Bleak House

Tulkinghorn sips a glass of wine and thinks about a friend who hanged himself. Snagsby is visiting Tulkinghorn, though his wife does not know. They speak about Jo, and Tulkinghorn introduces a police officer named Mr. Bucket. Hinting that Nemo might have left an inheritance, Bucket asks Snagsby to take him to Jo, assuring Snagsby that they will pay Jo for his information. Bucket also asks whether Snagsby knows Gridley, who is “keeping out of the way of a warrant” (324). Snagsby takes Bucket to Tom-all-Alone’s, but Jo is not there. Men lay unconscious on the floor, and a woman holding a child introduces herself as Liz, claiming that the men are the husbands of herself and Jenny. Jenny also had a child, but that child is now dead.

Jo returns with medicine that he purchased for Liz. Bucket and Snagsby take Jo back to Tulkinghorn’s office. A veiled woman is in the office, and Jo initially believes her to be the same woman who approached him. However, he changes his mind when he sees the figure’s hand and hears her voice. Jo receives five shillings and is dismissed. Once he is gone, the figure removes her veil, revealing herself as Lady Dedlock’s former maid, Mademoiselle Hortense. Tulkinghorn has promised her a job in exchange for help. After Hortense leaves, Bucket reveals his belief that the woman who talked to Jo was likely wearing Hortense’s clothes. That night, Snagsby returns home late to discover that his wife has reported him as missing to the police.

During the six-week stay at Boythorn’s house, Esther does not see Lady Dedlock again. She comes to believe that Lady Dedlock is just as unsettled by her presence as vice versa. One day, Hortense asks to meet with Esther. Hortense praises Esther and reveals that she has recently left her position at Chesney Wold. Now, she would like Esther to hire her. However, Esther cannot afford to pay a maid and doesn’t feel she needs one, so the conversation ends.

During one of Richard’s regular homecomings, Esther notices that he is still obsessing over the Jarndyce and Jarndyce case. When Esther travels to London to visit Caddy, she also speaks to Richard, who confesses that he is deeply in debt, especially since he “[took] rather too much to billiards and that sort of thing” (337). He grows distressed and even cries when the conversation turns to Ada, remarking that he has no right to love her given his “unsettled” situation. He then admits that he has “slaked [his] thirst for the law” and now plans to join the military (338).

Esther talks to Caddy, who reveals that Prince Turveydrop is impressed by Esther. Caddy hopes that Esther can be present when she tells her parents that she and Prince are engaged. Esther visits first the Turveydrops and then the Jellyby family as the couple tells their parents. Mr. Turveydrop is initially upset by the news but accepts it once the couple reassures him that he will now have two children to attend to him rather than one; Mrs. Jellyby is distracted and hardly pays attention to her daughter. That evening, Esther returns to Bleak House and receives a visit from Charley, whom Jarndyce has hired to work as Esther’s maid. The appointment pleases both Esther and Charley.

Richard returns to Bleak House to share his news. He says that he wants to join the military and admits that he is deeply in debt. His one hope is the Jarndyce and Jarndyce case, which he has used to guarantee the loans he has taken. Jarndyce is quietly furious. With Richard leaving to serve in Ireland, Jarndyce insists that he and Ada sever their “little love affair” (254). They may resume it in the future, he says. The couple agrees, but Esther notes that this is the moment when Richard and Jarndyce begin to drift apart.

Esther and Ada accompany Jarndyce to London. They meet with Mr. George, Richard’s fencing instructor, who feels Esther is familiar but cannot remember where he saw her. He tells them about his various professions and about a man named Gridley, who is on the run from the police. With Richard set to leave, he spends the afternoon visiting Chancery with Esther to listen to the Jarndyce and Jarndyce being discussed. In contrast to the desperate investment of those involved in the case, the discussion between the lawyers is relaxed and cheerful. The case is set aside very quickly with nothing accomplished. Afterward, a woman approaches Esther. She is Rachael, who worked for Esther’s godmother but is now married, referring to herself as Mrs. Chadband. After they exchange pleasantries, she departs, and Mr. George approaches to ask for Miss Flite’s location. He reveals that Gridley is “hiding” in his quarters and has requested a meeting with his friend, Miss Flite. After finding Miss Flite, they all return to George’s rooms.

