Lesson #5

This week we're doing humor!!!!! YAY!

Like I said last week, a few of these will require context (which I will happily provide) and some won't require context at all. Some of these will require a bit more experience in reading classic lit to be able to fully appreciate, so I hope by now, after 4 weeks of becoming acclimated to the style and diction of older literature, hopefully you'll be able to better understand how all of this is amusing :)


1)

Okay, so if this isn't slightly funny to you right off the bat, you're probably already prejudiced against old books....If this is kinda funny to you from the get go, then hey! I'm in a much better position to explain this to you.......So, a bit of context:

Bertie Wooster, the narrator/speaker here, is watching someone's son for a bit while the mother travels the coast to learn about prisons (sounds a little like Alexis de Tocqueville....). Well, as it turns out, Wooster isn't such a good babysitter to the son, who happens to be wild. The boy has ended up in prison, (not Wooster's fault) and the mother has come back a few days early to collect her son and return home. She enters at an hour far too early for Wooster, and so Wooster, though tired, was trying to be a gracious host and offer this guest breakfast: 

(Wooster as narrator, re his guest) There was something sort of bleak about her tone, rather as if she had swallowed an east wind. This I took to be due to the fact that she probably hadn't breakfasted. It's only after a bit of breakfast that I'm able to regard the world with that sunny cheeriness which makes a fellow the universal favourite. I'm never much of a lad till I've engulfed an egg or two and a beaker of coffee.

WOOSTER: "I suppose you haven't breakfasted?"

LADY MALVERN: "I have not yet breakfasted."

WOOSTER: "Won't you have an egg or something? Or a sausage or something? Or something?"

LADY MALVERN: "No, thank you."

(Wooster as narrator) She spoke as if she belonged to an anti-sausage society or a league for the suppression of eggs. There was a bit of silence.

Ta-da.......Hopefully you found that at least slightly amusing; my fellow classic lit friends will have enjoyed it a bit....

2) I don't think this one will need much explanation: I'll just introduce the characters and situation.....

1) Wooster's friend, Gussie, has just returned from an unsuccessful marriage proposal. 

2) Gussie loves newts. And when I say loves, I mean, Gussie is obsessed with newts. Breeds them. Studies them. Moved to the countryside to better focus on their well being.

3) Wooster is terrible at giving advice. Just now, he has suggested that Gussie just try proposing again. Here is what ensues:

GUSSIE: "And I should get cold feet if I tried again. It's no good, Bertie. I'm hopeless, and there's an end of it. Fate made me the sort of chap who can't say 'bo' to a goose."

WOOSTER: "It isn't a question of saying 'bo' to a goose. The point doesn't arise at all. It is simply a matter of-----"

GUSSIE: "I know, I know. But it's no good. I can't do it. The whole thing is off. I am not going to risk a repetition of last night's fiasco. You talk in a light way of taking another whack at her, but you don't know what it means. You have not been through the experience of starting to ask the girl you love to marry you and than suddenly finding yourself talking about the plumlike external gills of the newly-born newt."

(I bolded the part I find particularly funny so you don't miss it in case you aren't paying attention.)

What's great about Jeeves and Wooster is that not only are the books hilarious in their own right, the show does an incredible job of portraying the characters and humor. And most of them are on Youtube (hint hint nudge nudge)...Here's one of my favorite episodes:

Jeeves and Wooster: Arrested in a NightClub

Jeeves and Wooster: How Does Gussie Woo Madeline

Yup. They're all beautiful. Watch as many as you can and become acquainted with the impeccable style of humor that PG Wodehouse provides

Next week I'll continue the humor section, with more Jeeves and Wooster and some other samples as well.

Claire

Lesson #4

So, for this week I found more quotes on enjoying life and general life lessons.
Without further ado:

1) This is a quote I came across when I was reading "The Moonstone" by Wilkie Collins. It's from Robinson Crusoe, a book that the narrator finds comfort in:

Can you read this? Click image to enlarge.

So: Fear of Danger is more terrifying than the Danger itself....I definitely think there's some truth to this and its relevant to every day life. How many times do we stop in our tracks and refuse to do something because we don't want to put ourselves in danger: at that point in time, we are more afraid of how we feel in danger than the actual danger. To give a (soft) example: in swimming, one of the most dreaded events is the 200 butterfly. In my own experience, as well as the experience of others I've found that I'm more nervous and anxious before the event just thinking about swimming the event. So in this case, the fear of danger---the fear of being in pain and swimming something I don't want to----outweighs the swim itself. I've had to swim it often enough to know what it's not that bad and I can do it, but before each swim I still get nervous just thinking about it. (Wish me good luck---I'm swimming it this Saturday!)

NOTE: the word "Burthen" is an archaic form of "Burden"

2) So this next quote is more about being happy in life, though it may sometimes be at the expense of another:

Context isn't super important here, you just need to understand what he's saying. And think about it----taking the term "neighbor" as a general term meaning "those around you"------how often do you tease and poke fun at those around you? With my own friends, its something we do regularly (though we make sure not to be really hurtful, so some of our teasing is along the lines of "Haha, you're so much like (insert least favorite literary character here)". Don't laugh at me, it can be hilarious if you know what you're talking about)

With my friends that don't have great understanding of lit characters, our teasing jousts are more "normal".....So know think about your own friends and how you guys interact and make fun of each other. Even think about the people you and your friends make fun of (your enemies? Frienemies? Which ever)......in those cases, you are "making sport of your neighbors" and "laughing at them in your turn". 

3) Finally, one short one more, just because I thought it was funny. Context here is a little more important: A precious Indian stone has just been stolen from a house, and we don't know who did it (we're pretty sure as to why). The butler is the narrator here and is telling about what they did the morning they found out the diamond was gone:

I don't think this needs much explanation: its pretty self explanatory: EVERYONE LOVES FOOD. Breakfast is supposedly the most important meal of the day and food is comforting. So in the event of a robbery (especially in England) BREAKFAST IS IMPORTANT

That's it!

PLAN FOR NEXT WEEK:

So next week I'm going to delve into the humor of classic lit more than the relevance....a lot of it will need a context explanation, but some of it you will be able to find amusing on your own.

Until then,

Claire