Part 5: Chaps. 4-6, pp. 204-225 Summary

Chap. 4- Jaromil takes the redhead girl to see his mother. Maman likes to say that her son is getting married, since the tenants downstairs are trying to seize part of her second floor as well. The girl has dinner at the house, and upsets Maman with her awkward manners. Maman makes belittling remarks about the girl, saying that maybe she is sexually abused by her manager. Maman admits that her jealousy of the girl is wrong. Jaromil again questions the girl's morals and her devotion to him.

Jaromil is nervous, even when a classmate reports seeing him with the girl, and tries to avoid being seen in public with her too much. The redhead wonders what Jaromil sees in her, which is not helped when Jaromil writes a poem saying how plain she is...