One of the most important moments in Anna Karenina (by Leo Tolstoy) occurs fairly early, in Part II. Looking back from Part VII now, I think I can safely say that this
is where Anna’s life really fell apart.
When I first
read Part II, Chapter XXV, it seemed to me like it was another one of Tolstoy’s
rants. Interesting, but dragging on too long. Essentially, this sequence
describes Vronsky’s participation in a horse race. Tolstoy describes in loving
detail all the obstacles, the movement of the horse, and Vronsky’s drive to
win. Not much different from the snipe hunting, right? Well, it is pretty
pointless until you read the next few chapters, which reexamine the same scene from
the points of view of two of the spectators—Anna and her husband.
Until this point,
Anna has been able to keep her relationship with Vronsky fairly under the
radar, although to say that nobody had noticed would be a lie. But her husband
has not spoken to her yet, so it isn’t quite out of hand. Anna lets go of
all social convention during the race. She makes no effort to hide that she is
watching Vronsky and that she is rooting for him and him alone. Her most
egregious error, though, is her response when Vronsky falls (and here’s where
the horse comes in—when he falls, the horse breaks her back and must be shot).
Everyone is horrified, but Anna openly weeps and is obviously personally
involved.
As a result of
all this impropriety, her husband Alexei confronts her on the way home. He
shares his suspicions with her, and she replies, “I was and could not help
being in despair. I listen to you and think about him. I love him, I am his
mistress, I cannot stand you, I’m afraid of you, I hate you… Do what you like
with me’ ” (213).
This is the
point of no return for all of them. After Anna’s shockingly blunt confession,
she can’t save her marriage. Not that
she really wants to—she wants to escape, but feels trapped. She’d love nothing
more than to leave her husband and join with Vronsky, but she does not have the
courage to do it yet.
What’s most
interesting about this event is its effect on Alexei Alexandrovich, Anna’s
husband. From the beginning, it’s clear he is driven by his sense of
integrity, his adherence to his own and to society’s rules. He’s obviously
appalled by her confession and is strongly affected by it, but his response is
too practical, not nearly as emotionally driven as one would expect of a
cuckolded husband. He says she can keep seeing Vronsky as long as she keeps it
secret and doesn’t bring him to the house. What?
Is it noble?
Maybe. He’s being generous by the standards of the day. In Anna’s eyes, it’s
much more painful than a divorce. What makes Alexei Alexandrovich’s response so
important is that it forces Anna to balance her two worlds, which was never
really her plan. How can she balance two worlds that are so clearly unequal? A
stifling marriage to a man she doesn’t love, or a happy romance with a dashing
young man who loves her…It just doesn’t work. And that’s what she has to
struggle with for the rest of the novel.
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