When the narrator asks how old the bridge is, the man replies that it is not very old, since it was built in 2003. The narrator and the boatman have another brief dialogue, with the narrator trying to decide how many questions to ask about the astounding changes since last night many of the factories that used to line the Thames are gone, and in place of the old metal bridge there is a beautiful stone one.
The narrator comes to believe that the man must be a “refined young gentleman, playing waterman for a spree” (8).
The narrator is surprised by how handsome the boatman is and how good his speaking and manners are. The boatman asks him whether he’d like to be put straight ashore or whether he’d like to be taken to Putney for breakfast. The man helps him into the boat and starts rowing. He decides that he will ask some questions to the man in the boat. However, he chokes on water due to his surprise at not seeing an ugly bridge over the river anymore. After a quick conversation, the narrator jumps into the water. He goes down to a nearby dock and finds a man sitting in a boat. The narrator decides to clear his head with a swim. However, he is definitely in the same place, since he sees the Thames right outside. He hurries outside to get some fresh air and finds that, while it was winter when he went to sleep, it now seems to be summer. He feels as if he has been sleeping for a long time and seeks to shake off his grogginess. When the narrator awakes, it is a sunny and hot morning. The narrator says that they will now take over the story in first person, even though the story did not actually happen to them, because they understand the thoughts and feelings of their friend and it will be more natural to write. He stays awake for a few hours and then falls back asleep. He falls asleep quickly but then wakes up soon after. This puts the man in a very good mood, and he goes into his house and falls asleep in his bed. Suddenly, the man is overtaken by the beauty of the moon and its illumination of the river. He repeats to himself, “If I could but see it!” (4). The train station is five minutes from the man’s house, and as he walks home he looks at an “ugly suspension bridge” (4) over the Thames. He travels home by public transportation, discontent with society and thinking about arguments he should have made at the meeting. One man, a friend of the narrator, sat silent in the beginning but becomes involved in the arguing to the point of calling the others fools and leaving. Buy Study Guide Summary Chapter 1: Discussion and BedĪt a meeting of the Socialist League, men argue over the future of society.
0 kommentar(er)
