Iosif Alexeevich Bazdeev dies and leaves Pierre without a mentor. The loss takes a heavy toll on Pierre, particularly coupled with the news of Andrei and Natasha’s engagement. Pierre’s grief prompts him to lose interest in the Freemasons and return to his bad habits. He drinks, gambles, and spends his nights with the nefarious bachelors at a gentlemen’s club. Pierre embraces this debauchery to drown out his grief and his nagging fear that life is meaningless. Realizing that he has acted wrongly, he leaves Saint Petersburg and returns to his father’s house in Moscow. Though he retains a belief in the existence of goodness and truth, he cannot help but see evil and falseness in every facet of humanity. He remembers hearing that soldiers who come under fire try to occupy their minds with strange, random thoughts to comfort themselves. He pictures all of humanity in a similar way: People drink, gamble, engage with politics, and pursue other ventures as they try to ignore the fleeting, empty nature of existence and seek “refuge from life” (578).

Prince Nikolai Bolkonsky and his daughter Marya move to Moscow. The old prince is sick, and his increasing frailty makes him angry, forgetful, and vindictive.