Thursday, January 15, 2015

P.G.Wodehouse

Sent in by Mahendra (Speedy) Gonsalkorale
 
As a lot of you know, I am a great Wodehouse fan. He is affectionately referred to as Plum. I noticed a Facebook Group called "The Drones Club" and I joined in a few days back. I posted a few of my observations which I reproduce here. I said "I am delighted to be admitted to this August Club although it is still January. I know what you are saying, "what took you so long!". I am an enthusiastic disciple of Plum and would without any hint of reservation recommend to anybody who feels a bit down hearted because of worrying events unfolding in the world at this time, to recline in a comfortable chair with a glass of the elixir in ice (the hot amber stuff balanced with ice cubes) and read any PGW Book. If this does not lift your spirits, nothing will and I would strongly recommend that you look without delay at an on-line catalogue and choose a suitable coffin. I look forward to regularly updating myself with snippets and epithets on Plum. Pip pip toodle oo!"
 
I also posted one of my favourites PGW quotes and I publish here a synthesis based on feedback from other members of the Drones Club.
 
There are many PGW quotes I like but this is one of my favourites.
 
"He looked as if he has been poured into his clothes and had forgotten to say 'when'". This came  from "Jeeves and the impending doom" where the description is as follows - "The Right Hon. was a tubby little chap who looked like he had been poured into his clothes and had forgotten to say “When.” P. G. Wodehouse, Bertie Wooster describing The Right Hon. A. B. Filmer, appearing in Very Good, Jeeves! (1930).
 
The other similar one is from Jeeves collections "The World of Jeeves" and "My man Jeeves" but the original story is called "Jeeves and the unbidden guest" and refers to Lady Malvern- quote "Lady Malvern was a hearty, happy, healthy overpowering sort of dashed female, not so very tall but making up for it by measuring about six feet from the O.P to the Prompt Side. She fitted into my biggest armchair as if it had been built round her by someone who knew they were wearing armchairs tight about the hips that season". Incidentally he also says that ".. when she spoke, she showed about 57 front teeth - altogether by no means the sort of thing a chappie would wish to find in his sitting-room before breakfast"
Wonderful humour.

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13 comments:

  1. Mahen
    I am not a PGW fan but appreciate his humour which is typically British. In some ways regarded as upper class and close to the surface. As kids we were brought up in old Ceylon with the likes of Billy Bunter created by Charled Hamilton and later Richard Gordon's hilarious "Doctor" series. It is humour at its best. It just goes to show that events of day to day life can be funny only if we know how to look at them.
    Thanks
    ND

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  2. I grew up with William, Hardy Boys, Enid Blyton, Billy Bunter, Biggles but was never really into Shakespeare or Wordsworth although we read them as part of English literature. PGW instantly appealed to me and I have this theory that I was an English Earl in a previous birth (subject to rebirth being true of course). PGW books amuse me not just for the improbable, ridiculous plots but for the play with words which he is so good at. Such masterpieces like, “I could see that, if not actually disgruntled, he was far from being gruntled.” ― The Code of the Woosters. " I always advise people never to give advice". And, “A melancholy-looking man, he had the appearance of one who has searched for the leak in life's gas-pipe with a lighted candle.”
    ―The Man Upstairs and Other Stories. ND old nbean, I Strongly advice you to get started on the road to literary enjpyment of a special kind by picking up the closest PGW book you can find at the earliest possible moment. As Someone said, "it is never too late!" ( I would love to meet Someone).

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  3. Good to see the blog has been "buzzing" over the holidays - Lucky must be happy- As for PGW-Since my school days I have probably read between15 to 20 of the many books that PGW wrote! While Jeeves is indeed "inimitable" - Dr.Sally is a good read for us female colleagues- The male attitudes to educated females as in this book are operative even in this day! A good excuse for a lazy afternoon even for those of us for whom the amber liquid holds no magic!
    Rohini Anandaraja

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  4. Welcome back old fruit! Have missed your cheery presence in the last few months. Trust your cheeks are pink as ever and the old grey cells are running on all pistons. As for females and PGW, he doesn't think much of many a Male as per quote “He had just about enough intelligence to open his mouth when he wanted to eat, but certainly no more.”! I am delighted to learn that you are a PGW fan. Pip ! pip! and toodle oo!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Mahen- My old grey cells better be firing well as I will be back at work again from tomorrow! Have fun with the Drones! Rohini

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    2. Failed to mention- PGW in fact portrays Dr. Sally herself very positively - The men she encounters are the ones to be pitied!
      His female characters most of the time are shown to have more sense than the men as you would have found!-" Cheerio"!!. Rohini

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  5. I am posting this as a test as one of my friends followed instructions and tried to post a comment and he got as far as ready to click Publish and when he did click on Publish, the comment got deleted! I shall post this as anonymous and see what happens. Speedy. OK - I clicked Publish and I now get a message asking me to prove I am not a Robot ! I have to type some text which is difficult to read but I shall have a go!

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  6. Problem so far with commenting using Safari as a Browser. Chrome works OK and now I am trying Firefox,. The Safari problem is to do with Safari's in builtsecurity systems and there is no ready solution. Hope Friefox works! I shal next try Internet Explorer and let you know whether it works. Speedy

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  7. Ok Firefox worked but CAPTCHA safeguard to prevent Robots from posting comments comes on when you go as Anonymous. You then have to type in some letters or numbers or both and if you get them wrong, a new set appears. I think we will need to advice our regular visitors to register with a Google account as posting a comment is then totally hassle free.

    I am now testing with Internet Explorer. Again I have to go through verification but at least unlike Safari, I can actually post! - Speedy -

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  8. Internet Exlplorer also works fine. Just Safari is the problem. I have sent an email to Lucky with some suggestions.

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  9. Hello Speedy, Rohini and other PGW fans and non fans, I am actually posting a comment! Hooray! I am hoping that it will get to the "publish" stage eventually. (I am following your instructions, Mahendra.) I was a huge PGW fan before medical college, because my father had a collection of his books. Guess what? I am now enjoying a little vacation time in Colombo, and I think I will try to find some of the old books in my brother's house. I will let you know what my archeological dig unearths. Rohini, I am not familiar with Dr. Sally. I will have to check her out.
    Cheerio and Pip Pip!
    Srianee (Bunter - how I acquired that nickname is a long story)

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    Replies
    1. Hi Bunter - so nice to hear from you - Good Luck with your PGW search- In any case you should be able to get them from your library when you get back home from your holiday in SL. I shall reply your email in depth soon - Enjoy SL- Cheers - Rohini

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  10. Great to see you comment Srianee! You know what, your father must have had his head screwed on properly, anybody who is a Wodehouse fan, has seen the light! Yes, please do get a copy of Dr Sally. It is a relatively short book, and let me increase your appetite by quoting a small passage from it.

    Sir Hugo's reaction when Sally said she was a doctor when he met her on the golf course was "Good God!". Sally didn't quite like this as she was "always meeting men who exclaimed 'Good God!' or its equivalent, when informed of her profession.The male mind did not appear to be able to grasp immediately the fact that a woman doctor need not of necessity be a gargoyle with steel- rimmed spectacles and a washleather complexion.

    Please keep in touch and enrich the Blog with more of your contributions, be it art, literature or just plain old chat!

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