reputability

[Peter Jiong]

[FONT=&quot]I was in the Gallery of Masterpieces in Naples, looking at the wonderful portrait-statue of Agrippina, when you, sitting beside me, asked some question. We began to talk—by the way, we never inquired if our respective families were desirable; you took my reputability for granted.

From Mrs. Craddock by W Somerset Maugham (1902)

Where is this "Gallery of Masterpieces"? What does "took my reputability for granted" mean?
[/FONT]

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

I was in the Gallery of Masterpieces in Naples, looking at the wonderful portrait-statue of Agrippina, when you, sitting beside me, asked some question. We began to talk—by the way, we never inquired if our respective families were desirable; you took my reputability for granted.

From Mrs. Craddock by W Somerset Maugham (1902)

Where is this "Gallery of Masterpieces"? What does "took my reputability for granted" mean?

I've never been to Naples. Try Googling Gallery of Masterpieces Naples and see what you can find. (It's obviously an art gallery. Do you need to know more than that to follow the story?)

You took my reputability for granted = You assumed I come from a respectable family and have a good reputation.

 

[Peter Jiong]

Does “families were desirable” mean “born in a respectable family” or "has a respectable family now"?

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Does “families were desirable” mean “born in a respectable family”

No. What would the families be desired for? Who would desire them?

or "has a respectable family now"?

No, that doesn't work, either. It implies that either (a) the family wasn't always respectable or (b) that someone has left a disreputable family to join a respectable one.

More natural: She comes from a respectable family.

And: Coming from a respectable family is desirable.

You might be confusing respectable with desirable.

 

[Peter Jiong]

What does “we never inquired if our respective families were desirable” mean？

 

[Peter Jiong]

What is a "desirable family" here?

You might be confusing respectable with desirable.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

What is a "desirable family" here?

It's a family you desire being part of:

- We didn't investigate whether we came from good families.

- We didn't try to learn whether our families are families we'd want to join.

- We didn't think about whether getting married would be suitable.

- We didn't find out about each other's class, station, social standing, wealth, security, pedigree.

 

[Tdol]

What does “we never inquired if our respective families were desirable” mean？

If they were of a social position that made them acceptable to people of the higher parts of society.

 

[Tdol]

PS You will hear people say that someone is undesirable, meaning that they don't think that person is someone to associate with.