@simon, I'm having trouble with the main chat – I can't post because it says I need to join the chat. So I join but it still doesn't let me reply. It is on a few chats, but thankfully this one is ok. Do you have any ideas?
This has been affecting a few people. It looks like the system has signed you out of the app. People found reinstalling the app and signing back in solved the issue. Really sorry about this!
"Why can’t Nikolai picture his future with Princess Marya? Why does it make him afraid?"
I just had a thought... Marya is an unknown -- even though by marrying her, Nikolai would be treading a well-worn path, making an advantageous match, one approved by all the elders around them. Whereas he & Sonia grew up together and know each other well (perhaps all too well?). But a match with her would go against his mother's wishes, which would be unfamiliar territory for him.
Then again, he can imagine his future with all the other women he has thought of marrying. I think it is about the unknown: and also the distinction between a child fantasy and an adult's dream. There is something safe about marrying the person he grew up with: everything can and must be perfect, the future is a fairy tale. Marrying Marya is a much more grownup decision, for better or for worse. He is out of his comfort zone, doesn't know how it will be, and that makes him afraid.
@simon, I'm having trouble with the main chat – I can't post because it says I need to join the chat. So I join but it still doesn't let me reply. It is on a few chats, but thankfully this one is ok. Do you have any ideas?
This has been affecting a few people. It looks like the system has signed you out of the app. People found reinstalling the app and signing back in solved the issue. Really sorry about this!
Thank you! I had tried uninstall/reinstall but skipped the sign out step. Your method worked!
"Why can’t Nikolai picture his future with Princess Marya? Why does it make him afraid?"
I just had a thought... Marya is an unknown -- even though by marrying her, Nikolai would be treading a well-worn path, making an advantageous match, one approved by all the elders around them. Whereas he & Sonia grew up together and know each other well (perhaps all too well?). But a match with her would go against his mother's wishes, which would be unfamiliar territory for him.
Then again, he can imagine his future with all the other women he has thought of marrying. I think it is about the unknown: and also the distinction between a child fantasy and an adult's dream. There is something safe about marrying the person he grew up with: everything can and must be perfect, the future is a fairy tale. Marrying Marya is a much more grownup decision, for better or for worse. He is out of his comfort zone, doesn't know how it will be, and that makes him afraid.