Hélène receives an offer of marriage from one of her Petersburg lovers, and decides to convert to Catholicism so that her prior marriage with Pierre can be annulled.
Hélène receives an offer of marriage from one of her Petersburg lovers, and decides to convert to Catholicism so that her prior marriage with Pierre can be annulled.
Book 11, Chapter 6
Hélène receives an offer of marriage from one of her Petersburg lovers, and decides to convert to Catholicism so that her prior marriage with Pierre can be annulled.
Summary:
Hélène, having returned to Petersburg, found herself in a difficult position. In Petersburg she had two lovers, each desiring her exclusive attentions. Hélène wished to preserve her intimacy with both without offending either. Most women would have found this situation a bit awkward to say the least. But Hélène, like a really great man who can do whatever he pleases, at once assumed her own position to be correct, as she sincerely believed it to be, and that everyone else was to blame. When one of the lovers proposed marriage, Hélène took the suggestion she convert to Catholicism so that her prior marriage to Pierre could be made null, enabling Hélène to remarry. The Catholic Church, anticipating generous donations from this wealthy convert, welcomed Hélène with open arms. And Hélène, assisted by Catholic clergy, began the lengthy process which would eventually enable her to be remarried in the Catholic church.
quote from the chapter:
Marry me, and I will be your slave!
But that’s impossible.
You won’t deign to demean yourself by marrying me, you… said Hélène, beginning to cry.
The prince tried to comfort her, but Hélène, as if quite distraught, said through her tears that there was nothing to prevent her marrying, that there were precedents (there were up to that time very few, but she mentioned Napoleon and some other exalted personages), that she had never been her husband’s wife, and that she had been sacrificed.
But the law, religion… said the prince, already yielding.
The law, religion… What have they been invented for if they can’t arrange that? said Hélène.
The prince was surprised that so simple an idea had not occurred to him, and he applied for advice to the holy brethren of the Society of Jesus, with whom he was on intimate terms.
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