Là-Bas (Down There)

by Joris-Karl Huysmans

“All that is very well,” he groaned, “but this century laughs the glorified Christ to scorn. It contaminates the supernatural and vomits on the Beyond. Well, how can we hope that in the future the offspring of the fetid tradesmen of today will be decent? Brought up as they are, what will they do in Life?” “They will do,” replied Durtal, “as their fathers and mothers do now. They will stuff their guts and crowd out their souls through their alimentary canals.”