Oliver excelled at school, and was the best in most categories, but formal schooling was delayed as long as possible for Oliver had always learned on his own, and needed little guidance. The scholastic system was, in Harriet's eyes, a place for him to further his sense of duty, discipline, and the routine of social interaction. It was in school though that Oliver came to a realization that would stick with him until manhood: that there was a sunny and shady side to knowledge. The sunny side was to be found in nature, geography, mathematics, and anything left untainted by the crude passions of humanity. For him "Only non-human subjects were fit for the human mind. They alone were open, friendly and rewarding".