Chapter 21 Summary

While Arthur is waiting for the others to return, he whiles away the time reading The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, particularly an entry discussing an interesting theory about what happens to lost biros. (Biro is a term used in many countries to refer to a ball-point pen. It is named for Laszlo Josef Biro, who is considered the inventor of ball-point technology). Eventually, Arthur tires of reading the Guide and after unsuccessfully attempting a pleasant conversation with Marvin, he lets the robot go back to sleep and decides to warm himself up by walking around a bit. Night has fallen, so Arthur nearly walks into an old man before noticing him.

Chapter 21 Analysis

This is another interesting comedy technique. Instead of addressing a large, universal issue like starvation or world peace, one can substitute a ridiculously insignificant but still universal issue...