The Gambler (Dostoevsky)/Chapter 16

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Fyodor Dostoevsky

The Gambler. Chapter 16

A fortune squandered and a marriage arranged in Paris

1866

Summary of a Chapter
from the Collection “The Gambler”

The original takes about 22 minutes to read

Microsummary

Blanche spent Alexei’s fortune in Paris, then married the mentally broken General for status and a possible inheritance. She returned Alexei two thousand francs, while he prepared to gamble again.

Chapter Summary

Alexei spent a little over three weeks in Paris with Blanche, treating the experience as a period of delirium. Of the two hundred thousand francs he had won, he gave her one hundred thousand and allowed the other half to disappear through their shared expenses.

Blanche used fifty thousand francs to furnish a new apartment and another fifty thousand to buy a carriage and horses. Although she described herself as economical, she inspected Alexei’s purse daily, kept it nearly empty, and insisted that he had no personal need for money.

They held expensive parties attended by fashionable courtesans, merchants, officers, writers, and journalists. Alexei played host while Blanche presented him as a tutor who had accidentally won a fortune and would soon need another position. Bored and depressed, he drank champagne and sought diversion in Parisian nightlife.

Alexei recognized that Blanche felt no affection for him and even despised him. He nevertheless remained indifferent to her spending and infidelity. When she tried to provoke arguments over her accounts and costly horses, he refused to protest and said that the faster his money vanished, the better.

He explained that he regarded the hundred thousand francs as only a beginning because he intended to win another fortune at Homburg. His confidence and contempt for money impressed Blanche. She promised to love him and remain faithful, although Alexei openly accused her of meeting an officer named Albert.

During their final days together, Blanche treated Alexei with greater attachment and honesty. She admitted that she had avoided making him liable for her debts, unlike another woman who might have sent him to prison. She also revealed that she still intended to marry the General.

The General arrived in Paris physically and mentally shaken after their departure from Roulettenberg. Blanche welcomed him warmly and made him accompany her everywhere. Delighted by her attention, he lived in an ecstatic but unstable state marked by confusion, nervous laughter, depression, and extreme dependence on her affection.

Alexei sometimes escorted the General to theatres and restaurants and prevented him from wasting his last money on a carriage for Blanche. The General still treated Alexei as a subordinate. He mourned his children, condemned Polina for breaking up the family, and blamed De Griers for ruining and tormenting him.

Blanche decided to marry the General because his wealthy grandmother was reportedly dying and he might inherit her fortune. Even without an inheritance, his pension, title, and obedience suited Blanche’s ambitions. She had also protected herself by making him sign notes in Albert’s name.

The marriage took place quietly, and Blanche adopted the dignity of a general’s wife. At their parting, she wept sincerely and returned two thousand francs to Alexei, refusing to give more because he would gamble it away. Left with some cash and valuables, Alexei waited to meet Mr. Astley before planning to gamble again at Homburg.

Characters

Alexei Ivanovich — narrator, young Russian man and former tutor whose gambling fortune, emotional detachment, and certainty that he can win again govern his conduct in Paris.

Mademoiselle Blanche du Placet — young French woman, Alexei’s companion and later the General’s wife, socially ambitious, calculating, extravagant, practical, and occasionally kindhearted.

The General — middle-aged or older Russian former cuirassier, Blanche’s emotionally dependent bridegroom and Alexei’s former employer, imposing in appearance but mentally unstable and financially ruined.

Mr. Astley — adult English gentleman connected to Alexei and the General’s family, financially helpful and the sender of news about the grandmother’s illness.

Albert — adult male officer with dark jowls, Blanche’s lover or intimate associate and the nominal holder of notes she obtained from the General.

Quotes

“No. Why should I be? You are wise to provide yourself with what you need... My hundred thousand francs I look upon merely as a beginning—as a mere drop in the bucket.”

“They may come in handy for you,” she explained, “for, though you are a very learned tutor, you are a very stupid man... if I did so, you would gamble them all away.”

“Yes, I know that, and then—and then I shall go to Homburg. But to Roulettenberg I shall not go until next year... Moreover, Homburg is where the *best* play is carried on.”

This summary is based on the translation by C. J. Hogarth, first published in Poor Folk; The Gambler (London: J. M. Dent & Sons; New York: E. P. Dutton, 1915). Illustrations were created using AI.