Jurgis returns to Chicago a smarter man. Without hesitation, he lies to the foreman, claiming to be from Kansas City. Soon he spends his time working underground during the day and visiting saloons at night. True to form, his good luck doesn't last. And once again fate causes misfortune in his life; this time Jurgis breaks his arm.
Again it is Christmastime, and spending the holiday alone in a hospital bed is ironically Jurgis' best Christmas in America. Only after he is released from the hospital does the reality of his situation hit him, and soon he is destitute once more. As Jurgis roams the streets as a beggar, he becomes class conscious for the first time in his life. He also begins to become suspicious of religion. Jurgis astutely wonders what the evangelists really know about sin and suffering, realizing that the poor come to meetings only to have shelter from the cold.
