Act 2, Scene 2 Summary

The setting is another room of the tower. Sigismund, barefoot but wearing a good suit, waits. In the background is a pile of charred straw. Anton comes in, saying that Sigismund is about to have a visitor. He becomes angry as he sees from the straw that Sigismund has been playing with fire, and he insists that Sigismund tell him what he's been doing. Sigismund says his fire was great, and Anton calls him foolish. Sigismund says his father appeared to him in the fire, and Anton says he was dreaming and that the room is a disgusting mess. Any human being would be ashamed to live there. Sigismund asks whether he actually is a human being, but Anton appears to ignore the question, telling him to wash himself.

A Peasant Woman comes in. Conversation reveals that she is Sigismund's foster...