Question

What is the main theme of the uncle podger lesson

Answer 1

We hear a story about the narrator’s Uncle Podger in Chapter III of Three Men in a Boat. This is our sole intersection with him, so this is the only incident we can use to analyze his character.

Uncle Podger once undertook a common, simple household task. He wanted to hang a picture on the wall. Unfortunately, he took forever and went through many tools and strategies to do this. He made the act more complex than it needed to be. He yelled at people around him for help, but he didn’t really want them to interfere. And he caused more damage and raised more additional difficulties than he needed to. He was stubborn enough to think that he knew quite well how to do this task. The reality was that he didn’t know how to do it at all. He did such a terrible job that eventually someone else had to intervene in order for the job to get done, hours later. And yet he took pride in his work and thought that he had made a good effort all along.

Uncle Podger is the kind of person who exasperates everyone around him. They all know his capabilities, even if he doesn’t. He may mean well, and he may mean to be helpful, but all he will do is to cause more problems.

Answer 2

Answer:

In Uncle Podger Hangs a Picture by Jerome K. Jerome we have the theme of gender roles, responsibility, inequality, control, ignorance and independence. Taken from his Three Men in a Boat collection the reader realises after reading the story that Jerome may be exploring the theme of gender roles. There does not appear to be anybody in the house, especially female, who has the ability to hang a picture. At least not in Podger’s opinion. He alone is qualified to hang the picture and bark orders at others. This may be significant as Podger is taking on the role of fixer that is usually associated with the male. He is physically stronger than others and as such is qualified (in his eyes) to hang the picture. However it is clear to the reader that Podger is not qualified and that the job could easily be done by someone else in the house.

Explanation: