History Creator / HectorHughMunro

* StylisticSuck: Saki enjoyed giving examples of ridiculous poetry such as "Reginald's Rubiyat" and Clovis Sangreal's work in "The Recessional". The SillyLoveSongs in "The Secret Sin of Septimus Brope" might also qualify.

* BalefulPolymorph: "Ministers of Grace." It has overtones of GrandTheftMe, as politicians' minds are put in animal bodies and angels take their place.

* ItWillNeverCatchOn: "Cousin Teresa". Basset Harrowcluff, having put in some good (though unflashy) work in service of the British Empire and potentially expecting a knighthood or other honor, is tolerably amused by his half-brother Lucas (a fellow frequently coming up with various ideas that don't pan out) excited over his latest brainstorm-- a goofy bit of music-hall work, the eponymous "Cousin Teresa". [[spoiler: And just guess who ends up with a knighthood.]]

* FunetikAksent: Not used often, but does turn up sometimes with characters whose first language isn't English (the artist in "On Approval") or impoverished or otherwise ill-educated (the poor children in "Morlvera").

* AmbiguouslyGay: Most of Saki's young male leads, particularly Clovis Sangrail and Reginald [last name never given]. Clovis does has a female accomplice, Agnes Resker, who appears from time to time. Saki himself was gay, though carefully closeted as it was still a criminal offense.

* FamousLastWords: None of his characters, but reportedly the man himself: "Put out that damn cigarette!" seconds before being shot by a German sniper.

* AlternateHistory: ''When William Came'' retroactively falls into this category, as it speculates on life in London after the Germans win World War I ("William" is Kaiser Wilhelm II).

* TheGamblingAddict: Most adult Saki protagonists enjoy games with stakes, such as playing bridge for points, horse-racing ("A Bread and Butter Miss", "A Matter of Sentiment") and suchlike, but some take it too far: "The Stake" ends up with a cook [[LostHimInACardGame lost on a baccarat bet]] and "Fate" has someone bet more than he can afford on a billiards game where the odds-on favorite is having a bad day; he takes desperate measure to avoid paying out.

* StylisticSuck: Saki enjoyed giving examples of ridiculous poetry such as "Reginald's Rubiyat" and Clovis Sangreal's work in "The Recessional". The SillyLoveSongs in "The Secret Sin of Septimus Brope" might also quality.

* {{Reincarnation}}: "Laura", who even goes so far as to predict what she'll come back as. [[spoiler: First an otter for being perhaps a bad person, and later a little native boy for being quite good at being an otter.]]

* BalefulPolymorph: "Ministers of Grace." It has overtones of GrandTheftMe, as politicians' minds are put in animal bodies and angels take their place.

* CatsAreSuperior: "The Achievement of the Cat" is an essay where Saki praises the cat for its ability to keep much of its wonderful wild nature in the heart of civilization, even while taking advantage of all the comforts humans can provide for them.

* ForbiddenFruit: Exploited in "Filboid Studge, or the Mouse that Helped", where an advertiser comes up with a way to boost the sales of a [[IfItTastesBadItMustBeGoodForYou foul-tasting health food.]]

* ItWillNeverCatchOn: "Cousin Teresa". Basset Harrowcluff, having put in some good (though unflashy) work in service of the British Empire and potentially expecting a knighthood or other honor, is tolerably amused by his half-brother Lucas (a fellow frequently coming up with various ideas that don't pan out) excited over his latest brainstorm-- a goofy bit of music-hall work, the eponymous "Cousin Teresa". [[spoiler: And just guess who ends up with a knighthood.]]

* MeaningfulName: The title character of ''The Unbearable Bassington'' is named Theatre/{{Comus}}, and he lives up (or maybe down) to it.
* MisterMuffykins: The eponymous "Louis", with a twist. [[spoiler: Louis is [[OfCorpseHesAlive dead]] and his owner uses her pretended affection for him and his alleged needs to get her way.]]

* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: "Gabriel-Ernest". The werewolf changes at sunset, and no special immunities or vulnerabilities are even mentioned. He almost comes off as a wolf that enjoys being human by day.

* NaughtyIsGood: Saki is very sympathetic to children who don't put up well with pointless rules or [[AdultsAreUseless useless adults]]. The best example is Nicholas in "The Lumber-room", who has a far better day than his good cousins and little brother, but there's also "The Storyteller", where three kids on a train are bored by their stuffy nanny and keep acting up. Another passenger calms them down by telling them [[FracturedFairyTale "an inappropriate story"]], which they ''love.'' "Sredni Vashtar" can be read as a very dark example of this.

