Friday, April 09, 2004

Here it is, kinda long, so bear with me:

One of the great achievements of the last hundred years has been to deaden the human conscience on the subject (of gluttony), so that by now you will hardly find a sermon preached or a conscience troubled about it in the whole length and breadth of Europe. This has largely been effected by concentrating all our efforts on gluttony of Delicacy, not gluttony of excess. Your patient's mother is a good example. She would be astonished - one day, I hope, will be, to learn that her whole life is enslaved to this kind of sensuality, which is quite concealed from her by the fact that the quantities involved are small. But what do quantities matter, provided we can use a human belly and palate to produce querulousness, impatience, uncharitableness, and self concern? Glubose has this old woman well in hand. She is a positive terror to hostesses and servants. She is always turning from what has been offered her to say with a demure little sigh and a smile, "Oh please, please.....all I want is a cup of tea, weak, but not too weak, and the teeniest weeniest bit of really crisp toast."
You see? Because what she wants is smaller and less costly than what has been set before her, she never recognises as gluttony her dermination to get what she wants, however troublesome it may be for others. In a crowded restaurant she gives a little scream at the plate which some overworked waitress has set before her, and says "oh, that is far, far, too much! Take it away and bring me about a quarter of it.".......

posted by Birgit
0 comments at 8:19 AM