Mrs Partington and Her Mop
The defiant Mrs Partington took on the full might of the Atlantic Ocean.
1831
King William IV 1830-1837
The defiant Mrs Partington took on the full might of the Atlantic Ocean.
1831
King William IV 1830-1837
In 1831, the House of Lords rejected a Bill on the reform of Parliament, sent over from the House of Commons. Sydney Smith was strongly in favour of this Bill, but told a political meeting in Taunton that he was not too worried, as the Lords had set themselves a task even harder than Mrs Partington set herself in 1824. Mrs Partington? Let the Revd Mr Smith explain...
I do not mean to be disrespectful, but the attempt of the lords to stop the progress of reform,* reminds me very forcibly of the great storm of Sidmouth, and of the conduct of the excellent Mrs Partington on that occasion. In the winter of 1824, there set in a great flood upon that town — the tide rose to an incredible height — the waves rushed in upon the houses, and every thing was threatened with destruction. In the midst of this sublime and terrible storm, Dame Partington,* who lived upon the beach, was seen at the door of her house with mop and pattens,* trundling her mop, squeezing out the sea-water, and vigorously pushing away the Atlantic Ocean. The Atlantic was roused. Mrs Partington’s spirit was up; but I need not tell you that the contest was unequal. The Atlantic Ocean beat Mrs Partington. She was excellent at a slop, or a puddle, but she should not have meddled with a tempest. Gentlemen, be at your ease — be quiet and steady. You will beat Mrs Partington.*
From the ‘Taunton Courier’ of October 12th, 1831, reprinted in ‘Anecdote Lives of Wits and Humourists’ by John Timbs (1801-1875).
* See The Reform Acts. The Industrial Revolution had transformed the demographics of Britain, with a steady migration of working people from the countryside to factories in the cities. The distribution of Parliamentary seats in the House of Commons had not kept up with the pace of change, and so urgent had the problem become that even the MPs were ready for reform. Smith, though not an MP, was wholeheartedly in favour.
* Dame in this context is a courtesy title, suggesting a worthy woman of riper years (as in the term ‘a dame school’) not an indication of aristocracy.
* Pattens are a kind of shoe designed for walking in wet or muddy conditions, with a raised sole, or set up on an open metal ring like miniature stilts. See a picture of some British pattens, ca. 1830-50 at Wikimedia Commons.
* Smith’s image of Mrs Partington teaching the Atlantic Ocean some manners was an instant hit. In 1835, just four years later, American humorist B. P. Shillaber published the entirely fictitious Life and Sayings of Mrs Partington, which made her into another Mrs Malaprop. See also Henry Huntingdon’s account of the famous occasion when King Cnut felt he had to prove to his ministers that there are limits to the power of government, in Turning the Tide.
1. What is the author aiming to achieve in writing this?
2. Note any words, devices or turns of phrase that strike you. How do they help the author communicate his ideas more effectively?
3. What impression does this passage make on you? How might you put that impression into words?
Based on The English Critic (1939) by NL Clay, drawing on The New Criticism: A Lecture Delivered at Columbia University, March 9, 1910, by J. E. Spingarn, Professor of Comparative Literature in Columbia University, USA.
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
Why was Sydney Smith not anxious about the failure of the Reform Bill in October 1831?
Because the Lords couldn’t block it forever.