Of Human Bondage · Chapter
XV explained
Philip begins his education at The King's School at Tercanbury at age thirteen.
What happens
Philip begins his education at The King's School at Tercanbury at age thirteen. The chapter describes the school's ancient traditions, its focus on classics and the Church, and the recent controversial appointment of a new headmaster, Mr. Perkins, the son of a linendraper, which unsettles the established masters who view him as ungentlemanly and dangerously enthusiastic.
Themes in this chapter
Class and Social Mobility
The appointment of Perkins, son of a linendraper, as headmaster challenges the school's rigid class distinctions; the masters' disdain highlights the tension between inherited status and merit.
Isolation and Belonging
Philip enters a new, traditional environment where he is an outsider; the masters themselves feel alienated by the change in leadership.
Suffering and Disillusionment
The masters' fear of change and their clinging to outdated traditions reflect a broader disillusionment with the erosion of their world.
Characters to notice
- Philip Carey
Enters King's School at Tercanbury at age thirteen.
- Mr. Perkins
New headmaster, son of a linendraper, appointed by the Chapter; viewed with suspicion by the old masters.
- Dr. Fleming
Former headmaster who retired due to deafness after twenty-five years.
- Winks
Master of the upper third, known for his languid manner; sums up Perkins as 'very enthusiastic.'
- Tar
One of the masters, bitter about the new headmaster's appointment.
- Sighs
A melancholy master who contemplates retiring if the school changes too much.
Key passages
“The dead languages were taught with such thoroughness that an old boy seldom thought of Homer or Virgil in after life without a qualm of boredom”
Classical languages were drilled so relentlessly that former students could not recall Homer or Virgil without a pang of tedium.
Critique of the school's rigid classical curriculum.
“Enthusiasm was ill-bred. Enthusiasm was ungentlemanly.”
The masters considered enthusiasm vulgar and unbecoming of a gentleman.
Reflects the conservative values of the school's faculty.
“He looks more of a gipsy than ever”
He appears even more like a gypsy now.
The masters' prejudiced view of Perkins's appearance.