ABSTRACT
In the autumn of 1831 Thackeray entered himself as a student at the Middle Temple. He had abandoned all thought of the Diplomatic service, and though he did not look forward with much pleasure to practising at the Bar, yet he regarded his profession (he wrote to his mother) as ‘a noble and tangible object, an honourable calling. Charles Buller wrote for the magazines, and Thackeray told his mother, even before he came of age, that he much desired to follow his example, only he was doubtful of his own powers. Thackeray was always comparing himself with Bulwer, who was then at the zenith of his popularity. When, however, in January 1833, Major Carmichael Smyth became associated with the production of The National Standard and Journal of Literature, Science, Music, Theatricals, and the Fine Arts, Thackeray, returning to London, formally entered Grub Street.