* StylisticSuck: Saki enjoyed giving examples of ridiculous poetry such as "Reginald's Rubiyat" and Clovis Sangreal's work in "The Recessional". The cheesy love-ballads in "The Secret Sin of Septimus Brope" might also quality.

* AmbiguouslyGay: Most of Saki's young male leads, particularly Clovis Sangrail and Reginald [last name never given]. Though Clovis has a female accomplice, Agnes Resker, who appears from time to time. Saki himself was gay, though carefully closeted as it was still a criminal offense.

* NaughtyIsGood: Saki is very sympathetic to children who don't put up well with things they see as stupid or sanctimonious. The best story example is Nicholas in "The Lumber-room", who has a far better day than his good cousins and little brother, but there's also "The Storyteller", where three kids on a train are bored by their stuffy nanny and keep acting up. Another passenger calms them down by telling them [[FracturedFairyTale "an inappropriate story"]], which they ''love.'' "Sredni Vashtar" can be read as a very dark example of this.

* GamblingAddict: Most adult Saki protagonists enjoy games with stakes, such as playing bridge for points, horse-racing ("A Bread and Butter Miss", "A Matter of Sentiment") and suchlike, but some take it too far: "The Stake" ends up with a cook [[LostHimInACardGame lost on a baccarat bet]] and "Fate" has someone bet more than he can afford on a billiards game where the odds-on favorite is having a bad day; he takes desperate measure to avoid paying out.

%%* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: The [[PrayerOfMalice grisly]] [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve conclusion]] to "Sredni Vashtar".

* NaughtyIsGood: Saki is very sympathetic to children who don't put up well with things they see as stupid or sanctimonious. The best story example is Nicholas in "The Lumber-room", who has a far better day than his good cousins and little brother, but there's also "The Storyteller", where three kids on a train are bored by their stuffy nanny and keep acting up. Another passenger calms them down by telling them [[FracturedFairyTale "an inappropriate story"]], which they ''love.''

* ItWillNeverCatchOn: "Cousin Teresa". Basset Harrowcluff, having put in some good (though unflashy) work in service of the British Empire and potentially expecting a knighthood or other honor, is tolerably amused by his half-brother Lucas (a fellow frequently coming up with various ideas that don't pan out) coming up with a goofy bit of music-hall work, the eponymous "Cousin Teresa". [[spoiler: And just guess who ends up with a knighthood.]]

* ItWillNeverCatchOn: "Cousin Teresa". Basset Harrowcluff, having put in some good work in service of the British Empire and potentially expecting a knighthood or other honor, is tolerably amused by his half-brother Lucas (a fellow frequently coming up with various ideas that don't pan out) coming up with a goofy bit of music-hall work, the eponymous "Cousin Teresa". [[spoiler: And just guess who ends up with a knighthood.]]

%%* AdultsAreUseless: "The Lumber-Room", "The Storyteller".

* AmbiguouslyGay: Most of Saki's young male leads, particularly Clovis Sangrail and Reginald [last name never given]. Though Clovis has a female accomplice, Agnes Resker, who appears from time to time.

%%* CruelTwistEnding: The last few paragraphs of ''The Unbearable Bassington''.

%%* DeathByIrony: A recurring favourite, as seen in "The Interlopers" and "Sredni Vashtar".

%%* FracturedFairytale: A nice one in "The Storyteller".
%%* GrandeDame: Plenty to annoy.
%%* HeroicSacrifice: Subverted horribly in "The Easter-Egg".
%%* HorsingAround: The titular steed of "The Brogue".
%%* IfItTastesBadItMustBeGoodForYou: "Filboid Studge, or the Mouse That Helped"
%%* ItWillNeverCatchOn: "Cousin Teresa".

%%* LostHimInACardGame: "The Stake".
%%* LittleMissBadass: Vera, Mrs. Sappleton's niece in "The Open Window".

%%* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: "Gabriel-Ernest".
%%* {{Reincarnation}}: "Laura".
%%* RoyalBrat: The eponymous "Hyacinth", and Victor in "Morlvera".
%%* StylisticSuck: "Reginald's Rubiyat", "The Recessional".
* TakeThat: ''The Westminster Alice'' is an ''Literature/AliceInWonderland'' parody that takes potshots at the prominent politicans of the time.

