Talk:Charles Hamilton (writer)

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Education

Given the prominence of public school stories in his writing, surely we need something about his own childhood and education! --rossb (talk) 05:13, 25 September 2013 (UTC)[reply]

In class in the boy's school stories, the boys are usually being taught Latin so it is possible that Hamilton's knowledge of other subjects was a bit shaky.(80.31.144.16 (talk) 17:32, 9 August 2015 (UTC))[reply]

What Hamilton did not like

Hamilton did not like the Americans. He saw them as brash, pushy, boastful and makers of shoddy goods. In an early story, the Head of Greyfriars is persuaded by an American to build a new building by the school to house more pupils and make more money. The American built building collapses shortly after completion. Fisher T Fish being American is very boastful about how things are done "over there" but when he tries to prove how good he is, he always fails. He is also reluctant to fight. In Magnet issue 207, Fish opens a stall in school then a shop in Courtfield but all his good (bought cheap from an American store in London) are shoddy as is the food he sells and he refuses to pay back money saying it is their fault if they bought bad goods. In passing Hamilton mentions an American typerwriter that barely lasted over a year and this may be a reason he disliked the Americans, having probably bought one.

Hamilton did not like "Detective stories" either, seeing them as trashy and sensational. In Magnet #198, Ferney who has not been at school for long is addicted to them. The other boys burn his collection and Mr Quelch tells him that they are bad for the minds of boys and he should not read any more. The stories affect Ferney's mind, making him commit a crime for which he is later found out and has to leave Greyfriars. The motto of the story is to stay away from them. How much Hamilton did not like the stories because they were a competitor to his school stories, and because he could not write a creditable who-done-it is anybody's guess. Example: Magnet #242 (1912) has someone smashing panes of glass in the Remove study windows in Chapter 1 and 2. In Chapter 2, Fisher T Fish sets up an insurance company to pay out on accidents, damage and such and because of these breakages, gets customers. It is not until the last page that it is revealed that Fish had broken the windows to start his business off, something most would have guessed in Chapter 2.

Hamilton also disliked drinking (barely mentioned in stories) and smoking (though he smoked a pipe himself) and only the bad boys smoked though some did it only for show and did not like it. He also disliked gambling as most games in the stories seemed to be fixed, with boys who gambled losing. Hamilton seemed to have been a bit of a gambling addict and lost money at Monte Carlo and presumably elsewhere, but was unable to stop himself doing it.(80.31.144.16 (talk) 17:32, 9 August 2015 (UTC))[reply]