A Married Man

p. 58

“Everything at ‘The Garth,’ from the name Alice had given to the house to the tasseled covers on the lavatory seats, was neat, tidy, and vulgar. John’s shame over it had many layers. He felt humiliated first and foremost because his mother’s bad taste betrayed not only her origins but also her pretensions, for she believed that her collection, although not quite equal to the treasures of a castle, was a step in that direction: and nothing gave her more pleasure than to show off her ornaments to those who pretended to admire them.”