%%* UncattyResemblance: Starts out straight in "The Remoulding of Groby Lington." HilarityEnsues when this trope gets {{inverted}}...
%%* WhamLine: "The Interlopers" ends with this.
* YouCanKeepHer: "The Disappearance of Crispina Umberleigh"-- to the point that the kidnappers demand ransom by ''threatening to return her.''

%%* CatsAreSuperior: "The Achievement of the Cat" and "Tobermory".

%%* DeadpanSnarker: In ''spades''.

* AlternateHistory: ''When William Came'' speculates on life in London after the Germans win World War I ("William" is Kaiser Wilhelm II).

%%* EarWorm: "Cousin Theresa", "The Secret Sin of Septimus Brope"
* TheEdwardianEra

%%[[caption-width-right:232:some caption text]]

* AdultsAreUseless: "The Lumber-Room", "The Storyteller".

* CatsAreSuperior: "The Achievement of the Cat" and "Tobermory".
* CruelTwistEnding: The last few paragraphs of ''The Unbearable Bassington''.

* DeadpanSnarker: In ''spades''.
* DeathByIrony: A recurring favourite, as seen in "The Interlopers" and "Sredni Vashtar".
* EarWorm (in-universe): "Cousin Theresa", "The Secret Sin of Septimus Brope"

* FracturedFairytale: A nice one in "The Storyteller".
* GrandeDame: Plenty to annoy.
* HeroicSacrifice: Subverted horribly in "The Easter-Egg".
* HorsingAround: The titular steed of "The Brogue".
* IfItTastesBadItMustBeGoodForYou: "Filboid Studge, or the Mouse That Helped"
* ItWillNeverCatchOn: "Cousin Teresa".

* LostHimInACardGame: "The Stake".
* LittleMissBadass: Vera, Mrs. Sappleton's niece in "The Open Window".

* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: The [[PrayerOfMalice grisly]] [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve conclusion]] to "Sredni Vashtar".

* MisterMuffykins: The eponymous "Louis", with a twist. [[spoiler: Louis is ''[[OfCorpseHesAlive dead]]'' and his owner uses her pretended affection for him and his alleged needs to get her way.]]

* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: "Gabriel-Ernest".
* {{Reincarnation}}: "Laura".
* RoyalBrat: The eponymous "Hyacinth", and Victor in "Morlvera".
* StylisticSuck: "Reginald's Rubiyat", "The Recessional".

* UncattyResemblance: Starts out straight in "The Remoulding of Groby Lington." HilarityEnsues when this trope gets ''{{inverted}}''...
* WhamLine: "The Interlopers" ends with this.
* UsefulNotes/WorldWarI: The short story collection ''The Square Egg'' (published posthumously) were written during his service on the Western Front. Saki himself was killed in action in Beaumont-Hamel (probably during the Battle of the Somme).

* CruelTwistEnding: The last few paragraphs of ''The Unberable Bassington''.

H. H. (Hector Hugh) Munro (18 December 1870 – 14 November 1916), better known by his pen name Saki[[note]](either in reference to the cupbearer in ''The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam'' or a type of small South American monkey)[[/note]], was a British writer of over 100 short stories, three novels (''The Unbearable Bassington'', ''When William Came'', and ''The Westminster Alice''), and three plays (''The Death-Trap,'' ''Karl-Ludwig's Window'', and ''The Watched Pot''). Full of [[DeadpanSnarker sarcasm]], wit, and BlackComedy, the influence of Creator/OscarWilde shows through in his work-- and he, in turn, is a major influence on writers like Creator/PGWodehouse and Creator/DorothyParker. He was ultimately killed during UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne by a German sniper.

H. H. (Hector Hugh) Munro (18 December 1870 – 14 November 1916), better known by his pen name Saki[[note]](either in reference to the cupbearer in ''The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam'' or a type of small South American monkey)[[/note]], was a British writer of over 100 short stories, three novels (''The Unbearable Bassington'', ''When William Came'', and ''The Westminster Alice''), and three plays (''The Death-Trap,'' ''Karl-Ludwig's Window'', and ''The Watched Pot''). Full of [[DeadpanSnarker sarcasm]], wit, and BlackComedy, the influence of Creator/OscarWilde shows through in his work-- and he, in turn, is a major influence on writers like Creator/PGWodehouse and Creator/DorothyParker. He was ultimately killed during UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne a German sniper.