"As for my uncle Toby, his smoak-jack had not made a dozen revolutions, before he fell asleep also. "
— Sterne, Laurence (1713-1768)
Author
Date
1760-7
Metaphor
"As for my uncle Toby, his smoak-jack had not made a dozen revolutions, before he fell asleep also. "
Metaphor in Context
Tho' my father persisted in not going on with the discourse,--yet he could not get my uncle Toby's smoak-jack [Page 83] out of his head,--piqued as he was at first with it;--there was something in the comparison at the bottom, which hit his fancy; for which purpose resting his elbow upon the table, and reclining the right side of his head upon the palm of his hand,--but looking first stedfastly in the fire,--he began to commune with himself and philosophize about it: but his spirits being wore out with the fatigues of investigating new tracts, and the constant exertion of his faculties upon that variety of subjects which had taken their turn in the discourse,--the idea of the smoak-jack soon turned all his ideas upside down,--so that he fell asleep almost before he knew what he was about.
As for my uncle Toby, his smoak-jack had not made a dozen revolutions, before [Page 84] he fell asleep also.--Peace be with them both.--Dr. Slop is engaged with the midwife, and my mother above stairs.--Trim is busy in turning an old pair of jack-boots into a couple of mortars to be employed in the siege of Messina next summer,--and is this instant boring the touch holes with the point of a hot poker. --All my heroes are off my hands;--'tis the first time I have had a moment to spare,--and I'll make use of it, and write my preface.
(pp. 82-4)
As for my uncle Toby, his smoak-jack had not made a dozen revolutions, before [Page 84] he fell asleep also.--Peace be with them both.--Dr. Slop is engaged with the midwife, and my mother above stairs.--Trim is busy in turning an old pair of jack-boots into a couple of mortars to be employed in the siege of Messina next summer,--and is this instant boring the touch holes with the point of a hot poker. --All my heroes are off my hands;--'tis the first time I have had a moment to spare,--and I'll make use of it, and write my preface.
(pp. 82-4)
Categories
Provenance
Searching in HDIS (Prose)
Citation
At least 82 entries in ESTC (1759, 1760, 1761, 1762, 1763, 1765, 1767, 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, 1773, 1774, 1775, 1776, 1777, 1779, 1780, 1781, 1782, 1783, 1786, 1788, 1791, 1792, 1793, 1794, 1795, 1796, 1798, 1799, 1800). Complicated publication history: vols. 1 and 2 published in London January 1, 1760. Vols. 3, 4, 5, and 6 published in 1761. Vols. 7 and 8 published in 1765. Vol. 9 published in 1767.
See Laurence Sterne, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, 9 vols. (London: Printed for D. Lynch, 1760-1767). <Link to ECCO><Link to 1759 York edition in ECCO>
First two volumes available in ECCO-TCP: <Vol. 1><Vol. 2>. Most text drawn from second (London) edition <Link to LION>.
For vols. 3-4, see ESTC T14705 <R. and J. Dodsley, 1761>. For vols. 5-6, see ESTC T14706 <T. Becket and P. A. Dehondt, 1762>. For vols. 7-8, see ESTC T14820 <T. Becket and P. A. Dehont, 1765>. For vol. 9, <T. Becket and P. A. Dehondt, 1767>.
Reading in Laurence Sterne, Tristram Shandy: An Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Sources, Criticism, Ed. Howard Anderson (New York: Norton, 1980).
See Laurence Sterne, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, 9 vols. (London: Printed for D. Lynch, 1760-1767). <Link to ECCO><Link to 1759 York edition in ECCO>
First two volumes available in ECCO-TCP: <Vol. 1><Vol. 2>. Most text drawn from second (London) edition <Link to LION>.
For vols. 3-4, see ESTC T14705 <R. and J. Dodsley, 1761>. For vols. 5-6, see ESTC T14706 <T. Becket and P. A. Dehondt, 1762>. For vols. 7-8, see ESTC T14820 <T. Becket and P. A. Dehont, 1765>. For vol. 9, <T. Becket and P. A. Dehondt, 1767>.
Reading in Laurence Sterne, Tristram Shandy: An Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Sources, Criticism, Ed. Howard Anderson (New York: Norton, 1980).
Date of Entry
09/12/2005
Date of Review
10/07/2008
