Humor Quote by Wodehouse
““I read the paragraph again. A peculiar feeling it gave me. I don't know if you have ever experienced the sensation of seeing the announcement of the engagement of a pal of yours to a girl whom you were only saved from marrying yourself by the skin of your teeth. It induces a sort of -- well, it's difficult to describe it exactly; but I should imagine a fellow would feel much the same if he happened to be strolling through the jungle with a boyhood chum and met a tigress or a jaguar, or what not, and managed to shin up a tree and looked down and saw the friend of his youth vanishing into the undergrowth in the animal's slavering jaws. A sort of profound, prayerful relief, if you know what I mean, blended at the same time with a pang of pity. What I'm driving at is that, thankful as I was that I hadn't had to marry Honoria myself, I was sorry to see a real good chap like old Biffy copping it. I sucked down a spot of tea and began brooding over the business.””
About This Quote
Source Novel: The Inimitable Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse, 1923
The narrator feels mixed relief and pity when a friend narrowly avoids an unwanted marriage, likening it to watching a companion being devoured by a predator.
In simple terms: Relief mixed with sorrow over a friend's close call.
Key Takeaway
Recognize and process complex emotions in similar situations.
Themes
friendship
relief
pity
avoidance
irony
Mood
wistancholy
reflective
ironic
Type
literary
humorous
reflective
When to use this quote
- witnessing a friend's near‑marriage
- seeing a loved one escape danger
- reflecting on personal choices
- navigating envy and empathy
Key Concepts
human psychology
emotional ambivalence
social expectations
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you handle mixed emotions when a friend avoids a bad outcome?
- What does this reveal about your own values?
A Different Perspective
The feeling may be specific to the narrator’s humorous tone and may not apply universally.
![“[S]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once, for example, when I was just starting out in the food business, I was hired by the caper people to develop a lot of recipes using capers, and it was weeks of…” quote by Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/d79/nora-ephron-1217_business_s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-th_980.jpg)
