Summary
Another man joins the Inspector in Niggle's house, announcing that he is the Driver of the carriage.
The two men tell Niggle that he must leave right away to go on his journey. Niggle is disappointed that he has not finished his panting before leaving. He has no time to pack, and only brings with him a small bag, which he accidentally leaves on the train. When he arrives at his destination, he feels sick, and faints on the train platform. He is taken to the Workhouse Infirmary.
Niggle's treatment involves a number of menial and mundane tasks like digging, carpentry, and painting bare boards. At first, all Niggle can think about is his distaste for this new work and his regret about how he handled the incident with Parish. However, eventually Niggle starts feeling satisfied with his labor and performs it well.
Then, suddenly, his schedule is changed and his only job is digging. Niggle develops sores on his hands and the doctor comes to visit him. The doctor recommends that Niggle have "complete rest in the dark" (5).
While Niggle is lying in the dark, he hears two distinct Voices. They argue about Niggle's past, his progress, and whether he will move on to the next stage.
The Second Voice, which Niggle feels is the more generous voice, argues that while Niggle did consider Parish an interruption in his life, he never seemed to expect anything from Parish in return. The First Voice is more contentious, but ultimately agrees with the Second Voice.
The next day, Niggle wakes up to sunlight in his cell. His hands are treated by the doctor and immediately cured. At lunch he is given a biscuit and a glass of wine. The doctor tells Niggle to go to the train station.
Analysis
In this second section of the story, the narrative shifts slightly from one of distant realism to one more akin to the fantasy genre for which Tolkien is known. As Niggle leaves his home, he is met with increasingly unreal circumstances: the arrival of the two men, the menial labor he must perform for unknown reasons, and of course, the two voices debating Niggle's past and future.
Many have argued that Niggle's "journey" – which he knows he must take from the very beginning of the story – is an allegory for death and the journey one takes to the afterlife. The application of a Christian allegory onto the story would render the Workhouse a type of Purgatory, or a place where one cleanses their sins in order to proceed to heaven. One could even go so far as to say that the voices Niggle hears represent God – the First Voice, who wishes to cast judgment on Niggle for his transgressions back home – and the Son or Christ – the Second Voice, who defends Niggle's behavior as selfless and seeks mercy for him.
This interpretation of the story, while popular, is not the only way to read Tolkien's enigmatic narrative. Even within the context of a Christian allegory, Niggle's character raises an important question for understandings of the afterlife and the value of certain actions on earth – specifically, the value of creativity and art.
When the two voices are debating Niggle's future at the Workhouse, for example, the Second Voice says, "He was a painter by nature. In a minor way, of course; still, a Leaf by Niggle has a charm of its own. He took a great deal of pains with leaves, just for their own sake. But he never thought that that made him important" (6). Here, the Second Voice notes that Niggle was compelled to his painting in an unavoidable way, but that his work did not inflate him with a false sense of superiority (on the contrary, Niggle's inability to complete the painting made him feel frustrated and inadequate). The voices are, put simply, puzzled by Niggle and his dedication to his craft despite his knowledge that he was neither an exceptional painter nor a law-abiding citizen as he frequently ignored Parish in order to keep painting.
While some read this conundrum as a representation of Tolkien himself (as a writer rather than a painter), it is more accurate to say that the story interrogates the utility of art and artists in the world more generally. Through the conversation between the two voices, the story questions whether artistic labor – or other passions one is compelled to prioritize – holds any import in determining the value of one's life.
