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Thank You, Wodehouse
Pays tribute to the English author by affectionately examining his works and his characters
152 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1981
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December 30, 2011
I am quite impressed with this book, even though it may not be the sort of work that would deserve a place in the highest levels of literary criticism. J.H.C. Morris (and occasionally A.D. Macintyre) explore the world and characters created by P.G. Wodehouse with a considerable amount of gusto and skill. There is a marked comfort here with "rolling up ones sleeves" and getting to work.
Morris has succeeded in making literary criticism funny as he examines the canon with a fine tooth comb and weighs the evidence to come to fascinating conclusions. There is a healthy balance between vigorous, serious scholarship and lighthearted joviality. The methodology is markedly deductive and the author is constantly harmonizing (and sometimes showing contradictions between) the various books in the Wodehouse canon. You will find some speculation, but usually it only appears when well grounded inferences simply cannot be made.
The best way I can describe this book is to say that it's as if P.G. Wodehouse were commissioned from his grave to write a book of literary criticism about his own books. And it applies the sort of thorough, exploratory, and detailed approach that has been utilizing in the criticism of other literature (such as the Sherlock Holmes canon).
I also wish to share some of the flaws that I've found in this book.
First, It should be stated that the author is too hard on Jeeves, seeing in him nothing but an evil "domestic tyrant" and the blackest fiend to be found in English literature. While Jeeves is certainly not a totally saintly character, I find this over-representation of the unseemly aspects of his character to be a regrettable blot an otherwise fine work.
Second, another complaint I would have is that the ending is quite abrupt, with precious little at the end in the way of a conclusion to tie it all together.
Third, it takes the reader into some very deep water that might make all but the most obsessive Wodehouse fans quiver a bit. If you haven't read over 10 or 20 Wodehouse books, you'll probably find yourself slightly disoriented at certain points.
Morris has succeeded in making literary criticism funny as he examines the canon with a fine tooth comb and weighs the evidence to come to fascinating conclusions. There is a healthy balance between vigorous, serious scholarship and lighthearted joviality. The methodology is markedly deductive and the author is constantly harmonizing (and sometimes showing contradictions between) the various books in the Wodehouse canon. You will find some speculation, but usually it only appears when well grounded inferences simply cannot be made.
The best way I can describe this book is to say that it's as if P.G. Wodehouse were commissioned from his grave to write a book of literary criticism about his own books. And it applies the sort of thorough, exploratory, and detailed approach that has been utilizing in the criticism of other literature (such as the Sherlock Holmes canon).
I also wish to share some of the flaws that I've found in this book.
First, It should be stated that the author is too hard on Jeeves, seeing in him nothing but an evil "domestic tyrant" and the blackest fiend to be found in English literature. While Jeeves is certainly not a totally saintly character, I find this over-representation of the unseemly aspects of his character to be a regrettable blot an otherwise fine work.
Second, another complaint I would have is that the ending is quite abrupt, with precious little at the end in the way of a conclusion to tie it all together.
Third, it takes the reader into some very deep water that might make all but the most obsessive Wodehouse fans quiver a bit. If you haven't read over 10 or 20 Wodehouse books, you'll probably find yourself slightly disoriented at certain points.
Displaying 1 of 1 review