The Magic Mountain
The young protagonist arriving for a visit, already feeling the physical and temporal disorientation of the high altitude.
Chapter I
Arrives for a three-week visit, feeling the effects of the altitude and observing his new surroundings with curiosity and slight disorientation.
Arrival
The young protagonist arriving for a three-week visit. He is initially amused and incredulous about the sanatorium's practices but becomes concerned by the disorienting journey and Joachim's altered state.
Number 34
Arrives at the Berghof, exhausted and emotionally volatile. He is shown his room, learns of its previous occupant's death, and is profoundly disturbed by the sound of a fellow patient's cough.
In the Restaurant
Experiences a convivial but disorienting first evening; his physical reactions (flushed face, coldness, drowsiness) and eagerness to hear about life 'up here' signal his beginning acclimatization.
Chapter II
Acclimates to the sanatorium routine; is unsettled by the bill and the concept of time as a commodity.
Of the Christening Basin, and of Grandfather in His Twofold Guise
Recounts his orphaned childhood, his deep observation of his grandfather's habits, and his formative, unconscious absorption of the old man's dignified, anachronistic world.
At Tienappels’, and of Young Hans’s Moral State
The central focus. Described as neither genius nor dunderhead, disinclined to strain, vaguely conscious of his epoch's spiritual deficiencies. He studies shipbuilding, passes his exams, and lives a comfortable, conventional life in Hamburg before his health prompts a journey to the mountains.
Chapter III
Settles into the sanatorium routine, is shocked by his first bill, and engages in a philosophical discussion about time and cost with Joachim.
Drawing the Veil
Awakens early, performs his meticulous toilet, and observes the morning scene. He is deeply disturbed and morally conflicted by the sounds from the neighboring room, attempting to ignore them. The experience leaves him physically flushed and in ill humour.
Breakfast
Observes the dining hall and its inhabitants with a mix of curiosity and fastidiousness; is startled by a slamming door; receives a physical examination from Hofrat Behrens.
Banter. Viaticum. Interrupted Mirth
Reveals deep dependency on tobacco; is shocked by Behrens's treatment of the dying; is startled and confused by Hermine Kleefeld's whistle.
Satana
Feels bewildered and physically unwell; his cigar tastes like leather. He is intellectually engaged and chastened by Settembrini's conversation, protesting he is only a visitor.
Mental Gymnastic
Experiencing physical discomfort (fever, heavy head, difficulty breathing) and mental fogginess, possibly from the beer. Engages in a disoriented, philosophical monologue about the nature of time, challenging its objective measurement.
A Word Too Much
Grapples with physical symptoms (heart palpitations, inability to enjoy his cigar) and philosophical anxieties about the body acting independently of the soul. His weariness is profound.
Of Course, a Female!
Observes the dining hall with dreamy detachment; is irritated by the slamming door and fascinated by Clavdia Chauchat's entrance and hands; feels unwell and lightheaded.
Herr Albin
Observes Herr Albin's performance from a distance, feeling a disturbing wave of envy and identification with Albin's state of being 'relieved of the burden of a respectable life.'
Satana Makes Proposals That Touch Our Honour
Suffers from physical chills and fever, feels wretched and out of place. His dreams reveal subconscious anxieties and a powerful, shameful attraction to Clavdia Chauchat.
Chapter IV
Acclimates to the sanatorium routine, receives his first bill, and begins to internalize the unique temporal and economic logic of the Berghof.
Necessary Purchases
Engages Settembrini in philosophical debate about illness and stupidity, revealing his own experimental, impressionable nature. He is chastened by Settembrini's lecture and later orders blankets for the cure.
Excursus on the Sense of Time
Struggles to learn the blanket-wrapping ritual, feels cold and anaemic, but finds deep comfort in the prescribed rest. He articulates his confusion over the distorted passage of time since his arrival, feeling an eternity has passed in just a few days.
He Practises His French
Reflects on his adjustment, observes the dying, interacts with Chauchat and 'Tous-les-deux,' and reveals a personal affinity for serious, mournful situations.
Politically Suspect
Smokes and drinks dark beer, feeling torpid and feverish. Listens to Settembrini's lecture on music while also observing the antics of the young patients.
Hippe
Recalls his adolescent, wordless fascination with Pribislav Hippe, a memory triggered by his current state of reduced vitality at the Berghof.
Analysis
Arrives late to the lecture, physically exhausted and bloodstained. He is intellectually overwhelmed by Krokowski's topic, mentally contrasts it with his engineering studies, and is persistently distracted by his physical proximity to and observation of Clavdia Chauchat.
Doubts and Considerations
Pays his first weekly bill, questions the nature of an ailing physician's authority, and observes the clinical sphere and a patient leaving Krokowski's office.
Table-Talk
Struggles with a physical tremor at meals linked to his agitation over Chauchat's arrivals; engages in secretive talks with Engelhart about her; learns her first name is Clavdia and adopts it privately.
Mounting Misgivings. Of the Two Grandfathers, and the Boat-Ride in the Twilight
Deeply preoccupied with orchestrating meetings with Clavdia Chauchat, viewing the affair as a temporary 'holiday adventure.' He is also engaged in a profound internal debate, comparing the legacies of his own grandfather and Settembrini's, and is ambivalently open to Settembrini's pedagogical influence.
The Thermometer
Suffers from a heavy cold and fever (99.6°), agrees to a medical examination, and reflects on the comfort of the rest cure and the unsettling yet flattering attention from the dining hall.
