“Oh, forgive me, gentlemen, if I can’t think!” cried Aglaya,
crying, “you are laughing at me. It is strange to see you so frightened!
I am perfectly aware that I can’t think. You know, gentlemen, I
was about to lie down to sleep; I thought it would be so
early. I thought: ‘I am really a bachelor,’ I thought, ‘not a
free-thinking bachelor,’ and I have a wife, too, I can’t think of
anything better. But I was suddenly struck by a thought, and
thought: ‘Look, this is all very agreeable, and--’ oh! I was
strained--I could not talk; I could not breathe.’ I trembled. I could
not even speak; I cried out. I would have let them tell me to speak, but
I thought: ‘I am a slave.