Classical Values :: Eunuchly American literary figure(s)

"I was all set to write a post about Sidney Sawyer, but when I Googled 'Sidney Sawyer' and 'eunuch' or 'Sidney Saywer' and 'neuter', the only links I got were to my own blog.

I had in mind a long-winded essay about how the best way to avoid raising a eunchoid son would be to have him read 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer,' but this took the wind out of my sails.

(Things are really desperate when all you get when you Google is your own stuff.)
To make a long post short, I think what's important about Sidney is that he is, literarily and metaphorically speaking, a neutered boy -- the equivalent of a eunuch. Not gay, not a sissy, or anything like that, but a pliant, obedient, well-behaved lover of authority who does as he's told, runs to the authorities for protection, undermines the accomplishments of others, and thwarts those with free will and stubborn independence. (And who in all probability would think sex is icky.)

Sid Sawyer has been on my mind lately because of a couple of posts about eunuchs -- one from a modern (mostly figurative) perspective, and the other from an ancient (more literal) perspective. "

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