Section 10 Summary

This section begins with the sentence, "There are two ways of getting into the jungle."

Bardamu heads deeper into the jungle on a makeshift canoe, fearing what he will find. Bardamu's mission is to replace the present manager, take inventory and restore order. After ten days, he finds a dilapidated hut perched precariously between two boulders and a gruff bearded man within. The man says it is a terrible place, with mud to drink and canned casserole to eat for the entire year, but it is better than the war. There is so little to do that one feels a fever, not by one's temperature, it is too hot for that, but by noticing one is less bored. The wild animal sounds at night are quite disturbing, therefore, the man advises Bardamu to stuff his ears with cotton to silence them, like he...