Humor Quote by P.G. Wodehouse
““If you are ignorant of Lora Delane Porter’s books that is your affair. Perhaps you are more to be pitied than censured. Nature probably gave you the wrong shape of forehead. Mrs. Porter herself would have put it down to some atavistic tendency or pre-natal influence. She put most things down to that. She blamed nearly all the defects of the modern world, from weak intellects to in-growing toe-nails, on long-dead ladies and gentlemen who, safe in the family vault, imagined that they had established their alibi. She subpoenaed grandfathers and even great-grandfathers to give evidence to show that the reason Twentieth-Century Willie squinted or had to spend his winters in Arizona was their own shocking health ‘way back in the days beyond recall.””
About This Quote
Source Novel: The Code of the Wooster, 1925
Wodehouse satirically mocks the tendency to blame personal flaws on ancestral or hereditary causes, highlighting absurdity of such excuses.
In simple terms: Blaming ancestors for personal problems is ridiculous.
Key Takeaway
Avoid scapegoating history for present issues.
Themes
satire
heredity
absurdity
Mood
humorous
critical
Type
satirical
commentary
When to use this quote
- personal health concerns
- family gossip
- historical excuses
- modern anxieties
Key Concepts
social criticism
family legacy
psychology
Questions to Reflect On
- Do you ever blame your family for your problems?
- How can we take responsibility without scapegoating?
A Different Perspective
Oversimplifies complex issues to single causes.
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