Todd Bernhardt

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Annotations and comments

Todd Bernhardt has posted 946 annotations/comments since 8 January 2003.

Comments

First Reading

About Saturday 30 August 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

re: "till past to at night..."

Methinks "to" is a scanning error of "10," Clement, rather than "2." But a late night nonetheless. As for Sam's complaints, perhaps Will's attentiveness is the result of his "discussion" with Sam the other night, rather than Sam's complaints being overblown?

Linda, glad you're safe and sound, and here's hoping the others affected by the storm (which is pushing storm clouds toward me in the Washington, DC, area as I type) recover as quickly as possible.

About Saturday 23 August 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

re: Stunned by Lady Castlemaine

Linda, I don't think Sam was stunned. He was merely commenting on how cold the relationship was between the Lady and Lord -- so cold that they had even given up trying to be civil to each other in public.

As for Sam and milady:
"where I glutted myself with looking on her ... not weary with looking on her"
He's certainly smitten, is he not?

About Sunday 10 August 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

re: Sermons

Susan, I've always taken Sam's praise of a sermon to mean that he was swayed by the eloquence and logic of the speaker rather than his spirituality ... but who knows, if the speaker could effectively prick Sam's conscience, perhaps Sam thought more of him for it.

About Friday 8 August 1662

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re: Just a boy who can't say no

LAF, I don't think Sam's attitude about this is odd at all, and quite frankly can't think of any contexts where the inability to say no is "a virtue to be sought above all else in the world." What are the areas you're thinking of when you say this?

A person who knows when to say no is, in my mind, someone who is honest and has both a backbone and experience. People who can't say no usually are too eager (and who then can't deliver on all their promises) or are simply doormats who can't bear the thought of confrontation (when, in fact, a "no" does not have to involve confrontation at all).

I like all of Coventry's advice, and try to make use of his points today when conducting business:
* Look below the surface for pitfalls and ulterior motives before believing someone who's asking for something;
* Know when to apply yourself, without distraction, to the task at hand and get it done; and
* Exercise good judgment when consenting -- or not consenting -- to do something.

He sounds like a fine mentor for our Sam, and it's interesting to watch their burgeoning relationship.

About Thursday 7 August 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

re: Hidden meanings

Well said, Terry, and I think we really all agree on this, for the most part. I also believe that Sam gets dramatic in his writing at times (consciously or not), and has a good sense for puns. Because he's a smart guy and such a good writer, his writing can be read -- rightfully or not -- at several levels. That's one of the things that keeps these annotations interesting ... we all bring something different to the table, and sometimes take something different from it.

His "coded passages" are meant to make his dalliances a bit harder to figure out, but one has to wonder if he really thought they'd be effective. I can read them quite easily with my (very) basic French, and certainly any contemporary codebreakers could have, too (or could have found someone to do it).

But obfuscation about his sexual encounters is much different than writing allegorically or emblematically (i.e., instead of writing details about a sexual act, he describes it as a mundane occurance: "Visited Betty Lane after dinner, and thoroughly examined her books *wink wink nudge nudge* ... Robert Gertz could certainly help me here :-)

Do you see what I mean?

About Thursday 7 August 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

re: Bat(ten) and mouse

Yep, Mr. H, I agree! Such "happy accidents" are one of the highlights of the Diary for me. I think they may very well provide us with a tiny glimpse into Sam's unconscious ... but then again, they may not! :-)

Glyn pointed out something that struck me, too -- it's pretty amazing that Sam is able to get "up and at 'em" at 4 a.m. In my younger daze I could make do on much less sleep, but nothing on the scale of Our Man in the Navy Office. I wonder if it's because people could more easily live by their circadian rhythms then ... fewer external time cues than now.

About Thursday 7 August 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

re: hidden meanings

I don't know, fellas, I remain unconvinced. Nothing I've read about the Diary -- or in it, for that matter -- has indicated to me that Sam is speaking metaphorically or allegorically. One of the wonderful things about the Diary, for me, is the absolute straightforwardness of the writing. Its concentration on the mundane, everyday events in Sam's life, and on his feelings and actions, is the foundation of its absolute brilliance, and of its connection with our modern-day lives (because so much of human nature and circumstances are shared).

Just as we should shy from judging Sam by our standards, I think we should think twice (or more) before trying to read too much into his entries (unless we have the facts to back it).

My tuppence, FWIW...

About Wednesday 30 July 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

To Robert Gertz:

At least he's *our* little bastard!

