- Welcome to the delicious chewy nougaty center of the book: Harry Haller's records. Heads up: we're dividing this book by paragraphs, not chapters. Paragraphs are really the only division.
- Harry takes over narrating from here, so we´re dealing with a new "I". He´s had a rough day, the kind where you need someone to sing "Don´t Worry, Be Happy" to you and feed you ice cream. He's in that mood where you are so grouchy that you don't even want to feel better.
- Still in his mood, Harry decides to take a walk in the town. On his way out he notices the araucaria tree on the stair landing and sits down to meditate, as is his weird habit.
- Then he heads out. He wanders the streets, thinking about how hard it is to find the divine in everyday life. The kinds of thoughts everyone thinks when they're out on the town, right?
- Harry finds his favorite wall in town (because everyone has a favorite wall?) and is surprised to see a doorway in the middle of it he hadn't noticed before. Then he notices that there is something written above the door, but the words are flashing like a neon sign so it's hard to read it.
- Finally he manages to figure it out: "MAGIC THEATER: ENTRANCE NOT FOR EVERYBODY."
- Apparently Harry isn't just anybody, because he tries to get in. But the sign speaks the truth: the door is locked, and Harry is left out in the rain and mud. On his way back to the alley he came from he notices reflected words shining on the ground: "FOR MADMEN ONLY!"
- Now that's a party we'd like to go to!
- But Harry's not invited, apparently, so he keeps walking and ducks into a tavern. He starts drinking and reads a newspaper, then thinks about art for a while before he heads out into the rain again.
- Harry decides to hate-listen to some jazz music outside of a dance hall, and gives a little spiel about how inferior the musical genre is compared with the classics.
- Tempted by the mystery of the magically appearing doorway, he heads back to his good, old, favorite wall.
- Suddenly a man shows up in the alley, holding a tray like he is selling tchotchkes. He also carries a banner that says: "ANARCHIST EVENING ENTERTAINMENT/ MAGIC THEATER/ ENTRANCE NOT FOR EVERYBODY"
- Harry's pretty excited and wants to find out about the evening entertainment, but the man just tells him that it's not for everybody. When Harry tries to buy something from him the man hands him a little book, and then disappears.
- Harry heads home and gets the book out of his pocket. He's shocked to see that it's entitled Treatise on the Steppenwolf. Not for Everybody. How do you like them apples?