Part 1: Chapter 6 Summary

Joseph Grand, who is a clerk in the Municipal Office, comes to see the doctor accompanied by his neighbor, Cottard (who has recently attempted suicide). Grand is working on a project that is somewhat mysterious.

Joseph Grand is in a dead-end job as a clerk in the Municipal Office even though he had been offered a promotion when he first took the job. He has never been able to right the wrong because, he says, "He could not find his words."

Part 1: Chapter 6 Analysis

The writer now fleshes out another character, Joseph Grand. We see him as a good man, a concerned neighbor, whose own life is not very fulfilling yet has its own mysteries. Grand's inability to "find his words" will continue to be an important and distinguishing feature of this character.