Very amusing entry today ... you can almost see Batten's scattering at the news of Sam's arrival. Also love his description of the behavior of Crofts and Rawlins, and of the slow pace of the Gage. Our little bastard is quite the writer.

About Sunday 20 July 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

re: Oaths

FWIW, I've got to side with Terry and Samwatcher on this ... I think the oaths he is "obliged" to read every Sunday are those concerning his personal conduct, not ones having to do with fealty to the king (who, after all, can't even control the rain!) or country.

Mmmmm ... calf's head. :-p

About Monday 30 June 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

re: boring holes

I dunno, Pauline, the language seems to me to indicate that he does get boring (and you thought Sam was *never* boring). AFAIK, "fell upon" indicates action. Language hat (or others), could you confirm or deny?

Also interesting is the fact that Sam's current commitment to minding his business seems to extend beyond wine to women...

About Friday 27 June 1662

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re: Royal succession

"you could also argue that the troubles and civil war of the century before that had been caused by Edward III having too many robust adult sons!"

As you could argue that the troubles and civil wars of the 17th century were caused by Elizabeth's childlessness! After all, there were many who would have preferred that the Stuarts stayed in Scotland...

About Saturday 28 June 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

My goodness, our Sam can write, can't he?

"Great talk there is of a fear of a war with the Dutch; and we have order to pitch upon twenty ships to be forthwith set out; but I hope it is but a scarecrow to the world, to let them see that we can be ready for them; though, God knows! the King is not able to set out five ships at this present without great difficulty, we neither having money, credit, nor stores."

As for his satisfaction with his lot, I don't see this as workaholism ... I think it's more the good feeling you get from a day's work (or more) well done, knowing that you're living up to your potential. All I know is, it's nice to see friends happy. I'm glad his purse is encreasing.

About Friday 27 June 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

Wow, what a day! A couple of questions:

"Hitherto I have been supported by the King and Chancellor against the Duke; but what if it should come about, that it should be the Duke and Chancellor against the King?"

I’m with Sam on this quote from Montagu: plain words, yet I do not fully understand it. It seems Montagu is assessing his alliances and preparing for the worst…?

Also, why is Sam “very much troubled” by the “too great” a dinner? Is it because the physique has not yet worked its magic?

About Monday 23 June 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

re: All the detailed info

As Tomalin points out, Sam's curiousity is a principal reason for his success, and for his growing dislike of the Sir Williams, who he sees as not having the intellectual drive of a younger man such as, well, *him.*

I'm a bit surprised that Sam doesn't stand up for Montagu, though ... such gossip, gone undisputed, could spread and seriously hurt Monty's reputation, and thus Sam's.

About Saturday 21 June 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

Good point, LH. I think Pauline hints pretty broadly earlier in today's annotations about some of our modern sins, and Glyn's reference a day or two ago to Phil's post about Roombas and military robots are a good indication of where things could go from here ... I think we sometimes give ourselves too much credit for being civilized. We've only been on this planet a short time, and human nature too often shows its brutal roots.

But at least this group thinks about it! You can usually count on a lot of annotations when Sam disciplines the staff...

About Tuesday 17 June 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

re: dressing Elizabeth

David asked "I suppose she'd have someone else dress her even when she was well (or help her dress)?”

To which I can reply, absolutely. I was recently in London (and did both of the excellent Glyn Thomas’ excellent walks … pictures will be forthcoming on the discussion site in a week or two), and one of the things I did was tour the Globe Theatre on the South Bank. While waiting for the tour of the actual theatre space, I watched a demonstration called “Dressing Ophelia,” in which two women helped an audience member into what in Shakespeare’s day would have been considered casual clothes … even then, there were certain items (cuffs, the bodice, etc.) that could not be tied or otherwise secured by the person wearing them, usually because of the placement of the item on the body. If you were poor, you made do without these items of clothing, or wore another type (there was an interesting discussion of the bodice’s role in the origins of “straightlaced” as denoting a person of upright moral character), but if you were a person of means, who had to look a certain way, you simply had to have help dressing.

About Tuesday 3 June 1662

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

Sir W. Pen: Base Raskall

Can anyone shed light on exactly what transpired in the office to get Sam so mad? I'm a bit lost by his description.

Sam sure is hung up on his £530, isn’t he? What is this, the third mention in a week or so? Given what’s in his basement, he could hit his goal of £1000 quite easily … if he weren’t an honest man.