seven o'clock
He spent a week meditating whether or not he should also buy an overcoat . There was one belonging to a Hebrew collar button peddler , who had died in the room next to him , and which the landlady was holding for her rent ; in the end , however , Jurgis decided to do without it , as he was to be underground by day and in bed at night . This was an unfortunate decision , however , for it drove him more quickly than ever into the saloons . From now on Jurgis worked from seven o'clock until half-past five , with half an hour for dinner ; which meant that he never saw the sunlight on weekdays . In the evenings there was no place for him to go except a barroom ; no place where there was light and warmth , where he could hear a little music or sit with a companion and talk . He had now no home to go to ; he had no affection left in his life -- only the pitiful mockery of it in the camaraderie of vice . On Sundays the churches were open -- but where was there a church in which an ill-smelling workingman , with vermin crawling upon his neck , could sit without seeing people edge away and look annoyed ?