Pani Popèlska

The Blind Infant—The Family

The mother of the blind child; she is the first to suspect his blindness and reacts with deep anguish.

I

The young mother who gives birth and shows deep emotional distress, possibly sensing her child's blindness.

II

The mother who first suspects and then learns of her son's blindness.

III

Mother of the blind child, née Yatzènko, sister of Uncle Maxim.

IV

The mother of the blind boy, who suffers deeply from her son's affliction and initially struggles with the instinct to overprotect him.

V

The mother, concerned by her son's distress, questions herself and others about his behavior.

VI

The mother, who leads the boy but is distracted by the beauty of the spring landscape.

VIII

The young mother who explains the nature of sounds to her son and observes his reactions.

IX

The mother who gives lively but painful explanations, her own suffering visible as she tries to convey form and color to her son.

II: The Sources of Musical Feeling—The Blind Boy and the Melody

The mother, initially jealous of Joachim's influence, learns to express her own musical feeling and eventually competes with Joachim through piano playing.

III

The mother who stays by Petrùsya's bedside and eventually discovers the source of his strange, happy dreams.

V

The mother who finds her son in the stable, watching him listen to Joachim's playing.

VII

Pètrik's mother, who hopes the piano will win back her son's affection from Joachim's pipe.

VIII

The mother who struggles with jealousy and humiliation but ultimately learns from Joachim's music, developing her own emotional expressiveness on the piano.

IX

His mother, who watches him from the adjoining room, admiring his every movement and expression.

III

Implied as part of the Popèlski family, though not directly named in this chapter.

V

Petrùsya's mother, who admires the girl and allows her to visit.

IV: Blindness—Vague Questions

The mother of the blind boy, who realizes the value of Evelyn's friendship and observes her son's growing sensitivity.

I

The mother of the blind boy; realizes the good fortune of her son's friendship.

II

The mother who listens to Pètrik's dream and notices his sadness.

VI

Petrùsya's mother, who sits beside him and explains the meteor, feeling a pitiful doubt about his awareness.

IV

Peter's mother, who looks sorrowfully at her son and entreats Maxim with a pathetic tone.

VII

Tries to play the amiable hostess but wears a sad and guilty look.

IX

The mother observes Peter's expression and recalls a past spring day; she notices Evelyn's gesture and blushes deeply.

II

Anna Michàilovna, the mother, observes her son's troubled sleep and the effect of a sunbeam on him.