“Jeeves, I said, “stand by to consel and advise. The plot has thickened.”
“I looked at Jeeves. He looked at me. I did not speak, save with the language of the eyes, but his trained senses enabled him to read my thoughts unerringly.”
“Bertie,” said Aunt Dahlia, “I am a weak woman, but if you won’t tread on this insect and throw the remains outside, I shall have to see what I can do. The most tremendous issues hanging in the balance–our plan of action still to be decided on–every second of priceless importance–and he comes in here, telling us the story of his life. Spink-Bottle, you ghastly goggle-eyed piece of gorgonzola, will you hop it or will you not?
“The shades of evening were beginning to fall pretty freely by now, but the visibility was still good enough to enable me to observe that up the road there was approaching a large, stout, moon-face policeman on a bicycle. And he was, one could see, at peace with all the world. His daily round of tasks may or may not have been completed, but he was obviously off duty for the moment, and his whole attitude was that of a policeman with nothing on his mind but his helmet.”
The Code of the Woosters
Our book club read a true classic for last night’s meeting. It was chosen by a member who grew up reading P.G. Wodehouse books. Her family enjoyed lively discussions about the books over the dinner table. She brought with her to the meeting, her mother’s copy of The Code of the Woosters, a Vintage Books edition from the 1970s. It still looked fresh and inviting.
I think that is one way to describe the world built by P.G. Wodehouse in his nearly one-hundred books that gently satirize upper class life in England, for the most part, post WWI: fresh and inviting. He pulls us into a long-gone zany world and pokes fun at it with vibrant characters who are fantastically ridiculous in an innocent and beguiling way. You can’t help but chuckle throughout it all.
In the Code of the Woosters, we are immediately thrust into the world of Bertie Wooster, a young aristocrat who is pushed in one direction and then another by well-meaning but misguided pals and aunts. Bertie describes himself thus:
“It has been well said of Bertram Wooster by those who know him best that there is a certain resilience in his nature that enables him as a general rule to rise on stepping stones of his dead self in te most unfavorable circumstances. It isn’t often that I fail to keep the chin up and the eye sparkling…”
His man-servant, Jeeves, who is quietly omnipresent and all-knowing, is an invaluable pillar in this world.
Some of our members had difficulty engaging with the story at the beginning. They had never read Wodehouse before and felt a bit lost. I can understand this, as Wodehouse presumes that his readers are fully immersed in British culture. For those who aren’t anglophiles, it could feel like plunging into cold water. However, after a few chapters, the timeless, universal Wodehouse humor takes effect, and you can’t help but start smiling.
As one member pointed out, Wodehouse adds sublime, unexpected twists not only to the intricate plot but throughout the narrative and dialogue.
One member of our club explained that P. G. Wodehouse worked diligently to become a master of the written word and humor. Early in his career after he completed the first draft of a manuscript, he reputedly cut it up into individual sentences and taped each to a wall to examine and change. He was well-known for reworking and revising sentence by sentence until he achieved the right rhythm and humor. He aimed for clarity and precision so that his prose seemed effortless.
Another member impressed upon us the great influence that Wodehouse has had on humorists and comedians who study his works to form their own brand of humor. Among those who acknowledge his influence are: Stephen Fry (who portrayed Jeeves in the BBC series), Douglas Adams (Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy), Terry Pratchett (Author of Discworld novels), and John Cleese (Monty Python and Fawlty Towers).
Near the end of the discussion, our leader asked, “So, what is the Code of the Woosters?” The answer came quickly: “Never let a pal down” followed by “Don’t put self first”.
It is indeed, a by-gone world. Happily, we can revisit it any time. After all P.G. Wodehouse left us nearly 100 books of timeless humor to in which to completely immerse oneself.
Journey’s End, eh, Jeeves?”
“So I should be disposed to imagine, sir.”