Project Gutenberg 2008-10-09 Public domain in the USA. 226 Bird, Frederic Mayer 1838 1908 Bird, F. M. (Frederic Mayer) Timsol, Robert A Pessimist in Theory and Practice Produced by Colin Bell, Brett Fishburne and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net "A Pessimist in Theory and Practice" by Robert Timsoll is a novel written in the late 19th century. The story revolves around the character James Hartman, who has retreated to a secluded life in the woods, reflecting deeply on the nature of society and human existence. As he reconnects with an old college friend, the narrative explores themes of pessimism, societal norms, and the search for meaning in a seemingly chaotic world. The opening of the book introduces the interaction between the protagonist, Robert, and his old friend, Hartman, whom he encounters while on a fishing trip. Their dialogue reveals Hartman's disillusionment with societal expectations and his preference for the simplicity of nature over the complexities of urban life. The conversation touches on ambition, duty, and the intrinsic value of human connection, establishing Hartman as a complex character grappling with his place in the world. This sets the stage for a deeper exploration of both men's philosophies as their lives intertwine with women from their past, hinting at future complications and emotional dilemmas. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 80.9 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Fiction PS Text Browsing: Literature Browsing: Fiction Category: Novels 414346 2025-06-11T07:12:32.922995 text/html 416378 2021-01-04T05:42:34 text/html; charset=iso-8859-1 157722 2021-01-04T05:42:34 text/html; charset=iso-8859-1 application/zip 247631 2025-06-11T07:12:42.695981 application/epub+zip 251523 2025-06-11T07:12:36.794009 application/epub+zip 230887 2025-06-11T07:12:35.333034 application/epub+zip 474188 2025-06-11T07:12:47.035925 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 436566 2025-06-11T07:12:41.690981 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 393855 2022-09-12T11:36:35.789774 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 371893 2025-06-11T07:12:32.058035 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 371694 2021-01-04T05:42:34 text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 146851 2021-01-04T05:42:34 text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 application/zip 371691 2021-01-04T05:42:34 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 146819 2021-01-04T05:42:34 text/plain; charset=us-ascii application/zip 19892 2025-06-11T07:12:47.186930 application/rdf+xml 16333 2025-06-11T07:12:35.917971 image/jpeg 4002 2025-06-11T07:12:35.621044 image/jpeg 236095 2025-06-11T07:12:32.961061 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog