The Idiot Part 1, Chapter 15 Summary

  • Rogozhin is at the door with his gang of drunken idiots.
  • Nastasya turns to her guests, who are shocked and kind of offended that this person would be allowed into their presence, and tells them that anyone who wants to leave can, but they are all way too curious to see what will happen to go anywhere.
  • The drunken bunch files in, immediately cowed by the fancy décor. They are at the same time really aggressive and hostile, and also scared and uncomfortable.
  • Rogozhin himself only has eyes for Nastasya. He walks to her and puts a dirty bunch of paper next to her on a table.
  • It's the 100 grand. Turns out he really did get it.
  • Nastasya starts kind of ranting and raving about how terrible all her options are. She could have married Ganya, who hates her. Or she could have made Totsky marry her, even though he disgusts her. Or, now, there is Rogozhin, who is just straight up paying for her with money, so that's pretty much what he thinks about her. She is miserable and doesn't know what to do with herself.
  • Ferdishenko suddenly suggests another option—Myshkin.
  • Myshkin says that he would indeed marry Nastasya because he values all the suffering that she has been through and can see through to the woman underneath. He's got x-ray vision…into her soul.
  • He says he loves her, and drops another bombshell. Get ready for this one—Myshkin has a letter saying that he has inherited a huge amount of money from some aunt.
  • Ptitsyn confirms the letter.
  • The plot thickens.