Mr. Loveday Little outing Author:
Evelyn Waugh: Born in October, 1903 In the 1930s Evelyn travelled a lot. He served in the British armed forces during Second World War. He had a mental breakdown. All these experiences were used in Evelyn's fiction. Before Second World War, his worked was based on the upper-class; he was against the upper-class being treated like better persons in society. Title explanation Mr. Loveday really is a lovely man. He looks after all the madmen and the deranged and he's ever so good. Why shouldn't he be allowed a little outing after all these years?
“Well, miss, it sounds ungrateful, but I can’t deny I should welcome a little outing, once, before I get too old to enjoy it. I except we all have our secret ambitions, and there is one thing I often wish I could do. You mustn’t ask me what… it wouldn’t take long.” “I could settle down again easier, and devote myself to the poor crazed people here with a better heart. Yes, I do feel that.”
Plot: The story is about a young lady, Angela Moping, who visits her mentally ill father in an asylum. Visiting her father, who has been in an “asylum” for many years for the attempt to commit a suicide, Angela meets Mr Loveday, her father’s caretaker. Mr Loveday, who produces the impression of an absolutely sane person, is also an “inmate” (patient) of the asylum [ə'saɪləm] because of committing a murder. Angela thinks that the thirty-five years Mr Loveday has spent in the “asylum” cured him, so she arranges his release.
Once released, Mr Loveday goes on his outing and commits another murder.
Elements of Plot:
Exposition
Rising:
Climax:
Falling Action:
Resolution:
Setting:
Place: It takes place in Britain in an Asylum /mental institution/hospital (County Home for mental defectives) Time: beginning of the 20th century
Theme:
Madness, because Mr. Loveday is a complete mad men Conflict in class structure: the writer is against the upper-class which becomes clear in the story. Megalomania Lord Moping's megalomania, his unnatural great desire for power and control. Trust, the trust Angela has in Mr. Loveday. Manipulation, the way Mr. Loveday manipulates Angela.
Symbolism Lady Moping, Angela and the doctors represent upper- and lowerclass. Lady Moping's annual garden party is also a symbol of the upper-class. When the party is ruined, her reputation can also be ruined.
Other symbols of upper- and lower-class are: Mr. Loveday is the secretary of sir Moping The gift of sir Moping, the golden cigarette cage. The last name of Lady and Sir Moping means whining, which refers to sir Moping.
Style: black humorous, ironic, and satirical. The story shows a quite cynical humour from the author. One of the wittiest, and ultimately saddest short stories about the "lost generation" of the early 20th century. Waugh writes about arrogant, self-centered, wealthy, vapid, young socialites in a very funny and humoristic way. Tone/Mood/Atmosphere: gloomy, dark, changeable atmosphere Point of View: 3rd person Characters:
Lord Moping is a man of the upper-class society. Has a desire of complete control. He lives in a County Home for mental defectives.
Lady Moping is the wife of Lord Moping, also an upper-class woman. She is ignorant and selfish and doesn't pay attention to how Angela is feeling about the situation with Mr. Loveday, because he is a lower-class man. Angela is the daughter of Lord and Lady Moping. She is a friendly and innocent woman, though she is a little naive. She left the asylum, oppressed by a sense of injustice. Mr. Loveday, who is the main character, also lives in the County Home for mental defectives. He is an elderly little man with full white hair and an expression of great kindness. He is known in the institution as a friendly and helpful person.
Unexpected ending: Once released, Mr Loveday goes on his outing and does the “one thing I often wish I could do. You mustn’t ask what… It wouldn’t take long.” – He repeats the brutal murder for which he was originally locked up twenty years before. What does it mean to be insane? 1- In my experience, insanity is generally a result of a biological cause. For example, a brain tumor may cause a person to become violent for no apparent reason. Another example would be a person who is so profoundly mentally retarded they cannot understand right from wrong. Occasionally, insanity may result from another source such as medicine. An example of this could be a doctor placing a person on a new type of medication with the medication causing a person to temporarily lose the ability to know right from wrong. 2- Insanity does not have to be permanent, it can be temporary. Many conditions can be regulated to a greater or lesser degree by medication, sometimes surgeries can be performed to return a person to "normal". 3- Albert Einstein once said "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results". 4- Insanity refers to a mental illness of such a severe nature that a person cannot distinguish fantasy from reality, cannot conduct her/his affairs due to psychosis, or is subject to uncontrollable impulsive behavior. 5- Insanity, craziness or madness is a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity may manifest as violations of societal norms, including becoming a danger to themselves and others, though not all such acts are considered insanity
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