NOTES ABOUT THE NOVEL

Lunatic asylum:  Bryller, Lola.

Drowning in the sea:  Kohn, Maria.

Suicide:  Schulz, Paulus.

Surviving:  Spinoza Spass, Laaks, Mechenmal.

I. Appearance in the schoolyard.  Peter Paulus for Kohn, Laaks against him (Kohn had filled his pants, Max Mechenmal).  Later, Kohn joining Paulus against Laaks.  Jealousy scenes.  Because of Laaks’ intrigues, Paulus fails the College Board Exam and shoots himself dead.  Farewell letters (touching for Kohn, official funeral, Kohn runs away from it).

Senior teacher Dr. Bryller takes no action, even encourages Paulus, his favorite pupil, to kill himself:  Kill yourself before it is too late (as long as you are still capable of it).  It doesn’t have any purpose, of course, but will give you something like satisfaction.  (God is a temporal phenomenon.)

The corpse was carried well-packed in a box to the graveyard, where it was buried for eternity under a cloakroom marker.

II.  Scene Kohn, Laaks in bathtub.

Laaks made an attack on Max’s femininity.—­Laaks and Kohn meet.  Kohn greets him, Laaks catches up.  Invites him to visit.  “No, Mr Laaks”.  Kohn trembles—­“Would you like to take a bath?”—­“I have already bathed.”—­Moonlight shines on the two in the bathtub.  In hairy nakedness—­his hairy legs, like a woman’s—­a man’s man.

III.  Scene in homosexual bar.

(You see, my boy, that’s life—­he pinched him tenderly on the bottom.)

IV.  Abortion scene.

The variety dancer Lola Lalà:  The clever woman said jokingly:  When women break down, they remain standing for a long time.—­Farewell, young lady.  Lola Lalà, alias Lene Levi, runs as though insane.

V. Burglary scene at Lola’s:  —­The professional burglar Benjamin, lying under the bed, didn’t know what to think.  His head shook and his skull hit a senseless bedpost, which gave off a fixed tone.  Benjamin was frightened.  The lamp fell over.  The curtains ignited immediately.

Suddenly she (Lola Lalà) also became frightened.  Everything slurped up by licking fire.  Ran out.  Shut the door.  Locked it.  Twice.  Senseless.  Suddenly, pitiful masculine shouts from behind the door:  Help, help.  She screamed:  Murderer, murderer, murderer.  Ran.  Onto the street in the peace of the evening:  People coming out of houses.  Helpless.  She ran by all of them.  Murderer, murderer...  A crazy woman came up behind her.  A dog catcher was able to grasp her.  Murderer, murderer.  Took her in an open hackney cab and through the town.  Murderer, murderer.  Windows go up, cars stop.  Running about.  Into lunatic section of the hospital.

In the meantime, burning room.  Burglar Benjamin thrashing at the window:  Help.  Forbidden action.  Help.  One shouldn’t become a social democrat that way.  Wailing:  a police trap, to let decent people burn in a fire.  Help, help.  Fire department comes.  Help.  Water sprays him.  From the frying pan into the fire.  He can even jump right now into the river.  Drowns.