The Reverend Elmer Gantry was reading an illustrated pink periodical devoted to prize fighters and chorus girls in his room at Elizabeth J. Schmutz Hall late of an afternoon when two large men walked in without knocking.Why, good evening, Brother Bains-Brother Naylor! This is a pleasant surprise. I was, uh- Did you ever see this horrible rag? About actoresses. An invention of the devil himself. I was thinking of denouncing it next Sunday. I hope you never read it-won't you sit down, gentlemen?-take this chair- I hope you never read it, Brother Floyd, because the footsteps of
The Reverend Elmer Gantry was in his room at Elizabeth J. Schmutz Hall, engrossed in a questionable magazine focused on prize fighters and chorus girls. His afternoon took an unexpected turn when two large men entered without knocking, surprising him. He greeted them warmly, although his initial embarrassment about the magazine was evident as he described it as a product of the devil, revealing his own moral conflict.
Gantry's attempt to downplay his interest in the magazine highlights the tension between his public persona as a reverend and his private interests. He proposed to denounce the publication in the coming Sunday sermon, reflecting his desire to align his image with moral authority while also being drawn to the sensational content he was reading.
