Novel: Who Are the Violets Now?

Introduction
"Who Are the Violets Now?" is a satirical unique composed by Auberon Waugh and published in 1971. The story focuses around the lead character, Miles Montrachet, a young expert browsing the intricacies of English society during the 1960s. The novel provides a scathing review of the British class system and the hypocrisy of its upper-class members, providing a modern photo of England during a period of substantial social turmoil.

Plot Summary
Miles Montrachet is a mild-mannered yet ambitious twenty-four-year-old who works as a public relations officer for the British Container Corporation (BCC), a company that produces boxes. He is also engaged to the stunning and seductive Lucy Demaine, the child of Sir Cecil Demaine, a baronet. While Miles is content with his life, he is continuously striving for social development and imitating the behavior of the aristocracy.

Throughout the novel, Miles encounters various characters from different social strata who serve to highlight the absurdity of the British class system. One example is the boorish Sir Erris Beg, who is both a self-important aristocrat and a successful entrepreneur. Miles is repulsed by Sir Erris's tacky habits but is required to cater him due to his social connections and wealth.

As the general public relations officer of the BCC, Miles is entrusted with promoting the company to numerous foreign dignitaries, and this duty takes him to numerous unique locations across the globe. Throughout his travels, he comes across people who provide various difficulties to his understanding of the British class system.

Throughout the novel, it becomes apparent that Miles's engagement to Lucy is not based upon authentic love however rather on the desire to protect a greater social status. While Lucy is aware of Miles's inspirations, she preserves the exterior of their relationship due to her own desire for monetary security.

Religious and Sexual Hypocrisy
Another significant element of "Who Are the Violets Now?" is its assessment of the spiritual and sexual hypocrisy of upper-class English society throughout the 1960s. Waugh uses satire to expose the insincerity of people who claim to adhere to Christian virtues while engaging in infidelity and other immoral actions.

For example, Miles has an affair with a Hungarian woman of the street during his work trip to Switzerland. Upon his go back to England, he discovers that Lucy has betrayed to him too. Despite their mutual infidelity, Miles and Lucy preserve the illusion of a committed relationship due to their goals for social improvement.

The Violets and the Title
The novel's title describes a group of individuals called the Violets, who act as a metaphor for the ephemeral nature of social status. The Violets are previous members of the aristocracy who have lost their wealth and are minimized to going to cocktail parties to keep the illusion of their social standing.

This directly connects to Miles's goals for social advancement and his awareness that the pursuit of status is ultimately futile. Despite his best efforts to conform to the requirements of the upper class, Miles stays an outsider, and his incorrect sense of self-regard is exposed when he is faced by the sorrowful state of the Violets.

Conclusion
"Who Are the Violets Now?" supplies a biting satire of the British class system and the people who aspire to go up the social ladder. Auberon Waugh uses amusing and frequently caustic humor to create a picture of a society that is rife with hypocrisy and superficiality. Through the lead character, Miles Montrachet, the unique exposes the vacuum of pursuing social status and suggests that personal stability and authenticity are more valuable qualities in an individual.