Section 14 Summary

This section begins with the phrase, "The passers-by spoke to me the way the sergeant had spoken..."

Bardamu looks for a job in Detroit and is hired by Ford, where he is warned never to look intelligent, because what the factory needs are monkeys, not men. The grueling work turns the men into machines. All day long, men are whirling striking, clanking and calibrating. To revive himself, Bardamu begins to frequent a brothel. A kind prostitute named Molly takes an interest in him and begins to try to save him from his factory job and wandering ways. Molly buys Bardamu a suit, supports him so he can look for better work, such as translating and encourages him to stay with her. Yet, Bardamu thinks it is too late for him, he has been the restless type for so long now that it has...