Chapter 20 Summary

When they are finished and she has left, he kneels at the foot of a tree and prays to God asking for forgiveness. He hears a twig crack and he is paralyzed with fear. Seized with paranoia he believes there to be eyes everywhere. Then he returns to his prayer and promises to reform his life: never drink again, to be kind to his wife and to give up rugby and his great fame and honor. Eventually, he gets up and walks away from town, into the grasslands.

A mile outside of town he sees a car moving along the road and dives into the grass embankment. He is not seen. Then he climbs through a fence and into the farmland called Verdriet, which means Sorrow and there he sits among the oxen. He removes his jacket and places it in the dew...