Chapter V
Receives his first bill, prompting reflection on the cost of his stay and the nature of time.
Soup-Everlasting
Begins his enforced bed rest, experiencing a profound shift in his perception of time where days lose their demarcation. He is visited by Dr. Krokowski and officially becomes a 'comrade' among the patients.
Sudden Enlightenment
Awaits his X-ray, deeply affected by news of Clavdia's portrait sittings with Behrens and her unexpected arrival in the waiting room, where his heart pounds and he stares.
Freedom
Reflects on the elasticity of time, engages in a critical debate with Settembrini, and finally writes home to admit his stay will be indefinite, likely lasting into winter.
Whims of Mercurius
Deeply intoxicated by his love for Clavdia, he actively cultivates his feverish state, ignores her flaws, and engineers small encounters that send him into ecstatic bliss, marked by a corresponding rise in his temperature.
Encyclopaedic
His emotional state makes him crave self-revelation and opens his eyes to the altered, alarming significance of romantic affairs at the Berghof. He receives a moral and political lecture from Settembrini.
Humaniora
Feigns surprise at recognizing Clavdia's portrait; engages Behrens in artistic and anatomical discussion about her; reveals his own past dabbling in watercolors.
Research
Engages in intense, late-night study of biology and physiology, probing the fundamental mysteries of life and consciousness. His feverish mental activity mirrors his physical state.
The Dance of Death
Visits the deceased 'gentleman rider' and the dying Leila Gerngross. Reflects philosophically on death, contrasting religious and humanist attitudes. Demonstrates a growing, almost professional, detachment and sympathy towards the dying.
Walpurgis-Night
Obsessively notes the passage of time and is overwhelmed by his physical and emotional reaction to Clavdia Chauchat's appearance.
Chapter VI
Receives his first bill, leading him to reflect on the monetary and temporal cost of his stay and the nature of time itself.
Changes
Clings to Clavdia's X-ray portrait as a keepsake; feels a mix of joy and irritation after Settembrini breaks their weeks-long silence; is described as a 'venturesome spirit' and 'delicate nursling of life'.
A Newcomer
Actively listens to the debate, mixes in with his own thoughts on contemplation from his deck-chair, and expresses interest in learning from Naphta.
Of the City of God, and Deliverance by Evil
Actively listens and mediates the debate; slaps the table in approval of Settembrini's speech, then poses challenging questions, comparing Gothic art's 'absurd hostility to nature' to the intellectual honor of figures like Plotinus and Voltaire.
Choler. And Worse
Observes Joachim's departure with a mix of empathy and dread, silently confronting the anniversary of his own arrival and the realization that his stay may be permanent.
An Attack, and a Repulse
Exhibits serene, armored composure and definitive break from the flat-land. Mocks conventional time, explains medical procedures, and feels his freedom is consummated by his uncle's failed embassy.
Operationes Spirituales
Caught between the dueling pedagogues, he listens, interjects with personal anecdotes (like a schoolboy beating), and is deeply confused by the philosophical contradictions, pondering 'the vasty confusion of it all.'
Snow
Alone in the blizzard, experiencing a spiritual and physical crisis, hallucinating, and confronting existential themes.
A Soldier, and Brave
Receives and reflects on Joachim's letters, experiences joy then concern over his cousin's return. Observes a strange new light in Joachim's eyes and arranges for his medical care.
Chapter VII
Receives his first bill, leading him to ponder the abstract cost of time and his place in the sanatorium's peculiar economy.
By the Ocean of Time
Deeply immersed in temporal bewilderment; watches his watch to grasp time, yet fails, succumbing to mystical giddiness where past and present merge.
Mynheer Peeperkorn
Devastated and rendered passive by Clavdia's return with Peeperkorn; observes them with 'sleep-weary eyes' and adopts a stance of forced aloofness.
Vingt-Et-Un
Seething with scorn and disillusionment over Peeperkorn's presence; engages in a risky, wine-influenced philosophical debate with him, attempting to analyze vice and impotence.
Mynheer Peeperkorn (Continued)
Deeply in love with Clavdia Chauchat but maintains a constrained, formal address towards her. He observes Peeperkorn's effect on the debates with fascination and malicious pleasure, and is directly questioned by Peeperkorn about his behavior, growing pale during the confrontation.
Mynheer Peeperkorn (Conclusion)
Attends the waterfall excursion, observing Peeperkorn's performance and the group dynamics. Later, he is summoned to the death scene, where he examines Peeperkorn's body and the strange suicide instrument.
The Great God Dumps
Plunged into ennui and existential fear, playing endless patience, described as 'collapsed like a punctured tire.' He is the subject of Behrens's new medical theory and undergoes bloodletting.
Fullness of Harmony
Engages in deep, 'stocktaking' reflections on music, love, and death while listening to his gramophone. He questions the morality of his love for art that is sympathetically linked to death and considers the idea of self-conquest.
Highly Questionable
A hesitant participant in the séance, given the honor of controlling the medium; his involvement is driven by emotional longing and memory.
Hysterica Passio
Observes and studies the general mood of irritability with 'alarming aptitude'; feels the contagion and is deeply involved in the tense morning of the planned duel, attempting to intervene.
The Thunderbolt
Now in his seventh year at the sanatorium, he has grown a blond beard and exhibits a carefree, philosophic indifference. He is largely left alone by the authorities and sits at the 'bad' Russian table, his return to the flat-land seeming impossible.
