The chapter opens with a description of the room where the students study. The room is furnished, and the previous owner was fat and out of shape, so the chair is not as good as it used to be. The narrator complains about the noise coming from outside the room, which he finds annoying. He complains that he needs to concentrate on his studies, but the noise makes him a dull boy. He says that he will not pass the exam even if he is very hard-working, because it doesnt matter who he is or where he comes from. He wonders if the room is haunted, and wonders why they always rent it out to students. He concludes that it is because of the pressure of studying.