The Assistant Chapter 8, Section 5 Summary

  • Dressed in his suit and polished shoes, Morris leaves the store to look for a job.
  • He plans to visit Charlie Sobeloff, an old partner.
  • The two had run a grocery together, but Charlie had fixed the books and the business collapsed.
  • Charlie, however, saved and re-bought the store, turning it into a thriving self-service business.
  • Morris passes Karp's liquor store and shamefully wishes it would burn to the ground.
  • He takes the subway to Sobeloff's Self-Service Market.
  • Morris is amazed at its size.
  • He sees Charlie inside and imagines himself going in, asking for a job, getting something part-time, being short a dollar, and quitting. Morris turns away without going in.