Chapters VI and VII Summary

In Chapter VI, Sloane is found dead in his office from a heart attack. Stoner attends the funeral as one of the pall-bearers, and very few people are in attendance. As he watches the coffin descend into the ground, he weeps, not knowing whether his tears are for Sloane or himself. He drives back with Gordon Finch, who comments that something about Sloane's death reminds him of David Masters' death.

With Sloane's death, there is a need to fill his role as director of the English department. Finch fills this role temporarily and hires a man named Hollis Lomax as assistant professor to cover Sloane's teaching duties. Lomax does not arrive until shortly before the beginning of the semester and his arrival is much anticipated by his colleagues. He is a deformed man who has a bitter...