Crome Yellow · Chapter
XXVIII explained
As the village fete winds down, the dancing begins under acetylene lamps.
What happens
As the village fete winds down, the dancing begins under acetylene lamps. Denis watches the couples, feeling isolated as Anne dances with Gombauld. Henry Wimbush leads him away to see ancient oak drainpipes, where he expounds his philosophy that the past is preferable to the present, that human contacts are overrated, and that books offer all the pleasures of social life without its tedium. He recalls his own romantic adventures, noting that even they felt mundane while happening.
Themes in this chapter
Intellectual vs. Physical Life
Henry Wimbush contrasts the messy, unknowable present of human contacts with the orderly, knowable past accessible through books, advocating for a life of solitary reading over social engagement.
Time and Transience
Henry Wimbush reflects on how romantic adventures lose their excitement in the moment and only gain charm in retrospect, highlighting the gap between lived experience and remembered romance.
Self-Consciousness and Identity
Denis feels acutely his separation from the coupled dancers, and ruefully remembers Jenny's caricature notebook, showing his self-consciousness about how others perceive him.
Characters to notice
- Denis
Watches the dancing from the entrance, feeling left out as Anne dances with Gombauld; is led away by Henry Wimbush to see drainpipes.
- Henry Wimbush
Takes Denis to see the oaken drainpipes and delivers a long discourse on his preference for the past over the present and his desire for a machine-secluded life.
- Anne
Dances with Gombauld, eyes almost shut, appearing to sleep on the wings of movement and music.
- Gombauld
Dances with Anne, part of the harmonious couples.
- Priscilla Wimbush
Still wearing her queenly toque, dances with a tenant farmer to encourage the villagers.
- Mr. Scogan
Trots around the dance floor with a village beauty.
- Mary
Dances with a young farmer of heroic proportions, talking seriously to him.
- Jenny Mullion
Sits among the band, performing virtuosically on the drums, her eyes shining and smiling to herself.
Key passages
“Adventures and romance only take on their adventurous and romantic qualities at secondhand. Live them, and they are just a slice of life like the rest.”
Adventures seem exciting only when told later; while happening, they feel as ordinary as any everyday activity.
Henry Wimbush explains that his own romantic escapades felt mundane in the moment.
“The proper study of mankind is books.”
The best way to understand humanity is through reading, not through personal interaction.
Henry Wimbush's inversion of Pope's famous line, advocating for solitary study over social contact.
“If all these people were dead, this festivity would be extremely agreeable.”
This dance would be enjoyable if I could read about it in a book from a century ago, rather than experiencing it firsthand.
Henry Wimbush expresses his preference for the past and for mediated experience.