Chapter 176
Left alone Dolly scans a guest room of English-novel European luxur...
Left alone, Darya Alexandrovna, with a good housewife’s eye, scanned her room. All she had seen in entering the house and walking through it, and all she saw now in her room, gave her an impression of wealth and sumptuousness and of that modern European luxury of which she had only read in English novels, but had never seen in Russia and in the country. Everything was new from the new French hangings on the walls to the carpet which covered the whole floor. The bed had a spring mattress, and a special sort of bolster and silk pillowcases on…
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Key Quotes & Analysis
"English novels, but had never seen in Russia and in the country."
Context: On the source of Dolly's idea of this European luxury
Fiction made real.
In Today's Words:
The narrator says Dolly's impression of wealth and modern European luxury came from what she had only read in English novels but never seen in Russia and the country. Tolstoy marks class and cultural distance: the room is new from hangings to portieres and the maid is as expensive as the furniture. Patched jacket shame follows immediately as domestic pride reverses.
"she’s a Karenina,”"
Context: Answering Dolly's unspoken question about Annie's surname
Name without full legality.
In Today's Words:
When Dolly nearly asks the baby's name Anna understands and says she has no name, that is she's a Karenina, dropping her eyelids then brightening to show crawling. Tolstoy puts legal ambiguity in a maternal whisper: love claims kinship while Alexey worries. The moment darkens then turns to nursery charm.
"I sometimes feel sorry I’m so superfluous here,”"
Context: Leaving the nursery after failing to find a toy
Mother as guest in nursery.
In Today's Words:
Anna says I sometimes feel sorry I'm so superfluous here compared with her first child, exiting while lifting her skirt around a doorway toy. Tolstoy undercuts idyll: English nurses and wrong tooth count show Anna's exceptional visits, not daily motherhood. Dolly expected the opposite imbalance.
"Une petite cour!"
Context: Closing her sketch of the household company for Dolly
Little court named.
In Today's Words:
After listing Princess Varvara, Sviazhsky, Tushkevitch, Veslovsky, the German steward, the young doctor, and the architect Anna ends with une petite cour. Tolstoy labels Vronsky's country world as a miniature court that must stay lively so he will not long for novelty elsewhere. The phrase previews terrace politics and the salon company Dolly is about to enter upstairs.
Thematic Threads
Luxury versus care
In This Chapter
English nursery gear and absent tooth knowledge.
Development
Tests Anna's inexcusably happy claim.
In Your Life:
Expensive child setups can still leave parents peripheral.
Class shame
In This Chapter
Patched jacket before smart maid.
Development
Rhymes with this vehicle embarrassment.
In Your Life:
Visiting wealth can invert pride in thrift into discomfort.
Court life
In This Chapter
Une petite cour of guests and retainers.
Development
Sets terrace ensemble next chapter.
In Your Life:
Busy households need circles yet can feel hollow at center.
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
This is not a test. Five prompts guide you through the chapter, from how it opens to how it closes, so you notice context and rhythm rather than facts to memorize. Sit with each question in your own words. When you see "One way to read it," treat it as a starting point, not the only answer.
- 1
Why does the room remind Dolly of English novels?
analysis • surfaceOne way to read it
The European luxury from hangings to marble washstand matches wealth she read about but never saw in Russian country life.
- 2
Why is Anna superfluous in the nursery?
analysis • mediumOne way to read it
Staff and English nurses run daily care while Anna visits exceptionally, mis knows teeth, and contrasts her devoted first motherhood.
- 3
What does she's a Karenina imply?
application • mediumOne way to read it
The baby lacks formal surname while Anna claims Karenina name and Alexey worries, showing legal and social ambiguity in affectionate language.
- 4
What is une petite cour in Anna's sketch?
application • deepOne way to read it
She names the circle of guests and retainers keeping the house lively so Vronsky will not long for novelty, a miniature court around the count.
- 5
When has luxury hidden gaps in daily care?
reflection • deepOne way to read it
The gilt unease pattern names noticing wrong tooth counts and staff replacing parents beneath splendid rooms.
Critical Thinking Exercise
Read the Nursery Against the Room
List what impresses Dolly and what troubles her from guest room through nursery to une petite cour.
Consider:
- •Include English novels
- •Include she's a Karenina
- •Include une petite cour
Journaling Prompt
Write about visiting a lavish home where small care details revealed strain beneath display.
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 177
Anna will present Dolly on the stone terrace to Princess Varvara at her embroidery while ordering lunch before gathering the whole circle. Anna brings Dolly to the terrace where Princess Varvara embroiders a cover for Count Alexey Kirillovitch's chair. Varvara explains she lives with Anna because she always cared for her more than Aunt Katerina Pavlovna and now, when everyone has abandoned Anna, she.
