Anna Karenina

Anna Karenina

by

Leo Tolstoy

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Anna Karenina: Part 2, Chapter 11 Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
During the ellipses that mark the break after chapter 10 and before chapter 11, Anna and Vronsky sleep together, although there is no explicit description of the event.
Many of the most important parts of Anna Karenina occur not in words but in silences, as in the critical break in the narrative in which Anna and Vronsky sleep together.
Themes
Marriage and Family Life Theme Icon
Adultery and Jealousy Theme Icon
Anna is sobbing, wracked with shame, guilt, and humiliation. Vronsky feels like a murderer contemplating the body he has just murdered. Anna tells Vronsky that she has nothing left but him.
Sex is compared to murder: Vronsky looks upon Anna’s body as though it is a corpse he has killed, and Anna feels ashamed and horrified, but clings to Vronsky.
Themes
Marriage and Family Life Theme Icon
Adultery and Jealousy Theme Icon
Quotes
Anna tells herself that she will contemplate her relationship with Vronsky and the mixture of shame, joy, and horror later, when she has more time, but that calm moment never comes.
Although Anna tries to tell herself that she will sort through her emotions at some point, she never does.
Themes
Marriage and Family Life Theme Icon
Adultery and Jealousy Theme Icon
Compassion and Forgiveness Theme Icon
Quotes
Anna has a recurring dream in which she is married to both Karenin and Vronsky, and though the situation seems wonderful in the dream, it haunts her like a nightmare when she wakes.
Anna longs to exist peacefully in both her married life and her affair with Vronsky, but she cannot, and she feels guilty about her deeds.
Themes
Marriage and Family Life Theme Icon
Adultery and Jealousy Theme Icon
Compassion and Forgiveness Theme Icon
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