Skip to main content

The Temple of Silence, G.K. Chesterton

This is a very cynical story.  Horne Fisher is manipulated into running for parliament by his brothers and friends.  He speaks truly, logically, and from the heart, and he wins over the populace.

However, his friends/brothers didn't want him to win, they just wanted him to siphon off enough votes to let their favored, and much more dishonest, candidate win.  Horne-Fisher learns of the plot. He still wins the election, but never goes to parliament.

Chesterton has a strongly cynical bent--evil/dishonesty are frequently uncovered by Horne-Fisher, but then he decides it would be worse for England if the truth ever came out.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Oppenheimer . . . film

 Solid opening 30 minutes (we're treating this like a mini-series).  O's involvement with left-wing causes . . . rift with Einstein (O thinks of him as over-the-hill and Einstein knows it.)  First splitting of atom.  Lawrence Lab in Berkeley--Lawrence practical applied physics . . . not O's strength.  Main actor is from Peaky Blinders.
Post a Comment
Read more

The Master Chapter 2

February 1895 (Alice died in 1892) Money problems, jealousy of Wilde; time spent with Lord Wolseley1; off to Ireland to lick his wounds; Irish unrest--Irish landlords boycott all social events; much time spent with manservant Hammond (homosexual attraction again); fancy dress ball, appalling to James, who is only happy in company of Hammond, though Hammond remains a servant and no more; little girl alone on the grounds--inspiration for Turn of the Screw?; conflict with Webster who alludes to Wilde's successful play and HJ's failure; Wolseley was an  Anglo-Irish  officer in the  British Army . He became one of the most influential and admired British generals after a series of successes in Canada, West Africa, and Egypt, followed by a central role in modernizing the British Army in promoting efficiency. He served in Burma, the  Crimean War , the  Indian Mutiny , China, Canada and widely throughout Africa—including his  Ashanti  campaign (18...
Post a Comment
Read more