Catherine : That's what I would have done..........Petkoff : The whole Austrian Empire first
(a) : What are Catherine and Petkoff discussing ? (1)
Catherine and her husband Major Paul Petkoff are discussing the The Treaty which the Bulgarians have made with the Serbs at Bucharest. Catherine had been outraged when she had hear that the treat declared peace with their enemies. Major Paul Petkoff who is very pleased to be back home is trying to convince her that the arrangement was the most beneficial that could be made.
(b) : What would Catherine have done ? (2)
Catherine says that rather than making a peace treaty with the Serbs and the Austrians, she would have annexed Serbia to Bulgaria and made Prince Alexander , Emperor of the Balkans.
(c) : What other reason did Petkoff give for not having taken the course that Catherine had suggested ? (2)
Besides stating that if he had to do what Catherine had suggested he would have to overcome the whole Austrian empire in addition to defeating the Serbs, Petkoff also said that that full action would have kept him away from Catherine for far too long and that he had missed Catherine showing that he wanted to come back home to her at the earliest. Petkoff says this as he knows his wife and knows how to bring an end to the present disagreement. Petkoff had also mentioned earlier that those who had brokered the agreement hadn't ask for his opinion on the matter !
(d) : What effect had that reasoning on Catherine ? (1)
When Catherine heard that Petkoff had missed her and wanted to come back home to her, Catherine relented and stretched her hand affectionately across the table to squeeze Petkoff's hand. It also stopped Catherine continuing with the argument.
(e) : What does this short interaction tell you about the personality of Petkoff ? (2)
This interaction tells us that Petkoff is a very practical and down to earth person. He realises that in the scheme of things, though his family may think that he "holds the highest command of any Bulgarian" in the Bulgarian army, he knows that the Russian officers make all the significant decisions.
Secondly, the episode tells us that Petkoff knows his wife well and knows how susceptible she is to his charming - thus he uses that charm by telling her how much he missed her and asking about he health. This reveals how clever Petkoff can be.
(f) : What does this short interaction tell you about Catherine ? (2)
This short interaction firstly tells us is that Catherine is very hawkish in her patriotism. She is aggressive and resentful when it comes to the Serbs and Austrians - the enemies of her country. She is also fiercely patriotic and seeks the dominance of her country and King over the others.
It also reveals that to us that Catherine is susceptible to flattery and charm. She immediately drops her outrage at the peace treaty with the Serbs when Paul tells her how much he missed her.
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