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nydus/The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, GentlemanPublic

A man describes his birth and upbringing through the adventures of his family.

Page 108 of 810
Table of Contents

XXI

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For God’s sake, my uncle Toby would cry,⁠⸺⁠and for my sake, and for all our sakes, my dear brother Shandy ,⁠—do let this story of our aunt’s and her ashes sleep in peace;⁠⸺⁠how can you,⁠⸺⁠how can you have so little feeling and compassion for the character of our family?⁠⸺⁠What is the character of a family to an hypothesis? my father would reply.⁠⸺⁠Nay, if you come to that⁠—what is the life of a family?⁠⸺⁠The life of a family!⁠—my uncle Toby would say, throwing himself back in his arm chair, and lifting up his hands, his eyes, and one leg.⁠⸺⁠Yes, the life,⁠⸺⁠my father would say, maintaining his point. How many thousands of ’em are there every year that come cast away, (in all civilized countries at least)⁠⸺⁠and considered as nothing but common air, in competition of an hypothesis. In my plain sense of things, my uncle Toby would answer,⁠⸺⁠every such instance is downright Murder , let who will commit it.⁠⸺⁠There lies your mistake, my father would reply;⁠⸺⁠for, in Foro Scientiae there is no such thing as Murder ,⁠⸺’tis only Death , brother.

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