P.G.Wodehouse
In Ancient History at school I had to write a 500 word essay on whether Alexander the Great had the right to claim that he was 'Great'. Did he just get away with it because he could wipe out your nation if you so much as snickered at him or did he really deserve it? I thought this was pretty deep stuff and I felt very wise as I pondered what made someone 'great'.
Since then I have wanted to write this massive work comparing and contrasting well known or not well known people from all different periods of time and walks of life to see what exactly made greatness. My history obsession really comes out at times like this and I get all excited when I think of whom I would include in my list. So many options! So much discovery! So many factors! But there is one person at least who I can immediately put my 'Charise's Seal of Greatness' on right from the beginning and his name is Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse.
P.G. Wodehouse in my opinion vies for the title of best comedy author EVER. Strong words I know but let me tell you about one of his novels, "Jeeves in the Morning".Character List:
Bertie Wooster- a foppish young man of leisure. He attempts to help his friends out of sticky situations but generally only make them stickier. Bertie is very emotionally affected by the situations he gets himself into. He has a bad habit of getting himself engaged to difficult women.
Jeeves- Bertie's valet. He spends much of his time freeing the young master from terrible scrapes. Jeeves is the perfect servant always giving a sense of calm. It is a commonly held belief that Jeeves knows everything and that the brilliance of his brain is down to the eating of fish.
Florence Craye- a strong minded female authoress who enjoys molding men she thinks are weak minded by making them read improving books. She is engaged to Stilton Chessewright but their relationship is rocky at the best of times. She used to be engaged to Bertie.
Aunt Agatha- Bertie's tough aunt who chews broken glass and offers human sacrifices. Aunt Agatha is determined to marry Bertie off to a domineering woman who will change his flighty ways.
Uncle Percy/ Lord Worplesdon- the second husband of Aunt Agatha and father of Florence and Edwin. He terrifies most people with his commanding presence but he himself is terrified of his wife. He once chased a young Bertie across hard country with a riding crop after finding him smoking in the shrubbery. He is a shipping magnate of great renown.
Stilton Cheesewright- has known Bertie since when they were both at Eaton together. He has a low opinion of Bertie's ability at rowing and feels threatened by Bertie's previous engagement to Florence. Stilton is the police officer at Steeple Bumpleigh and he wishes to remove Bertie by force if necessary from the immediate surrounds.
Nobby Hopwood- a ward of Uncle Percy and a good egg. Nobby enlists Bertie's help as she and Boko Fittleworth try to convince Uncle Percy to let them be married.
Boko Fittleworth- an old friend of Bertie's. He is an aspiring film writer with a bad fashion sense and even worse social presence when nervous. Uncle Percy despises the ground he walks on.
Edwin the Boy Scout- the brother of Florence and the son of Lord Worplesdon. He moves around Steeple Bumpleigh hitting suspected burglars over the head with his scout stick and accidentally setting cottages on fire as he attempts to do his good deeds. Bertie ranks him high on the list of England's Rogues' Gallery.
J. Chichester Clam- an unsuspecting American shipping magnate who stumbles into the hell-hole of Steeple Bumpleigh.
The book begins with Bertie vowing and declaring he will never set a toenail near Steeple Bumpleigh, home of his Aunt Agatha. However, following the pleas of help from his friends Boko and Nobby and with the knowledge that Aunt Agatha is away, he ventures to this picturesque setting. Very quickly though Bertie realises he has made a terrible mistake. Even without Aunt Agatha's presence, the shadow of Steeple Bumpleigh lingers and he is faced with unwanted engagements, broken friendships, violence and the loss of a Sindbad the Sailor costume.
This book is fantastic because Wodehouse is such a great author. It is a light, easy to read book but Wodehouse is a master of description and character writing and while reading it, it is clear this is quality stuff. It is not at all forced, just a genius comedy writer doing what he does best.
Just because they are awesome, some P.G. Wodehouse quotes-
“Freddie experienced the sort of abysmal soul-sadness which afflicts one of Tolstoy's Russian peasants when, after putting in a heavy day's work strangling his father, beating his wife, and dropping the baby into the city's reservoir, he turns to the cupboards, only to find the vodka bottle empty.”
“Mike nodded. A sombre nod. The nod Napoleon might have given if somebody had met him in 1812 and said, "So, you're back from Moscow, eh?”
“It is no use telling me there are bad aunts and good aunts. At the core, they are all alike. Sooner or later, out pops the cloven hoof. ”
“I flung open the door. I got a momentary flash of about a hundred and fifteen cats of all sizes and colours scrapping in the middle of the room, and then they all shot past me with a rush and out of the front door; and all that was left of the mob scene was the head of a whacking big fish, lying on the carpet and staring up at me in a rather austere sort of way, as if it wanted a written explanation and apology.”
“There are moments, Jeeves, when one asks oneself, 'Do trousers matter?'"
"The mood will pass, sir.”
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