James Bond

James Bond is agent 007 in Her Majesty's Secret Service. He begins the novel in a sorry state. He has not had any real work to do, just depressing paper work. He has been drinking too much and smoking too much and gambling badly.

Bond thrives on danger, and he is ill-suited to a life without it. When M sends Bond to Shrublands for a natural health cure, the reader for the first time sees that James Bond could, in fact, adapt to a normal life. He becomes transformed, energetic, and willing to do paperwork. James Bond's vices—liquor, smoking—are inherently tied to his ability to live an exotic, hazardous life, and conversely, giving up these vices allows Bond to live a normal life.

When Bond goes back to the work of a spy, he is not particularly hard drinking or hard gambling. He has...