# Endnotes explained — Vile Bodies

> Chapter companion for Vile Bodies by Evelyn Waugh.

## What happens

The endnotes provide explanatory context about the three types of formal invitation cards in use at the time, referencing Johnnie Hoop's adaptation of Futurist Manifesto styles, and note the later publication of a story in a volume of Highland Legends approved for elementary schools.

## Character check-ins

### Johnny Hoop

Mentioned as the designer of a type of invitation card adapted from Blast and Marinetti's Futurist Manifesto, and as the writer of invitations for parties financed by Miss Mouse.

### Mary Mouse

Referenced as the financier of parties for which Johnnie Hoop wrote invitations.

## Key lines

> Perhaps it should be explained⁠—there were at this time three sorts of formal invitation card; there was the nice sensible copybook hand sort with a name and “At Home” and a date and time and address; then there was the sort that came from Chelsea, “Noel and Audrey are having a little whoopee on Saturday evening: do please come and bring a bottle too, if you can”; and finally there was the sort that Johnnie Hoop used to adapt from Blast and Marinetti’s “Futurist Manifesto.”

The author clarifies that three types of formal invitation cards existed: a traditional, sensible one; a casual Chelsea style inviting guests to a 'whoopee' with a request to bring a bottle; and a third type designed by Johnnie Hoop, inspired by the avant-garde publications Blast and Marinetti's Futurist Manifesto.

_This note explains the social conventions of party invitations in the novel's setting, highlighting the contrast between conventional and modernist styles._

> This story, slightly expanded, found its way later into a volume of Highland Legends called Tales from the Mist, which has been approved to be read in elementary schools. This shows the difference between what is called a “living” as opposed to a “dead” folk tradition.

The story mentioned was later expanded and included in a book of Highland legends titled Tales from the Mist, which received approval for use in elementary schools, illustrating the distinction between a vibrant, evolving folk tradition and a static, obsolete one.

_This note comments on the nature of folklore and the adaptation of stories for educational purposes._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/vile_bodies_se/chapters/endnotes
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- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/vile_bodies_se/chapters