Entering George’s shooting gallery, the group meets an old man who claims to be a doctor sent to see Gridley. George leads the doctor into the building, whereupon the doctor reveals that he is actually Inspector Bucket, come with a warrant. When the group enters Gridley’s room, the man is surrounded by writing connected to his Chancery suit. Miss Flite comforts him; Gridley reveals that their relationship is the one connection that his struggle with the court has “not broken.” Before Bucket can arrest him, Gridley is overcome with despair. He dies.

Snagsby is concerned that he has become involved in an affair that he does not truly understand. Whenever anyone enters his shop, he worries that they have come for him. After searching through his safe and private papers, Mrs. Snagsby believes that her husband is “always keeping a secret from her” (371). She watches him closely but comes to the wrong conclusion about everything she overhears and sees. When Jo visits, she suspects that he is Snagsby’s son born outside of wedlock.

After the two happen to meet on the street, Mr. Chadband speaks to Jo and invites him to Snagsby’s house. He lectures Jo about his opportunities and ways he can improve his life. Mrs. Snagsby interprets his remarks about “Terewth” (i.e., truth) and occasional glances at Snagsby as confirmation of her husband’s affair, eventually crying and experiencing physical “spasms.” When she is carried upstairs, Jo is allowed to leave. Before he exits, Snagsby gives him a half-crown for keeping silent about the encounter with the woman in Tulkinghorn’s office.

George and his employee Phil prepare the shooting gallery for the day. As they work, George talks about growing up in the countryside and mentions his mother, who is still alive. Phil does not even know his own age; the men met when George encountered Phil injured on the street.

Judy and her grandfather visit the shooting gallery. Grandfather Smallweed is ill at ease being surrounded by guns and asks George to send Phil away so that he does not shoot someone—“accidentally” or otherwise. Smallweed then reminds George about his outstanding debt. They smoke a pipe, discuss the business dealings of “a fine young soldier” named Carstone (389), and the old man mentions that his “friend” might consider it worth buying up Carstone’s debt, as Carstone has wealthy relations to back him. George tries to discourage this.

Grandfather Smallweed then turns the conversation to their mutual acquaintance with Captain Hawdon, who he claims is not dead. A lawyer has asked Grandfather Smallweed for a copy of Hawdon’s handwriting for the purposes of a comparison. He hopes that George might have more examples than just the man’s signature. Even if he did, George says, he would not hand them over, though he agrees to visit the lawyer.

Judy, Grandfather Smallweed, and George visit Tulkinghorn’s office. George notices that Tulkinghorn works for Sir Leicester. Tulkinghorn explains his hope that George might be in possession of examples of Captain Hawdon’s handwriting. He offers to pay for any such samples. George rejects the offer, and Tulkinghorn refuses to give any further details. George says that he will seek advice from other men in his squadron about the issue. In private, Grandfather Smallweed encourages the lawyer to “tear the writing away” from George (398), but Tulkinghorn declines.

Later, George visits a musical instrument shop owned by Mr. Bagnet, a former soldier he once served alongside, and Bagnet’s wife. The Bagnets have two daughters, Malta and Quebec, as well as a son named Woolwich, who is George’s godson. George hopes to see Woolwich, so he stays and dines with the family, explaining to them what occurred in Tulkinghorn’s office. The Bagnets tell him to leave the matter alone. On his way home, George stops by the lawyer’s office to tell Tulkinghorn that he has not changed his mind about the handwriting sample. They talk about Gridley, whom Tulkinghorn describes as a dangerous, threatening man; he implies that George was in the wrong to shelter Gridley in his shooting gallery.

Though Sir Leicester is wealthy, some of his family members are impoverished. Several of these cousins visit Sir Leicester, and he is forced to endure their presence “with the constancy of a martyr” (407). Among these cousins is the 60-year-old Volumnia Dedlock. In the past, Sir Leicester has given her money. Like all the impoverished relatives, Volumnia reveres Sir Leicester’s wife, Lady Dedlock as “beautiful, elegant, accomplished, and powerful” (408). Volumnia asks Sir Leicester about Rosa and compliments the work of Mrs. Rouncewell. Sir Leicester talks about Mrs. Rouncewell’s sons, one of whom is an ironmaster and recently declined an invitation to Parliament.

