Chapters 25, 26 and 27 Summary

Maria awakens at Ralf's house, and once again the two discuss the topic of pleasure derived from pain. Ralf tries to change the subject by showing drawings related to the history of prostitution, a topic which once interested Maria, who now shows no interest. Maria would rather talk about pleasure and pain, and Ralf advises Maria not to become addicted to the ritual. Ralf tries once more to distract Maria from the topic by showing her the prostitution drawings and explaining to Maria the two sides of the profession.

Ralf tells Maria of prostitutes such as Madame du Barry, Mata Hari and Messalina, who found notoriety in their times, but most prostitutes are young girls with dashed hopes and dreams of marrying and raising families. Maria wearies of this line of thought and Ralf then tells Maria about another sacred prostitution...