James Wood

milk and porridge and such things to build up your strength.

Of Sir William Bradshaw, Wolfe writes, proportion his goddess had been acquired by Sir William walking hospitals, catching salmon, begetting one son in Harley Street by Lady Bradshaw, who caught salmon herself.

Well, what about this lovely little phrase that is essentially from the point of view of Peter Walsh, Clarissa's old friend who has come back from India.

He too, like Clarissa, remembers happy days at the country house, at Clarissa's country house, Borton.

And he remembers particularly because he was deeply in love with Clarissa that

He remembers flirting with her only to realize, to his great anguish, that Clarissa does not love him and to realize that she will marry one Richard Dalloway.

But what about this lovely description?

Peter Walsh remembers Borton, and then this line, Isn't that a marvellous phrase?

And then in the morning, flirting up and down.

Isn't that great?

Flirting up and down.

What's that like?

And then like a wagtail in front of the house.

It's great.

It's a little peacock, peacockery that Peter Walsh remembers in his alas, failed courting of Clarissa.

Hello, and welcome to Who's Afraid of Realism, a close readings podcast from the London Review of Books.

I'm James Wood, and today I'm joined by the novelist and critic Elif Batuman.

Elif, hello.

We're going to be talking about Tolstoy's story, novella.

The Death of Ivan Ilyich, which was published in 1886.