blunt admission of the material motive behind their attentions to the dying man.