Farewell to Legs
Encyclopedia
"Farewell to Legs" is a short story
by P. G. Wodehouse
, which first appeared in the United States
in the July 14, 1935 edition of This Week, and in the United Kingdom
in the May 1936 issue of the Strand
. It was included in the UK collection Lord Emsworth and Others
, (1937), and in the U.S. edition of Young Men in Spats
(1936). It is a golf
story, narrated by the Oldest Member
.
The title is a play on Ernest Hemingway
's 1929 novel
, A Farewell to Arms
.
. But when Legs Mortimer takes up residence in the Clubhouse, Evangeline's mind wanders from her golf, and Angus worries that she is losing her form for the Ladies' Medal. But the scales fall from Evangeline's eyes when Legs does the unthinkable on the links.
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
by P. G. Wodehouse
P. G. Wodehouse
Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, KBE was an English humorist, whose body of work includes novels, short stories, plays, poems, song lyrics, and numerous pieces of journalism. He enjoyed enormous popular success during a career that lasted more than seventy years and his many writings continue to be...
, which first appeared in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in the July 14, 1935 edition of This Week, and in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in the May 1936 issue of the Strand
Strand Magazine
The Strand Magazine was a monthly magazine composed of fictional stories and factual articles founded by George Newnes. It was first published in the United Kingdom from January 1891 to March 1950 running to 711 issues, though the first issue was on sale well before Christmas 1890.Its immediate...
. It was included in the UK collection Lord Emsworth and Others
Lord Emsworth and Others
-External links:* , with a list of characters and publication dates* , with details of published editions, photos of book covers and links to used copies...
, (1937), and in the U.S. edition of Young Men in Spats
Young Men in Spats
Young Men in Spats is a collection of short stories by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United Kingdom on 3 April 1936 by Herbert Jenkins, London, then in the United States with a slightly different selection of stories on 23 July 1936 by Doubleday, Doran, New York.The collection, recounting...
(1936). It is a golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
story, narrated by the Oldest Member
Oldest Member
The Oldest Member is a fictional character from the short stories and novels of P. G. Wodehouse. He narrates the majority of Wodehouse's golf stories from the terrace of a golf club whose location is unclear, and he never has a proper name....
.
The title is a play on Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
's 1929 novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
, A Farewell to Arms
A Farewell to Arms
A Farewell to Arms is a semi-autobiographical novel written by Ernest Hemingway concerning events during the Italian campaigns during the First World War. The book, which was first published in 1929, is a first-person account of American Frederic Henry, serving as a Lieutenant in the ambulance...
.
Plot
The betrothal of Evangeline Brackett to Angus McTavish is built, in large part, on the way she bites her lip and rolls her eyes when she tops her drive, says the Oldest MemberOldest Member
The Oldest Member is a fictional character from the short stories and novels of P. G. Wodehouse. He narrates the majority of Wodehouse's golf stories from the terrace of a golf club whose location is unclear, and he never has a proper name....
. But when Legs Mortimer takes up residence in the Clubhouse, Evangeline's mind wanders from her golf, and Angus worries that she is losing her form for the Ladies' Medal. But the scales fall from Evangeline's eyes when Legs does the unthinkable on the links.
See also
- List of Wodehouse's golf shorts