Hugh Conway--Certainly Glorious, but Great?

Conway described as: "a jolly fine chap," "certainly clever," "extraordinarily kind," "remarkable," "extremely good looking," "just brilliant," and possessing a "peculiar charm," and a "queer core of attractiveness," certainly had a lot of potential. Prologue. Perhaps it is these qualities or at least the ability to seem to possess these qualities that makes him glorious and well-deserving of his nickname.

But is Conway really all these things and if so, is he living to his full potential? Those are the two questions I expect this book to answer. Rutherford, the narrator, notes that "Conway was--or should have been--great." Prologue.

Conway does not seem at this point to feel fulfilled nor to be achieving his full potential of greatness. While he wasn't unhappy, he had only a "moderately enjoyable decade," no family, and while meeting with his friends was a pleasant prospect it was nothing to "sigh for in anticipation." Ch. 1. Though capable of hard work, Conway was not "passionately fond of activity, and did not enjoy responsibility at all." Ch. 1. He was not especially ambitious and simply had "a love of quietness, contemplation, and being alone." Thus far, it appears that while Conway is content in his life he lacks a passion or a cause or even a relationship with any person that would motivate him to achieve greatness. I suspect and hope this will change as he gets to know people in Shangri-La.