# Duty and Obligation in Pastors and Masters

> Theme guide for Pastors and Masters by Ivy Compton-Burnett.

The book explores the burdens and hypocrisies of duty, particularly through Mr. Merry's constant complaints about schoolmastering and the characters' ironic comments about the 'sight of duty' making one shiver.

## Where it surfaces

- [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pastors_and_masters_se/chapters/i): The characters are bound by their roles: Mr. Merry as schoolmaster, Mrs. Merry as long-suffering wife, Miss Basden as dutiful employee; the boys' gift to Mrs. Merry underscores social expectations.
- [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pastors_and_masters_se/chapters/ii): The conversation opens with Herrick and Emily discussing Mr. Merry's sense of duty, and extends to Herrick's own sense of obligation to the school and to his friends.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pastors_and_masters_se/themes/duty_and_obligation
- Themes index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/pastors_and_masters_se/themes