I was originally going to title this post “My Last Jeeves,”
because this is indeed the last Jeeves book in this project. This was my plan as of a year ago when I
decided to do the last few books in chronological order. It turns out that it was only semi-chronological
because, when I looked at the titles, I found this one came before some of the
books featuring characters that do not recur.
Wonderful as they are, I wanted to respect the fact that I have spent a
long time pondering the depths of human motivation with Jeeves and Wooster. So here we are.
I dragged my feet writing this entry. Normally I would blame the outside forces in
my life (namely those that I produced following nine months’ gestation) but
that would not be fair in this instance.
It feels very odd to actually be coming to an end. The funny thing is that I never thought that
it would happen. Not that I’m expecting
another trove of Wodehouse books to emerge, thereby moving the goalpost, but
2017 seemed so long ago on that cold January morning of 2009. It feels almost shocking that here we are, in
this Brave New World.
It also feels shocking that we have seen the last of the
cow-creamer. Those of you would are
familiar with the Jeeves and Wooster scenarios will know that Bertie’s Uncle
Tom has an extensive collection of antique silver, the most prized piece being
an eighteenth-century cow-creamer.**
After seeing that object being the source of many attempted burglaries
and the catalyst of other mishaps, I was about as shocked as Bertie was to
learn that Tom consented to sell it.
Even though this book was written a full 14 years prior to Wodehouse’s
death, it felt as though he knew in some way that this was a swan song.***
Knowing that this was the last of the new Jeeves and Wooster
outings that I would read, I delighted in savoring some of the details that I’ll
note below. It was a great book, and I’m
happy to have read it.
-On page 12, when describing his love of mystery novels,
Bertie observes, “I can always do with another corpse or two.” This line just tickled me, especially since I
too enjoy tales of British people killing one another.
-Page 18 contains two of my more favorite Bertieisms: “aged
relative” and “old ancestor.”
-Page 20 has one of the rare references to the time that
this book was written (in this case, 1960): “It was like laughing lightly while
contemplating one of those horrors from outer space which are so much with us
at the moment on the motion-picture screen.”
-Bertie and I have a similar pet peeve: men who are in
possession of a wide upper lip who do not grow a moustache. To the end of my days, I will assert that
this ultimately led to John Major’s downfall (p. 38).
-Page 55 has a wonderful play on words. It will take a bit to set up, so much so that
I know its snappy effect will be lost, but I need to note it. There is a family called Cream visiting Aunt
Dahlia and Uncle Tom. During a
conversation about the cow-creamer, the departure of one the clan’s members comes
with these words: “… said the Cream, rising.”
When it’s in the moment, it elicits a chuckle, believe me.
I could go on and never finish this entry, which is
admittedly a tempting thought. But, much
like death, taxes, and catching the cold that has afflicted the other three
members of my family,**** I must accept the inevitable. Over the last few months I have spent a great
deal of time defending my project to myself (obviously, I ought to have settled
this years ago, but timing has never been my strong suit). The number one reason why I took this on is
because I enjoy reading Wodehouse. There
are many things that would indicate that this is an indelicate choice given the
political times in which we inhabit, the top one being that the majority of
Wodehouse’s characters are white males who have known considerable
privilege.
My reply would be two fold.
The first is that we are so often told that one should write about what
one knows. Plum was a white male who
grew up in a privileged world, so much so that he was even able to avoid the
conflict that took the lives of many of his contemporaries. This is what he knew, so does it make it
invalid?***** Additionally, and to me
this is the more important point, these are incredibly kind books. The bonds of family and friendship mean something
to Wodehouse’s protagonists; Bertie is forever going on about The Code of the
Woosters. All of the action is set off
by people trying to help one another.
While, for the most part, we’re not talking life-or-death situations
here, one is also rarely faced with that in one’s own life. We could all do a little more with hearing
about people doing nice things for each other, and we could all benefit from
increasing our store of Good Deeds.
Kindness and consideration are key to any Wodehouse book, and thank
goodness for that.
*Read March 2017
**That is, a vessel designed to pour cream that is in the
shape of a cow.
*** That being said, perhaps he envisioned another
appearance by the vessel, but we’ll never know.
****I should clarify that this three are the human members
of the family. My two cats and my son’s
newly acquired fish are not included, though they are very much a part of our
brood.
*****Also, I wonder if he created this semi-paradise
directly as a response to what went on, directly opposed to Hemingway’s
jaundiced look at the world. This will
join the great list of Things I Will Never Know.
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