The Fall Study Guide

The Fall opens with the narrator acting as interpreter for an unnamed companion. Both men are French, more specifically Parisian, ex-patriots passing time in a Dutch bar peculiarly labeled "Mexico City." The bartender, called a "worthy ape" by the narrator, speaks only Dutch, obliging the novel's anonymous second person to accept the help of the narrator, Jean-Baptiste Clamence. The two men settle in for a conversation over their glasses of gin, though it rapidly becomes apparent that Clamence will permit little or no interjection from his compatriot. (read more)