The Idiot: Part Four, Chapter Five Summary & Analysis

When Varya told Ganya about Myshkin’s engagement to Aglaya, she exaggerated the extent to which it was actually confirmed. In reality, the information she received from the Epanchin sisters has come in the form of vague hints and allusions. When the Epanchins gradually came to realize that Aglaya perhaps loved the prince, General Epanchin was surprised, but kept an open mind. He pointed out that Myshkin “is a wonderful fellow,” with a noble name and some money. Mrs. Epanchin, however, was furious. She called Myshkin a “sick idiot,” a “fool,” and an “unpardonable democrat,” panicking at the idea of what their friends would think of the patch.

Alexandra and Adelaida, meanwhile, support the idea of Aglaya marrying Myshkin. Mrs. Epanchin blames their open-mindedness on the “cursed woman question.” She goes to see Kammeny Island in St. Petersburg to see Princess Belokonsky, who is Aglaya’s godmother. Belokonsky, who considers Mrs. Epanchin her inferior and “protégé,” is not moved by Lizaveta’s fears. She tells Mrs. Epanchin that she is having an overly dramatic reaction and that nothing is decided yet. Returning to Pavlovsk, Mrs. Epanchin attempts to calm down, with little success. She asks what happened when she was gone, and Alexandra and Adelaida say that Myshkin came over and played the card game “fools” with Aglaya.

The sisters explain that Myshkin turned out to be an excellent player of the game. Although Aglaya cheated, she still could not beat him. She became rude, then furious, and stormed out of the room. With tears still in her eyes, she came back down again when Kolya arrived holding a hedgehog he had just bought from a peasant. Aglaya begged Kolya to sell her the hedgehog and he eventually conceded, although it turned out that the hedgehog in fact never belonged to him in the first place but to another schoolboy. Aglaya asked Kolya to bring Myshkin the hedgehog as “a token of her profoundest respect.” Mrs. Epanchin is alarmed by this story and struggles to understand what it all means.

In reality, when Kolya presented the hedgehog to Myshkin, the prince immediately switched from a state of utmost misery to carefree joy. Kolya assured Myshkin that Aglaya was in love with him, and Myshkin blushed. Mrs. Epanchin, meanwhile, “succumb[s] to a hysterical moment” and goes to lie in bed. When Myshkin arrives at the Epanchins’ dacha that evening, he is disturbed to see that Aglaya isn’t there. Myshkin chats nervously, knowing he is making a fool of herself. When Aglaya finally enters the room, she is sullen. She demands to know if Myshkin received the hedgehog and what he believes to be the meaning of it. Myshkin stammers, and Aglaya then asks if he is proposing to her. 

Nervously, Myshkin says that he hasn’t formally proposed to her, but that he loves her. Following further prompting from Aglaya, he clarifies that he is asking to marry her, and “commotion” ensues. Mrs. Epanchin cries out in protest, but Aglaya shushes her. She asks Myshkin how he plans to make her happy. Myshkin doesn’t reply, other than to say that he loves her. Aglaya then asks how much money he has (to cries of despair from members of her family). Myshkin replies that he has 125,000 roubles. Aglaya continues to interrogate him until her sisters suddenly burst out laughing, at which she laughs too, in an “almost hysterical” manner. Suddenly, she flees the room, and her mother and sisters run after her.

Alone with Myshkin, General Epanchin asks him to explain. Myshkin replies that he loves Aglaya deeply and has done for a long time. The Epanchin women call out for the general, and he goes to find them embracing and crying happy tears. Aglaya says she doesn’t love Myshkin, and that she now intends to apologize to him, but must do so alone. Going back, she asks for his forgiveness for her commitment to “an absurdity” which will ultimately amount to nothing. The other Epanchins come in at this point and look on nervously. Yet, for some reason, Myshkin seems incredibly happy, and spends the rest of the evening in a joyous mood.

Myshkin is unusually lively that evening, talking at length about serious issues as well as telling amusing stories. Aglaya listens to him and barely speaks at all. Later, Mrs. Epanchin laments that it is clear Aglaya is completely in love with him. The next day Aglaya fights with Myshkin again and mocks him. She tells him he is “terribly uneducated.” When Prince Shch. returns to Pavlovsk shortly later, he drops hints about (what he believes is) Aglaya’s engagement to Myshkin, which enrages her. She declares that she doesn’t plan on “replacing anyone’s mistresses.” Speaking alone with her husband, Mrs. Epanchin insists that they discuss Nastasya with Myshkin, although General Epanchin points out that everyone knows Nastasya is going to marry Rogozhin.

Later, Myshkin runs into Ippolit by chance in the park. Ippolit points out that he was correct back when he said that Myshkin was in love. He then complains about the Epanchins, calling them “vain,” “egoistic,” and “ordinary.” Ippolit asks if Myshkin hates him for not being worthy enough to suffer as he does. He then rants about Ganya, objecting to Ganya’s claim that Ippolit’s dramatic confession was all an act of ego. They briefly discuss historical figures who were tortured and executed by the state. Ippolit observes that Myshkin is “a perfect child,” and goes to leave. He asks Myshkin how he should die, and Myshkin says that Ippolit should “forgive us our happiness.”