The Literature Network - Alas for the demise of honour

Alas for the demise of honour

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From: Scotland on Sunday
Date: 20020203
Author:GERALD WARNER

"HE WAS born with a gift of laughter and a sense that the world was mad." Those words, which are the opening sentence of Scaramouche, the novel by Rafael Sabatini, appeared on screen at the start of the film version, broadcast by Scottish Television last Thursday, in the 50th anniversary year of the making of this Hollywood swashbuckler.

That striking first sentence, which economically conveys the psychology of the central character, ranks with other masterly openings to novels, classic and popular: Dickens's "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..."; Jane Austen's epigram "It ...

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