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riority, assurance and self-confidence,, , one of them. But since your true, , shness and indeed usually thinks, one of them, , It requires a sense of supe, to write about bores at all, except as, , bore is always unconscious of his bori, of himself as the most companionable of men, to write as, , is to acquit oneself of the stigma., tae a ; :, Nevertheless, at some ume, I fear, everybody is a bore because, , part, and the fixed ideas, , everybody now and again has a fixed idea to im, __ of the few are the boredom of the many. Also, even the least self, centred men can now and then have a personal experience sufficiently, _ odd to lose its true proportions and force him to inflict it overmuch on, others. But bores as a rule are bores always, for egotism is beyond }, , P RE: 2 i . P, question the bore’s foundation-stone, his belief being that what, mself as a central figure must interest, pening, , * interests him and involves hi, and all the time something is hap, , : “you. Since he lives all the time,, in which he is the central figure, he has always something new, garden, himself, his wife, his, , discourse upon; himself, his house, his, .n. himself, his car, his handicap, himself, his health, his, , himself, the strange way in which, without inviting them |", his advice, his humorous w°!
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~, , Bores @ 61, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Br ys Jeads him to the best restaurants, his clothes, his dentist,, , from shibboleths, his being one of those men who look, best church, his possible ignorance of the arts, , ; he open air as the, e himself likes, his triumphs over the income, de as to what h, . These are the happy men, this world's axle-trees., , q have been referring to bores exclusively as men. Whether, , quite just, I am not sure; but I shall leave it there.), es are happy largely because they have so much to tell and, <9 well out of it; but chiefly because they can find people to tell it, , tragedy is, they can always find their listeners, me almost, d why can they? Why can even notorious bores always be sure, e? The answer is, the ineradicable kindness of human, Few men are strong enough to say, "For Heaven's sake, go, weary me.’ Bores make cowards of us all, and we are left, ten and endure or to take refuge in craven flight. We see, the distance and turn down side streets or hasten from the, man I know has a compact with a page boy, whose duty it, ever my friend is attacked by a certain bore in the club, to, » and say he is wanted on the telephone. And ingenious device,, ust not be worked too often; because my friend, though he can, eit and subterfuge, would not for anything let the bore think, as avoiding him; would not bring grief to that complacent _, ace. For it is one of the bore's greatest assets that he has a, , that disarms. Astute, crafty men are seldom bores, very, , 0 are seldom bores., , bores the most repellen, buttonholing bore. This is, , , , t specimen is the one who comes, the kind described by a friend, , ; vith a vivid sense of phrase as ‘the man who spreads birdlime, 1." A bore who keeps @ reasonable way off can be dealt, ae worst when they fix, , they lean on you, you are done. Iti
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of, <2 mi English Languace and ASRS, , only a foot away, and tell a funny story that isn't funny, |, 1 - so humiliating as to have to counterfeit laughter at the, g is §, , Nothin of a bore; but we do it. The incurable weakness ang, bidding, , > in!, benignancy of human nature comes again:, eng: 4, , Then there is the bore who begins a funny story, and akooe, you tell him you have heard it, doesn't stop. What should be ee with, him? Another of the worst types of bore is the nan Wie says, Where, <hould we be without our sense of humour.’ He is even capable of, saying ‘Nothing but my unfailing sense of humour saved me.’ There is, , i i he man who says ‘Live and let live’, as my poor dear father used, to say. i Z, There was once an eccentric peer - I forget both his name and, the place where I read about him - who had contracted, all, unconsciously, the habit of thinking aloud, and in this world of artifice,, ‘here society is cemented and sustained very largely by a compromise, tween What we think and what we say, his thoughts were very often at, ariance with his words. One of the stories in the memoirs in which], found him, describes how he met an acquaintance in St. James’, Street, and after muttering quite audibly to himself for a few minutes, as they walked side by side, 'Confound it, what a nuisance meeting this, , fellow. I've always disliked him. But now that we have met I suppose, I must ask him to dinner', he sto;, , of cordiality. "You will dine with us this evening, won't you?' Well,, 4 sheet of armour, s plate against bores, I don't think we could do m, citer than cultivate this habit of thinking truthfully aloud. Unless, , , , , , pped and said with every appearance, , =
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Bores @ 63, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , : were to cease publication (distasteful and incredible, e auld automatically be a decrease in bore topics,, 9 one could any longer repeat those sayings of his, , sood enough for Punch.’, , Lucas (1868-1938), British essayist, journalist, alist, besides being a writer of light verse, was born in a, , mil at Elthan and educated at London University. For, , > worked as @ news-reporter, then the assistant editor ofa, ine, Punch, and later as the Chairman of the, Methuen. Besides his delightful essays Lucas wrote, s ranging from art and topography to travel and, contribution came in the form of his, , s', a form of writing which is a blend of the, rtainments are Over, , : unmistakable stamp of Lucas’ art, "Bores", is a, reformist purpose hidden behind a mask of gentle, , s. Bores thrive, Lucas stresses, 00 the kindness, of a tolerant, if not, , sven notorious bores can be sure, - audience, because all of us hesitate to say, 4 our companion boring., certainty; belief in, one's own powers., rsons who are dull, and tedious, not aware
