“What certainty could be arrived at in matters of literary gossip?”
The same old story. The world doesn’t seem to have changed for the better; but perhaps not for the worse, either.
“I wish I could have done for ever with the hateful profession that so poisons men’s minds.”
Marian’s words strike a major key here. One thing I admire about Gissing: he was ruthless toward these men of letters!
“I am all but certain that, if he became rich, he would be a very much kinder man, a better man in every way.”
Oh, wishful thinking! Money would only make Mr. Yule ten times worse!
Join us on December 13 for a virtual discussion of New Grub Street with Yiyun Li.
Alfred Yule, one of my least favorite characters in fiction. By comparison, Satan in Paradise Lost is attractive. It's hard to pity a man who blames everyone but himself for his failures.
I was so enjoying Marian standing up to her father on her and her mom’s behalf only to have her spin on a dime by thinking dad might be right and then fretting over Jasper.