Poetry · Chapter
An Error explained
The chapter reflects on the vulnerability of the judicial system to corruption, using the metaphor of vermin infesting a judge's robe despite efforts to protect it.
What happens
The chapter reflects on the vulnerability of the judicial system to corruption, using the metaphor of vermin infesting a judge's robe despite efforts to protect it.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
The emotional and psychological peak occurs when the speaker’s obsessive pursuit of the divine rose fragrance…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Hypocrisy and Corruption
The poem critiques the judicial system, suggesting that corruption inevitably infiltrates even the most protected institutions.
Key passages
“I never have been able to determine Just how it is that the judicial ermine Is safely guarded from predacious vermin.”
I have never understood how the judicial system can be kept free from corrupting influences.
Opens with a rhetorical question about the integrity of the judiciary.
“It is not so, my friend: though in a garret ’Tis kept in camphor, and you often air it, The vermin will get into it and wear it.”
That is not the case, my friend: even if the robe is stored carefully and aired regularly, corruption will still find its way in and take hold.
Responds that corruption is inevitable, no matter how careful the precautions.
