It would seem appropriate to pull together the various strands of our argument in a detailed example. On Sunday, 29 November 1663, Pepys's morning undoubtedly comprised countless actions and thoughts. Yet apparently all that occurred that morning, as represented by the diary, is as follows:

29. Lords day. This morning I put on my best black cloth-suit trimmed with Scarlett ribbon, very neat, with my cloak lined with Velvett and a new Beaver, which altogether is very noble, with my black silk knit canons I bought a month ago. I to church alone, my wife not going.

Some would see this simply as another instance of Pepys's conceitedness: 'This innocent vanity was perhaps due partly to his father's trade, which made him more conscious than most people of cut and texture, and partly to memories of earlier poverty.' An exact consonance of identity between Pepys the active individual and...