A yellow tennis ball and folded pastel headband rest on a small wooden bench in a softly lit room.

Original artwork, not a still

Lucy Honeychurch

No! Read it aloud, and if Mr. Emerson finds us frivolous, he can go and look for tennis balls. Go and look for tennis balls, Mr. Emerson.

— A Room with a View ‧ 1908

Behind the line

What it means

Our interpretation.

Lucy insists the reading go ahead aloud. If Mr. Emerson thinks they're frivolous, she'd send him off to look for tennis balls. It's a brisk, teasing dismissal that treats his disapproval as something to wave away.

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