She had not met any one who did not want her. Hence the world appeared
to her as an aggregation of people who watched her from all sides and
by all possible means--deceit, violence, gold or craftiness--strewn to
possess her.

With such an idea of life, Maslova considered herself a most important
person. And she cherished this view above all else in the world,
because to change it would be to lose that standing among people which
it assured her. And in order not to lose her standing she
instinctively clung to that circle which held the same views of life.
Seeing, however, that Nekhludoff wished to lead her into another
world, she resisted it, feeling that in that other world into which he
was luring her she would lose her present standing which gave her
confidence and self-respect. For the same reason she drove from her
mind all recollection of her first youth and her first relations to
Nekhludoff. These recollections clashed with her present views of
life, and for that reason were entirely effaced from her memory, or,
rather, were preserved somewhere in her memory, but were covered up,
as it were, with a thick plastering, to prevent any access to them.
Nekhludoff was, therefore, to her not that man whom she had loved with
a pure love, but merely a rich gentleman by whom one may and ought to
profit, and who was to be treated like any other man.

"I did not tell her the most important thing," thought Nekhludoff, as
with the other people he walked toward the door. "I did not tell her
that I would marry her, but I will do it."

The inspectors at the doors counted the visitors each with one hand
slapping every visitor on the back. But Nekhludoff was not offended by
it now; he even took no notice of it.