The Self-Taught Man (Ogier P.) Timeline and Summary

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• We meet the Self-Taught Man while Antoine is in the Bouville library one day. The Self-Taught Man seems to read a totally random selection of book, although Antoine is convinced there's some sort of logic to it.
• One day, Antoine finally realizes that the Self-Taught Man is going through all the books in the library in alphabetical order.
• The STM comes over the Antoine's house to looks at photographs from Antoine's travels. He admits that he'd like to go travelling someday, and looks ashamed when Antoine reveals that he knows about his plan to read through the entire Bouville library.
• The Self-Taught Man invites Antoine to have lunch with him. When they sit down together, the STM tells Antoine all about his experience as a prisoner of war during World War One and how the experience turned him into a humanist and a Socialist.
• Antoine tells the STM that his views are silly, but the STM won't be convinced.
• Toward the end of the book, Antoine catches the STM in the library making sexual advances on a young boy. He tries to warn him against it, but he's too late. The librarian punches the STM in the face and bans him from the library forever.
• The STM scuttles away, nearly crying with shame. He rejects Antoine's offer for help and asks to be left alone. Antoine wonders if he's going off to kill himself.