“He might all the same do a little something for us. We’re
on our backs, doesn’t He see?'
'I’m doing my best, I tell you,' said Father Julien. 'I pray and I pray and I pray . . .'
'Even we find a way of doing something for the may- beetles.’
'You don’t give a damn about the may-beetles, you bastards,' said Father Julien. 'You do it out of pride. If you weren’t in a forced labor camp you’d step on may-beetles without even noticing their existence. This is something that happens in the head, not in the heart. You’re bursting with pride, that’s what it is.”