The Third Day, Sunday, 5 December Summary

Ramius's childhood leads to his current opinions. As the son of the Party Leader of Lithuania, other children distrust him. His Lithuanian grandmother teaches him about religion. His youthful mentor, Sasha, teaches him to love the sea. Throughout his youth, he learns to pretend to be loyal to the Party in order to get what he wants. This leads to his quick advancement within the Soviet Navy, and the submarine corps. He meets Natalia, his wife. They are unable to have children, but have a very happy life together. Natalia develops appendicitis. The combination of a drunken surgeon and dodgy Soviet pharmaceuticals lead to her death. Ramius blames the Soviet system for her death. He studies the Red October as it is being built and selects those officers who he knows dislike the Soviet system to help him with...