Lavengro · Chapter
LXXXIX explained
Lavengro returns to the dingle after visiting the public-house, where he drank ale as Belle advised.
What happens
Lavengro returns to the dingle after visiting the public-house, where he drank ale as Belle advised. They discuss his encounter with the radical and the priest, and Belle expresses her admiration for America. To ease their silences, Lavengro proposes teaching Belle Armenian, beginning with the numerals. Their lesson is interrupted when the man in black from the public-house appears in the dingle.
Themes in this chapter
Philology and Learning
Lavengro proposes teaching Belle Armenian as a way to pass the time and preserve his own knowledge of the language.
Freedom vs. Convention
Belle expresses a desire to go to America for freedom and opportunity, contrasting with Lavengro's disdain for the country.
Characters to notice
- Lavengro
Returns to the dingle, discusses his public-house visit, and proposes teaching Belle Armenian.
- Belle
Has prepared a tent and tea; expresses curiosity about Lavengro's visit and admiration for America; agrees to learn Armenian.
- The Landlord
Mentioned as the big portly landlord at the public-house.
- The Stranger
The man in black from the public-house, who appears in the dingle at the end of the chapter.
Key passages
“Ale, give them ale, and let it be strong.”
The surgeon recommended strong ale to cure hysterics and fearful imaginings.
Belle recalls the surgeon's advice for treating afflicted women.
“Everything in its season.”
There is a proper time for everything, including tea and ale.
Lavengro and Belle agree on the appropriateness of tea after feeling heated.
“I have heard my father say that the American marksmen, led on by a chap of the name of Washington, sent the English to the right-about in double-quick time.”
Lavengro's father told him that American sharpshooters under Washington quickly routed the English.
Lavengro explains his dislike of Americans based on their military success against the English.