Invitation to a Beheading

“A rider is not responsible for the shivering of his horse.”

In the early days of his imprisonment, Cincinnatus still tries to justify his bizarre situation. He dismisses his own concerns and fears when talking to Rodrig, assuring the prison director that he bears no responsibility for Cincinnatus’s questions and issues. Since he does not yet comprehend the seriousness or the absurdity of his confinement, Cincinnatus is still willing to be reasonable.

“With the gracious consent of the audience, you will be made to don the red tophat.”

Rather than explicitly stating that Cincinnatus will be executed, the judge announces that Cincinnatus will “be made to don the red tophat” (21). The brutality of the situation is cloaked in euphemism, diffusing the serious nature of the execution via a tradition that no one understands anymore. The euphemism is used because it is always used, while reality is mired in murkiness and confusion for the sake of tradition. Cincinnatus is denied access to explicit reality, a denial that will metastasize in his mind and cause him to feel as though reality itself is falling apart.

“You know what a kind creature I am: it’s such a small thing, and it’s such a relief to a man.”

Marthe refuses to take responsibility for her infidelity because she remains—she insists—a “kind creature” who only seeks to provide relief to the men with whom she has affairs. Marthe manipulates Cincinnatus by insisting that she is merely being reasonable and charitable, while also denying that she has any agency.