Decline and Fall is a novel by Evelyn Waugh that follows the misadventures of Paul Pennyfeather, a young man who is expelled from Oxford University after a prank goes wrong. With his life in shambles, Paul takes a job as a schoolteacher at a run-down boarding school in Wales.
As Paul navigates the eccentricities of his colleagues and the unruly behavior of his students, he finds himself entangled in a web of deceit, scandal, and corruption. Along the way, he encounters a colorful cast of characters, including the flamboyant Dr. Fagan and the enigmatic Mrs. Beste-Chetwynde.
Through a series of hilarious and absurd events, Decline and Fall satirizes the British class system, the education system, and the moral decay of society in the 1920s. With Waugh's sharp wit and keen eye for detail, the novel offers a biting critique of the hypocrisies and absurdities of the time.