# Chapter VI explained — Elmer Gantry > Chapter companion for Elmer Gantry by Sinclair Lewis. ## What happens In a late-night dormitory discussion at Mizpah Seminary, Elmer Gantry and his fellow students debate the nature of ministry, physical strength, and religious sincerity. Elmer boasts of using brute force to handle a heckler, while Wallace Umstead promotes physical culture. Harry Zenz cynically exposes the hypocrisy and practical motives behind their calling, and the group argues over Baptist doctrines like close communion, the appeal of different denominations, and the prevalence of sex crimes among clergy. Frank Shallard and Don Pickens reveal their uncertain reasons for entering the ministry, while Horace Carp dreams of Episcopal dignity. ## Themes in this chapter ### Hypocrisy and Corruption in Religion Harry Zenz exposes the hypocrisy of preachers who pretend to represent God while being motivated by practicality, laziness, or social ambition, and cites statistics of clergy sex crimes. ### Manipulation and Showmanship in Evangelism Elmer Gantry advocates for using brute force, jokes, and startling topics to manipulate congregations, while Horace Carp values beautiful voices and poetry for emotional effect. ### Faith vs. Skepticism The debate between Zenz's cheerful atheism and the others' varying degrees of belief highlights the tension between faith and doubt within the seminary. ## Character check-ins ### Elmer Gantry Boasts about physically ejecting a heckler during a meeting, advocates for a practical, muscular Christianity, and dismisses theological debates as irrelevant. ### Frank Shallard Questions the sincerity of his fellow seminarians and his own motives for entering the ministry, expressing a belief in mystic experiences. ### Harry Zenz The cynical atheist of the group, openly mocks the hypocrisy of preachers, discusses sex crimes among clergy, and admits he entered the ministry for an easy life. ### Eddie Fislinger Defends traditional Baptist doctrines, argues for close communion, and insists on the sincerity of most preachers despite Zenz's provocations. ### Horace Carp Advocates for the Episcopal Church's beauty and dignity, criticizes the Baptist denomination, and dreams of switching to a more prestigious church. ### Don Pickens A gentle, affectionate student who admits he entered the seminary because his father sent him, and is seen as a monkish figure by Zenz. ## Key lines > Say, I had—I was holding a meeting at Grauten, Kansas, last summer, and there was a big boob that kept interrupting, so I just jumped down from the platform and went up to him, and he says, 'Say, Parson,' he says, 'Can you tell us what the Almighty wants us to do about prohibition, considering he told Paul to take some wine for his stomach's sake?' 'I don't know as I can,' I says, 'but you want to remember he also commanded us to cast out devils!' and I yanked that yahoo out of his seat and threw him out on his ear, and say, the whole crowd—well, there weren't so awfully many there, but they certainly did give him the ha-ha! Elmer boasts about physically ejecting a heckler from a meeting in Kansas, using a clever biblical retort to justify his action. _Illustrates Elmer's showmanship and reliance on physical force rather than spiritual persuasion._ > We're all just rarin' to go out and preach the precious Baptist doctrine of 'Get ducked or duck.' Harry Zenz sarcastically summarizes Baptist theology as a simplistic demand for baptism by immersion. _Highlights Zenz's cynical view of religious doctrine as mere slogans._ > Why is it that the clergy are so given to sex crimes? Harry Zenz raises the uncomfortable question of why ministers are disproportionately involved in sexual offenses. _Directly ties to the theme of hypocrisy and corruption in religious institutions._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/elmer_gantry_se/chapters/chapter-vi - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/elmer_gantry_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/elmer_gantry_se/chapters