This son, Mr. Rouncewell, happens to have asked to visit Chesney Wold that night. Once the cousins are asleep, he approaches Sir Leicester and Lady Dedlock with regard to Rosa. Mr. Rouncewell’s son, Watt, is in love with her. If the young couple becomes engaged, Mr. Rouncewell believes that Rosa should no longer work at Chesney Wold. Instead, he wants her to be educated. Sir Leicester is insulted that Mr. Rouncewell seems to have “incomprehensible” ideas above his social class. He believes that Rosa should feel honored that Lady Dedlock has taken such an interest in her. However, he leaves the final decision to Rosa. Later, Lady Dedlock asks Rosa about Watt. Rosa confesses that she is falling in love with Watt but says that she does not want to stop working for Lady Dedlock. Lady Dedlock promises that all she wants is for Rosa “to be happy” (416). She falls into a deep rumination. The next day, the Dedlock cousins leave.

Sir Leicester and Lady Dedlock leave Chesney Wold for London. There, they meet frequently with Tulkinghorn, whose presence Lady Dedlock seemingly “fears.” Sir Leicester is confused when Guppy shows up, revealing that Lady Dedlock has told him that he may visit any time he pleases, but he leaves Guppy alone with his wife. Guppy has been requesting this meeting for a long time, and Lady Dedlock has finally granted it. Guppy says that he works at Kenge and Carboy’s. They are associated with the Jarndyce and Jarndyce case, but this is not the reason for the meeting. Lady Dedlock agrees not to mention any of this to Tulkinghorn. Guppy asks her about Esther, whom Lady Dedlock says she recently met. Guppy asks Lady Dedlock whether Esther looked familiar. Lady Dedlock denies this but stares at Guppy, who comments on the close resemblance between Lady Dedlock and Esther. Given that Esther’s past is shrouded in mystery, he wonders whether he can prove that she is in any way connected to Lady Dedlock’s family and—by extension—to the Jarndyce and Jarndyce case. He hopes that doing so might cause her to reconsider her rejection of his marriage proposal. Guppy then mentions that he knows Miss Barbary was once Esther’s guardian.

Guppy’s revelations have a drastic effect on Lady Dedlock. Her face becomes pale. She admits to knowing a Miss Barbary but insists that she is not related to Esther. Guppy knows that Esther’s real surname is not Summerson but Hawdon. Lady Dedlock hides her surprise and pretends that the name means nothing to her. Guppy links the dead lodger Nemo to the name Hawdon; Nemo’s real name was Hawdon, as is written on his gravestone. Guppy followed a strange woman, led by a child, to the grave. As a final flourish, Guppy reveals that he plans to obtain a number of letters written by Captain Hawdon. He promises to bring them to Lady Dedlock and then departs. Lady Dedlock is so shocked that she drops to her knees. Guppy’s revelations can mean only one thing: Esther is Lady Dedlock’s daughter, a child that she believed was “dead in the first hours of her life, as [her] cruel sister told [her]” (427).

Mr. Woodcourt’s mother, Mrs. Woodcourt, visits Bleak House and seems drawn to Esther, though Esther feels anxious by her close presence. She cannot pinpoint exactly what annoys her about Mrs. Woodcourt, who talks often about her son. According to Mrs. Woodcourt, Esther will surely marry someone “very rich and very worthy, much older” (432). Esther suspects that Mrs. Woodcourt is plotting something. She is annoyed by Mrs. Woodcourt yet feels a strange need to talk to the woman. All this, Esther assures the reader, will be explained later.

After Mrs. Woodcourt’s departure, Caddy visits Bleak House. Her wedding is approaching, and she hopes Esther and Ada will be her bridesmaids. Esther proposes that Caddy simply spend the intervening weeks at Bleak House, allowing Esther and Ada the opportunity to make her wedding dress. During this time, Caddy will also learn how to keep a house from Esther. Three weeks pass, and then Esther goes with Caddy to the house where Caddy will live after the wedding. Even now, Mrs. Jellyby seems to refuse to accept that the wedding is going ahead and decries the “ridiculous preparations.” Esther and Caddy face an uphill battle in trying to clean the Jellyby house. On the day of the wedding, many of the characters attend the ceremony. Caddy and Prince marry and set off on their honeymoon. Jarndyce and Esther hope that their marriage is “for the best” (443).