Paul's Case: A Study in Temperament Themes

Someone hand him a green carnation and call him an aesthete, because Paul is all about Art for Art's Sake. He's got a job as an usher at Carnegie (Music) Hall, he spends his free time studying art,...

In "Paul's Case," Paul has a rich fantasy life—so rich that he actually seems to believe the stories he tells about himself. But these daydreams are dragged down by the fact that Paul doesn't hav...

Paul is living—well, sadly, dead—proof that the truth will out. We never know exactly what he's hiding, but it seems pretty bad. At the same time, Paul doesn't seem to be a very good liar. Ever...

In the steel-obsessed Pittsburgh of "Paul's Case," money makes the world go 'round, and not just Paul's world. His father, peers, and neighbors are all obsessed with money in their own way. But is...

Absolute power corrupts, but lack of power corrupts even more absolutely. Paul feels thoroughly trapped by his teachers, his church, his father, and even his house and street—plus his secret life...