Anna Karenina: Novel Summary: Part 2 section 28-Part 3 section 4

Part 2 section 28: When Karenin arrives at the racecourse he sits near his wife.  She cannot take her eyes off of Vronsky and is quite irritated by her husband's repulsive, unceasing voice as he talks to others around her.  She is angry that he has done and said nothing about her relationship with Vronsky and would respect him more if he had killed them both.  During the races Karenin watches Anna and sees that she looks only at Vronsky.  She notices her husband's gaze, but does not care. 

Part 2 section 29: When Vronsky falls, Anna gives a loud exclamation and loses control over herself.  Karenin offers her his arm, but she ignores him.  An officer arrives and says that Vronsky is OK, but that the horse has a broken back.  Anna hides her face and cries.  Betsy says she will take her home, but Karenin says that he will.  He is angry that she has behaved so improperly.  He tries to talk to her about it in the carriage, but she can only wonder if Vronsky is really unhurt.  He tells her to be more careful in public, and asks her to forgive him if he is mistaken.  She replies that he is not mistaken and that she loves Vronsky, is his mistress and that she cannot endure him.  Karenin replies that he understands, but that externally she must remain proper until he finds a way to protect his honor.  After he has gone Anna receives a note from Betsy saying that Vronsky is indeed unhurt.  Anna is relieved and knows that he will come that night.

Part 2 section 30: The Shcherbatskys have gone to a German watering place for Kitty's recuperation.  The family becomes friends with many of the other people there.  Kitty is mostly interested in a young Russian woman who came to the place with Madame Stahl and who seems to be nursing her and all of the other invalids.  Kitty wants to meet this girl, Varenka, as she feels that she is a model of what she could be.  A Russian couple arrive, and Kitty' mother finds out that they are Nicholas Levin and Mary Ivanovna, and she tells Kitty that Nicholas is a bad man.

Part 2 section 31: Kitty finally meets and becomes friends with Varenka, and Varenka wants to be friends as much as Kitty does.

Part 2 section 32: Madame Stahl had adopted Varenka when her own child had died, and Kitty is fascinated by her.  Varenka can sing very well and gives a concert.  Kitty is impressed that she can sing and give pleasure but not seem to be proud about it.  They talk about why Kitty is there, and Varenka tells her that she has no reason to be ashamed and that this sort of thing happens all the time with young girls. 

Part 2 section 33: Kitty becomes more fascinated by Madame Stahl and by her spiritual life, a religion that Kitty had not known before.  Kitty tries to be more like Varenka and be content in loving others and trying to help them be at peace.  She decides to devote her life to the Gospels and to helping the sick, criminals and the dying.  She starts at the watering place by helping the sick there.  Her mother tells her that she is overdoing things.  She has been helping Petrov, a sick artist, but soon Anna Pavlovna, his wife, starts to avoid her, and it becomes clear that she is jealous of her husband's interest in Kitty. 

Part 2 section 34: At the end of the season Kitty's father arrives.  He does not like foreign life or Madam Stahl or her religion.  Kitty introduces him to everyone, and he tells Kitty that she should do good things so that no one knows about them.  Kitty realizes that that she has been carried away and is not doing things for the right reason, and she also becomes less fascinated by Madame Stahl and her religion after she is around her father again. 

Part 2 section 35: The Prince invites some of the other watering-place guests for coffee, and they all have a good time.  Varenka must leave to help Anna Pavlovna pack because the family is leaving, and she tells Kitty that it is better if she does not come, as they are no longer comfortable around her.  Kitty realizes that she had no right to become involved with strangers and that it is better that she be bad than for her to be false as she has been. She still has much affection for Varenka, and asks her to come and visit her after they go home.  Varenka replies that she will come when Kitty marries, and Kitty replies that she will never marry.  Kitty returns to Russia quite cured.

Part 3 section 1: Levin's brother Sergius Ivanich Koznyshev, the philosopher, comes to stay with him for the summer.  Levin likes to see him, but his brother thinks that coming to the country means taking a break from work, while for Levin, work is in the country.  Levin does not like to leave his brother alone during his visits, as he knows he wants to have conversations with him about what he is thinking about, but Levin has work to do. 

Part 3 section 2: On his way out to work Levin takes his brother to a fishing place, and he tries to get him to stay and talk to him. 

Part 3 section 3: Levin and his brother discuss the Zemstvo meetings and why Levin no longer attends.  Levin says that he gets nothing out of it, but his brother says that it is his duty to go and improve conditions.  They try to have a philosophical conversation about it, but neither really understands the other. 

Part 3 section 4: Levin remembers how much he enjoyed the physical labor of mowing before, and thinks that he should do it again to calm him.  He decides to mow with the peasants all of the next day, and his brother does not think it is a good idea.  The next morning Levin arrives and starts mowing, and is glad that he is able to keep up with the peasants, as he was not sure he would not lag behind.  The peasants are surprised to see him there, but seem to accept it.  At breakfast, Levin rides home to eat and then returns.