The Man Who Was Thursday

I remember loving The Man Who Was Thursday, but I didn't exactly remember why (I also can't ever remember if it's The Man Called Thursday or The Man Who Was Thursday).

This little book is subtitled, "A Nightmare," but it's much more of a fantastical comedy, charming and witty at every turn (although, as the subtitle implies, with a distinct dream-like quality). It's a funny mix of profound and trite--the biggest subjects (God and nature and the meaning of the world) are treated lightly.

The story treats the debate between philosophy and poetry (I'd say that poetry wins out, although there's a place for philosophy). In addition, it is a great example of Augustine's conception of evil--it is the absence of good, not something concrete in itself. Nature, according to Chesterton, comprehends good and evil, but with a providential form (which is to say, good wins). Chesterton's thesis regarding anarchy (which the policemen in the novella combat) is that anarchy is not an ill of common people, but rather an intellectual ill. Only super-educated people could be silly enough to support anarchy.


(picture, picture)