A Murder of Quality

by John Le Carré

“I wish I knew, Charles,” Fielding replied with apparent earnestness. “I really wish I knew. I used to think it was clever to confuse comedy with tragedy. Now I wish I could distinguish them.” He rather liked that.

What a shame, thought Fielding, that a mind so perceptive of beauty had no talent for creation.

Urgent equals ephemeral, and ephemeral equals unimportant.”