The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman Book 8, Chapter 33 Summary

  • If you know Mr. Shandy, you know that he's not about to let an opportunity to speak go by. There are two different kinds of love, he says, and you ought to know which kind you're in. Eh—Toby thinks it doesn't matter, as long as a man marries and has a few kids.
  • Children! Mr. Shandy exclaims, looking at his wife.
  • Well, he says, of course he'd love Toby's children. The world needs more people like Toby. But the point isn't children, but love.
  • Yorick interrupts here to say that, actually, Toby seems to be talking some sense.
  • Mr. Shandy cites Plato, because that's a good way to win an argument. One love is rational, he says, and one is natural. Yorick and Mrs. Shandy object, and even Dr. Slop gets a word in edgewise.