A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy

“—THEY order, said I, this matter better in France

The opening of the text establishes a number of key facts about the narrative and the characters. This line, spoken by Yorick during a discussion with a friend, serves to lay out the protagonist’s motivation: Yorick believes that a certain matter (at this point, an unnamed matter) is handled better in a foreign country. But when pressed on the finer points of how exactly the French “order [...] this matter better” (7), he finds that he does not possess the exact knowledge required. There and then, both Yorick and the audience are introduced to the key issue they face: that they lack a basic understanding of the finer points of French society. As such, Yorick resolves to travel to France and details this matter for the benefit of both himself and the reader.

As well as establishing the pretext for A Sentimental Journey, the quote also helps to immediately demonstrate a few key points about Yorick as a character. Namely, that he is both a curious man and an arrogant man. Yorick is fully prepared to argue that the French are able to do something better, even if he does not know how exactly they do this.