The philosopher
knows that his wife does not comprehend him: she knows that she never
will; and neither of them much cares. The husband snubs her openly
for her mental defects, and she with perfect placidity accepts his
rebukes. "Master," as he once complains, "of one of the finest chains
of reasoning in the world, he is unable for the soul of him to get a
single link of it into the head of his wife;" but we never hear him
lamenting in this serio-comic fashion over his brother's inability to
follow his processes of reasoning. That is too serious a matter with
both of them; their mutual desire to share each other's ideas and
tastes is too strong; and each time that the philosopher shows his
impatience with the soldier's fortification-hobby, or the soldier
breaks his honest shins over one of the philosopher's crotchets, the
regret and remorse on either side is equally acute and sincere. It
must be admitted, however, that Captain Shandy is the one who the more
frequently subjects himself to pangs of this sort, and who is the more
innocent sufferer of the two.
From the broad and deep humour of this central conception of contrast
flow as from a head-water innumerable rills of comedy through many and
many a page of dialogue; but not, of course, from this source alone.
Pages:
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226