Chapter Six Summary

Cincinnatus wakes up with the happy thought that Marthe is coming. However, immediately he gets a letter saying that no meeting can be allowed until a week after the trial, so his engagement is postponed one more day. The director comes in and repeats the entire letter word for word. Cincinnatus does not plan to complain about the mix-up, but he sarcastically asks if there's any reason he should believe the promise of a meeting the next day.

The director again transforms into Rodion, who sends Cincinnatus out of the cell so the guards can clean it. Cincinnatus wanders through the hallways. He thinks about his situation and craves freedom, imagining Marthe and the world outside the prison. He comes across Emmie bouncing a ball in front of what he first thinks is a window. Actually, it's a lighted picture of...