Going out for a Walk 1918

Going out for a Walk 1918

The work presents a reflective and humorous critique of the social expectation to go for walks, particularly in the context of English society. The narrator asserts that he has never willingly gone out for a walk, having only been taken out by others. He expresses a preference for the urban environment of London, where the hustle and bustle provide an excuse to avoid such outings. The narrator critiques the notion that walking is inherently virtuous, suggesting that it interrupts intellectual engagement. He observes that conversations during walks tend to devolve into banalities, with individuals losing their wit and insight. The act of walking, he argues, reduces people to a state of mental dullness, where they resort to reading signs and making trivial observations rather than engaging in meaningful dialogue. He explores the dichotomy between the soul's desire for noble pursuits and the brain's reluctance to participate in what it perceives as frivolous activity. The narrator humorously personifies the brain and soul, depicting a conflict where the brain opts for inactivity while the soul pushes for the physical act of walking without purpose. Despite acknowledging the physical benefits of moderate exercise, the narrator remains resolute in his refusal to walk unless absolutely necessary. He concludes that he will only engage in walking when there are no social obligations or desires compelling him to do so, emphasizing his preference for solitude and intellectual engagement over the social norm of walking. The work ultimately serves as a satirical commentary on societal expectations and the nature of human interaction.

By Max Beerbohm · First published 1918 · Genre: Essay, Humor, Philosophical · 1,410 words

First lines

It is a fact that not once in all my life have I gone out for a walk. I have been taken out for walks; but that is another matter. Even while I trotted prattling by my nurse's side I regretted the good old days when I had, and wasn't, a perambulator. When I grew up it seemed to me that the one advantage of living in London was that nobody ever wanted me to come out for a walk. London's very drawbacks -- its endless noise and hustle, its smoky air, the squalor ambushed everywhere in it -- assured this one immunity. Whenever I was with friends in the country, I knew that at any moment, unless rain were actually falling, some man might suddenly say 'Come out for a walk! ' in that sharp imperative tone which he would not dream of using in any other connexion. People seem to think there is something inherently noble and virtuous in the desire to go for a walk. Any one thus desirous feels that he has a right to impose his will on whomever he sees comfortably settled in an arm-chair, reading. It is easy to say simply 'No' to an old friend. In the case of a mere acquaintance one wants some excuse. 'I wish I could, but' -- nothing ever occurs to me except 'I have some letters to write. ' This formula is unsatisfactory in three ways. (1) It isn't believed. (2) It compels you to rise from your chair, go to the writing-table, and sit improvising a letter to somebody until the walkmonger (just not daring to call you liar and hypocrite) shall have lumbered out of the room. (3) It won't operate on Sunday mornings. 'There's no post out till this evening' clinches the matter; and you may as well go quietly.

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Going out for a Walk 1918 is listed on Textopian as a short story by Max Beerbohm, dated 1918 CE.

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Satire · Humor · Social Commentary · World War I · British Literature · Illustrated Book · Caricature · Sarcasm · Irony · Critique of Society · Class Satire · Anti-War Sentiment

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