School Stories · Chapter
A Corner in Lines explained
Dunstable, a student at Locksley, exploits a loophole to leave school a day early, tricking his form-master Mr.
What happens
Dunstable, a student at Locksley, exploits a loophole to leave school a day early, tricking his form-master Mr. Langridge into setting him lines he never intends to complete. Upon returning next term, he faces consequences from his housemaster Mr. Day, who sets him a different punishment. With help from his friend Linton, Dunstable navigates the school's imposition system, eventually turning lines into a profitable enterprise.
Themes in this chapter
Trickery and Cunning
Dunstable's elaborate schemes to outwit masters, including leaving early and stockpiling lines.
Authority and Rebellion
The ongoing feud between Dunstable and masters like Langridge and Day, and his subversion of punishment.
Friendship and Loyalty
Linton's loyalty in helping Dunstable with impositions and sacrificing his own plans.
Characters to notice
- Dunstable
The protagonist who schemes to avoid lines and later capitalizes on them.
- J. Linton
Dunstable's friend who helps him with impositions and suggests keeping unused lines.
- Mr. Langridge
Dunstable's form-master who sets lines unaware that Dunstable will leave early.
- Mr. Day
Dunstable's housemaster who sets a surprise punishment of irregular verbs.
- Mr. Appleby
A master who confiscates and destroys Dunstable's accumulated lines.
- The Headmaster
Grants Dunstable permission to leave school a day early.
Key passages
“Of all the useless and irritating things in this world, lines are probably the most useless and the most irritating.”
The narrator declares that lines (written punishments) are among the most pointless and annoying things in existence.
Opening statement setting the chapter's theme.
“Dunstable was a youth of ideas. He saw far more possibilities in the routine of life at Locksley than did the majority of his contemporaries.”
Dunstable was inventive and found opportunities in school life that others missed.
Character introduction highlighting Dunstable's cleverness.
“Public-school ethics do not demand that you should reply truthfully to the spirit of a question. The letter of it is all that requires attention.”
In public school, it's acceptable to answer a question literally even if it misleads, as long as you don't lie outright.
Commentary on the school's moral code.
“At four o'clock Dunstable was enjoying an excellent tea in Green Street, Park Lane, and telling his mother that he had had a most enjoyable term, marred by no unpleasantness whatever.”
By four o'clock, Dunstable was at home having tea with his mother, claiming his term was perfectly pleasant.
Irony as Dunstable had just tricked Mr. Langridge.
“The crafty pedagogue appeared to have foreseen Dunstable's attempt to circumvent him by doing the Greek numerals on the chance of his setting them.”
Mr. Day seemed to anticipate that Dunstable would try to pre-write the expected Greek numerals, so he set a different punishment.
Mr. Day outsmarts Dunstable's plan.
