e. e. cummings

Name: The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE
Author: e. e. cummings

The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

Summary

“The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE”, published in 1922, is a work by e. e. cummings. It explores elements such as French, derby and moustache.

Quotes from The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (e. e. cummings)

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ I was strolling carelessly and solo from the cook-wagon toward one of the two tents—which protestingly housed some forty huddling Americans by night--holding in my hand an historic morceau de chocolat, when a spick, not to say span, gentleman in a suspiciously quiet French uniform allowed himself to be driven up to the bureau, by two neat soldiers with tin derbies, in a Renault whose painful cleanliness shamed my recent efforts. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ Following up this sortie, I addressed the mustache: "Write this down in the testimony—that I, here present, refuse utterly to believe that my friend is not as sincere a lover of France and the French people as any man living!—Tell him to write it," I commanded Noyon stonily. But Noyon shook his head, saying: "We have the very best reason for supposing your friend to be no friend of France." I answered: "That is not my affair. I want my opinion of my friend written in; do you see?" "That's reasonable," the rosette murmured; and the moustache wrote it down. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ This must be a general at least, I thought, regretting the extremely undress character of my uniform, which uniform consisted of overalls and a cigarette.
Having furtively watched the gentleman alight and receive a ceremonious welcome from the chief and the aforesaid French lieutenant who accompanied the section for translatory reasons, I hastily betook myself to one of the tents, where I found B. engaged in dragging all his belongings into a central pile of frightening proportions. He was surrounded by a group of fellow-heroes who hailed my coming with considerable enthusiasm. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ Why not American aviation?—to which I answered: "Ah, but as my friend has so often said to me, the French are after all the finest people in the world."
This double-blow stopped Noyon dead, but only for a second.
"Did your friend write this letter?"—"No," I answered truthfully.—"Who did write it?"—"One of the Frenchmen attached to the section."—"What is his name?"—"I'm sure I don't know," I answered; mentally swearing that, whatever might happen to me the scribe should not suffer. "At my urgent request," I added. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ Having proved to my own satisfaction that my fingers could still roll a pretty good cigarette, I answered: "No," between puffs.
The American drew nearer and whispered spectacularly: "Your friend is upstairs. I think they're examining him."
T-d got this; and though his rehabilitated dignity had accepted the "makin's" from its prisoner, it became immediately incensed:
"That's enough," he said sternly.
And dragged me tout-à-coup upstairs, where I met B. and his t-d coming out of the bureau door. B. looked peculiarly cheerful. "I think we're going to prison all right," he assured me. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ With half-shut eyes my Ego lay and pondered: the delicious meal it had just enjoyed; what was to come; the joys of being a great criminal ... then, being not at all inclined to sleep, I read Le Petit Parisien quite through, even to Les Voies Urinaires. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ Why? he wanted to know. So I explained that we felt that the more French we knew and the better we knew the French the better for us; expatiating a bit on the necessity for a complete mutual understanding of the Latin and Anglo-Saxon races if victory was to be won.
Again the rosette nodded with approbation.
Monsieur le Ministre may have felt that he was losing his case, for he played his trump card immediately: "You are aware that your friend has written to friends in America and to his family very bad letters." "I am not," I said. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ Agile as a weasel, Monsieur le Ministre was on top of me: "It is impossible to love Frenchmen and not to hate Germans."
I did not mind his triumph in the least. The discomfiture of the rosette merely amused me. The surprise of the moustache I found very pleasant.
Poor rosette! He kept murmuring desperately: "Fond of his friend, quite right. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ Monsieur le Ministre conducted me into room number 1 again. "Since I have taken your cigarettes and shall keep them for you, I will give you some tobacco. Do you prefer English or French?"
Because the French (paquet bleu) are stronger and because he expected me to say English, I said "French."
With a sorrowful expression Noyon went to a sort of bookcase and took down a blue packet. I think I asked for matches, or else he had given back the few which he found on my person. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ Noyon.
We drive straight up to something which looks unpleasantly like a feudal dungeon. The driver is now told to be somewhere at a certain time, and meanwhile to eat with Head Cop, who may be found just around the corner— (I am doing, the translating for t-d) —and, oh yes, it seems that the Head Cop has particularly requested the pleasure of this distinguished American's company at déjeuner. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ The tin derby approved also: "That's right, eat, drink, you'll need it later perhaps." And his knife guillotined another delicious hunk of white bread.
At last, sated with luxuries, I bade adieu to my marraine and allowed t-d to conduct me (I going first, as always) upstairs and into a little den whose interior boasted two mattresses, a man sitting at the table, and a newspaper in the hands of the man.
"C'est un Américain," t-d said by way of introduction. The newspaper detached itself from the man who said: "He's welcome indeed: make yourself at home, Mr. American" —and bowed himself out. ”

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Source: Wikisource

e. e. cummings, The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (1922)

“ Whereupon they had received instructions to hold us at the section until Noyon could arrive and take charge— hence our failure to obtain our long-overdue permission.
"Your friend," said Monsieur in English, "is here a short while ago. I ask him if he is up in the aeroplane flying over Germans will he drop the bombs on Germans and he say no, he will not drop any bombs on Germans." ”

e. e. cummings

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Quotes from The Enormous Room — I BEGIN A PILGRIMAGE (e. e. cummings)

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