I think you may have just won the award for Best Subject Line in the Group Read! ;-)

] My next question is, why should the general have to do this? He is a general, which is a position of power, a landowner and a wealthy man. Why should he have to utilize food in this way? Is he that insecure or just really, really hungry for power? ;-)

But you lost major points with that awful pun, my dear. Please give the statuette back!

It almost seems like it must be some kind of insecurity, doesn't it? The man is in charge of every aspect of his life - he cannot imagine being otherwise. I think the words "General Tilney" are the Regency equivelent of "Control Freak".