After walking into to a prank by some good ol' boys, Paul Pennyfeather is sent down from Scone College for 'indecent behavior', a blow that he takes without too much fuss. His guardian denies him his allowance and he is sent off to teach at a public school far enough down the ladder to not inquire t...
A picaresque novel in the tradition of Lazarillo de Tormes, etc, only in 20th century England. Completely absurd, and funny, and even more absurd.**spoilers below!**Paul Pennyfeather is expelled from his college (I think--this novel would be much more enjoyable for someone who understands the Englis...
As much as I liked Vile Bodies, Waugh's other books just leave me cold. There is wit, and then there is spite. Waugh just somehow doesn't seem to be able to rise above the latter. Yes, there are some fine caricatures, but what spoils them is that Waugh tries too hard at times and comes across a...
Much of the satire/humor in this book was lost on me. I guess I do not know enough about the society in which it was written. That being said, I still really enjoyed the plot and the characters and the little humor I did understand. Also I found myself reading this book out loud to myself in bad Bri...
bookshelves: re-read, spring-2010, satire, published-1928, play-dramatisation, fraudio, amusing Recommended for: BBC7 listeners Read from May 17 to 22, 2010, read count: 2 ** spoiler alert ** Evelyn Waugh's Paul Pennyfeather who, expelled from Oxford, is forced to rethink his life. Stars Andrew S...
'Decline and Fall' is the sort of merciless social satire about Oxford and its elitist characters I expected to find when I bought 'Zuleika Dobson' by Max Beerbohm. Whereas the latter left me utterly disappointed - to the point I left that book half-read - this novel turned out to be far more brilli...
Decline and Fall is a dark satiric comedy about Paul Pennyfeather who is expelled from college when he loses his pants during a drunken celebration. His life, and the rest of the book, go downhill from there. Paul's life goes from teaching a school, to prison, and back to school. It was probably ...
Almost laugh-out-loud funny. In a quiet way it points out the absurdity of the social class system and public schools.Which I've just re-read. It operates as several levels, and illustrates the cyclic nature of life.
Wonderfully well-written with a great turn of phrase and a lovely ear for dialogue; though the 1920s England setting is so remote to my contemporary experience that it might as well have been set on the moon.
I think Evelyn Waugh was reading a lot of Thomas Hardy when he penned this novel. There are so many little elements put together… Far From the Madding Crowd’s Sergeant Troy and the coast scene…the relationship upheavals in Jude the Obscure with Jude Fawley, Arabella and Sue… even how Pierston’s st...
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