What's the difference between elopement and kidnapping?

A study in disgust, by rachael

Russian culture in the 19 century has again repulsed me. I can read for pages and chapters, but then suddenly in about two sentences Tolstoy destroys a character. I speak of war and peace, which I've been struggling through for the past couple months. The characters are absurdly simple minded and throw out the most amazing opportunities in exchange for an obvious sham.
What has sparked this most recent bout of vehemence is a ridiculous plot twist involving one of my favourite characters. She decides instantly to refuse her incredible fiancé and "elope" with a well known philandering party boy whom she thinks is the bees's knees. We then look at an excerpt from the text:
"'I have heard what elopements are like,' continued Dolokhov with a wink. 'Why, she'll run out more dead than alive just in the things she is wearing; if you delay at all, there will be tears and "papa" and "mama", and she's frozen in a minute and must go back - but you must wrap the fur cloak around her first thing and carry her to the sledge.'"

And thus I found myself asking the question which titles this post.