was decent enough to do the right or considerate thing
So he never called her. At least he had the decency to throw the number away.Husbands and Wives · 1992 — Chapter 2 of 15 · 3'20" · C1
Gabe and Judy's Late-Night Talk, Explained: to the best of my knowledge
A midnight conversation between a married couple starts on other people's breakup and ends on their own. "Do you think we'd ever break up?" one asks; the other deflects. Then it turns to having a second child, and to sex that has become rarer and more negotiated, until someone says they are stuck with each other.
What happens
Late at night, Gabe and Judy lie in bed and start talking about their friends Jack and Sally, who have just broken up. The talk drifts to themselves: would they ever split? Judy wants another child, Gabe refuses, and the argument moves on to trust, sex, and how little they still reach for each other.
Listen for
to the best of my knowledgehad the decency tocome as a surprisestraitlaced
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Phrase of the scene
to the best of my knowledge
used to say what you believe is true while admitting you may be wrong
半夜盖布和朱迪躺在床上盘问彼此的婚姻；朱迪追问莎莉那件事的细节，盖布只肯说到「就我所知」，不肯把话说死。
To the best of my knowledge, the office is closed on Friday.
Also in this scene
- had the decency to
was decent enough to do the right or considerate thing
- come as a surprise
to be unexpected or surprising to someone
- straitlaced
very strict and old-fashioned in behavior
Everything marked in this scene
16 notes across 57 lines
used to say what you believe is true while admitting you may be wrong
Well, to the best of my knowledge.to be unexpected or surprising to someone
The wife says her friend's coldness should not be news to her husband.
Sally's cold... Well, that shouldn't come as a surprise.We had one minor, little argument years ago about that, which you blew up into a major confrontation, and I can't get it off...Do you ever have the urge to sleep with a whore?You-You're in an odd mood tonight. I can see it.You think... You think we'd ever break up?What kind of question is that? I'm not planning it. Are you?Hey, are we gonna have to go through that conversation again?It's cruel to bring life into this terrible world, you know? It's not...Oh, don't glorify your refusal on philosophical grounds.- I-I can't just do it on command. - We can get into it.You really trust no one, do you?No wonder people accuse you of cynicism. Jesus!Well, you know, our schedules are not exactly conducive to...Well, then we're definitely stuck with one another.Gabe and Judy's Late-Night Talk, explained
What's really going on
The scene is a marriage arguing with itself through the example of another couple. Jack and Sally's breakup gives Gabe and Judy a safe way to ask the real question — "You think we'd ever break up?" — and neither answer settles anything. The deeper fight is about the second child. Judy says she wants another; Gabe offers a reason that sounds like principle — "It's cruel to bring life into this terrible world" — and she names the move exactly: "Oh, don't glorify your refusal on philosophical grounds." From there the conversation moves to sex, where every attempt is negotiated in advance, and to the jealousy each of them keeps half-hidden. The funniest and bleakest line comes last: if an older man does better than an older woman, then they are "definitely stuck with one another." What the couple cannot say directly, they say through jokes.
Theme
MarriageA husband and wife test their own marriage by talking about a friend's divorce, and neither finds a reassuring answer.
TrustThe diaphragm question shows how little faith remains: even a promise about birth control is doubted, and the doubt is answered with anger.
What you'll learn
- 'to the best of one's knowledge' carries more than its dictionary gloss.
- 'straitlaced' changes the pressure of the reply.
- The surrounding lines set the social temperature.
Oh, don't glorify your refusal on philosophical grounds.Judy's retort when Gabe turns a personal refusal into a principle: he is dressing up what he wants as a moral position.
Oh, that's just bullshit. You know, when we wanted to, we found time.Her answer to the excuse of busy schedules: desire, not time, is what has changed, and she will not let him blame the calendar.
Well, then we're definitely stuck with one another.The resigned punchline: if older men do better than older women, then neither of them is leaving, and they may as well accept it.
Remember that? Now you remember it, you know, in a glorified way.The accusation that a shared memory has been rewritten: what was uncomfortable at the time is now recalled as spontaneous and romantic.
Questions about this scene
Why do Gabe and Judy start talking about Jack and Sally?
Their friends' breakup is in the air, and it gives them a less threatening way to raise their own fears. Both keep saying they are not planning to split, but neither sounds certain.
Why does Judy want another child?
She says she wants another and is hurt that Gabe keeps refusing. She ties the decision to her sense of the marriage, warning that she does not know how she will feel if he keeps saying no.
Why does Gabe refuse to have another child?
He argues that bringing a life into such a terrible world is cruel, but Judy rejects that as a philosophical excuse for a personal decision he has already made.
Why does the diaphragm question upset Judy so much?
It shows that Gabe does not trust her word even about birth control. She takes it as proof that he trusts no one, and it turns the evening into an argument about his cynicism.
What does 'straitlaced' mean?
It describes someone very proper and easily shocked. Judy uses it to say Jack is not the kind of man who would hire a prostitute, which makes his behavior seem out of character.
Husbands and Wives · 15 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 3a different ball gameSally Calls Jack During a Date
Chapter 1grow apartJack and Sally Announce a Split
Watching · Chapter 2to the best of my knowledgeGabe and Judy's Late-Night Talk
Chapter 3a different ball gameSally Calls Jack During a Date
Chapter 4I meant it as a complimentGabe Praises a Student's Story
Chapter 5penchant forGabe's Kamikaze Women Theory
Chapter 6out of left fieldGabe and Jack Fight Over Sam
Chapter 7touch a nerveFriends Discuss Divorce Over Lunch
Chapter 8knocked out by itGabe and Rain Talk About Writing
Chapter 9Sooner or laterSally Stops Michael From Rushing
Chapter 10cleaned up my actGabe Meets Rain's Parents
Chapter 11out of lineJack and Sam Fight About Astrology
Chapter 12wipe outJack Comes Back to Sally Drunk
Chapter 13in your cornerRain Critiques Gabe's Novel
Chapter 14go sourJudy Tells Gabe It's Over
Chapter 15get the wrong ideaRain's Birthday Party in a BlackoutChapter 2 of 15 · about 47 min to go