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The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman Book 3, Chapter 11 Summary

  • The Excommunication (by Ernulphus): Unless you can read Latin, you might want to go straight for the translation.
  • And here's the translation, which Dr. Slop only reluctantly reads aloud:
  • By the authority of God, may Obadiah be damned for tying these knots. We excommunicate him and sentence him to punishment. A series of curses follows, including "May he be cursed in "eating and drinking … in pissing, in shitting, and in blood-letting" (3.11.6)
  • Everyone is busy being horrified by the R-rated excommunication, when—
  • The door opens in the next chapter.