This may only be funny to one who has spent more than two months of the past year helping students work through the novel Persuasion, but I thought I would throw it out there, anyway. Many of my students cited this particular passage as a way of pointing out how the snobbish Sir Walter disparages navy men in the novel, but with a tiny error whole new worlds of meaning are conjured up:
Sir Walter disliked the navy for being “the means of brining persons of obscure birth into undue distinction.”
I now walk around snickering at thoughts of this powerful force called “the navy” pickling young cadets (in the sea, no less!) like a side of pork. Hehehe 🙂
To make the joke worse, elevating the lowly to positions of distinction is only one reason why Sir Walter despises the navy. The other reason is that it does terrible things to a man’s complexion. No, I’m not making this up: he doesn’t care for the weather-beaten look. But! if these men are brined they are going to be quite, dare I say it, well-preserved 🙂
Cackling with laughter . . .
Erin
Alan Schmierer
Loved it!