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Chapter 51
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Nicholas Nickleby, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Greed and Selfishness
Power and Abuse
Altruism and Humility
Family and Loyalty
Injustice, Complicity, and Moral Integrity
Summary
Analysis
Nicholas runs out of the tavern after learning that Madeline is set to marry Arthur. Newman shouts, “Thief,” hoping that someone will stop Nicholas. Afraid of what will happen if that occurs, Nicholas slows down and lets Newman catch up to him. Nicholas cycles through possibilities of how to stop the wedding. He thinks of going to Ned, Charles, Frank, or Tim, but each option is unsatisfactory for one reason or another. He grows despondent. Newman tells him not to despair and to cling to hope. Nicholas says he needed the encouragement. He decides that tomorrow he will go and speak directly to Madeline to try and stop the wedding.
Newman’s injunction to Nicholas not to give up on hope serves as a kind of thesis statement for the novel. It is reminiscent of the story about the Baron of Grogzwig. In that story, the baron’s life steadily went downhill until he lost all hope. Just before he killed himself, he decided to give life another chance, and he was able to turn his circumstances around. Similarly, at the start of the novel, Nicholas and his family had nothing, but gradually they’ve been able to turn things around. In this passage, Newman echoes the sentiment that nothing is final and change is always possible.
Themes
When Newman goes home, he hears Mrs. Kenwigs fighting with her daughter Morleena. Mrs. Kenwigs is upset that Morleena needs a haircut so close to a party, for which she received a last-minute invitation. She asks Newman to escort her to a hairdresser. Newman takes Morleena to an establishment that is similar to a barber, as they cut women’s and children’s hair but also men’s beards. At the barber, Newman sees Mr. Lillyvick. Mr. Lillyvick asks Newman how the Kenwigses’ children are doing.
As a character, Newman consistently goes out of his way to help others, whether that is gathering information about Ralph for Nicholas or taking Morleena to a haircut to help her and Mrs. Kenwigs. That makes Newman’s desire to work against Ralph even more striking, as Ralph’s mistreatment has led Newman to oppose him and contradict his apparently natural inclination to be of use to other people.
Themes
Newman, Morleena, and Mr. Lillyvick return to the Kenwigses’ apartment. Mr. Kenwigs and Mrs. Kenwigs are shocked to see Mr. Lillyvick. They accuse him of betraying them and their children. Mr. Lillyvick says that Henrietta left him to elope with another man. The mood of the conversation changes, and the Kenwigses console Mr. Lillyvick. Mr. Lillyvick says that he will leave all of his money for the Kenwigses’ children to inherit when they come to marriageable age. The Kenwigses are so happy they begin to sob. Mr. Kenwigs awakens the other children and brings them to see Mr. Lillyvick.
Mr. Lillyvick is Mrs. Kenwigs’s uncle, just as Ralph is Nicholas and Kate’s uncle. While Mr. Lillyvick forayed briefly into a different life, he eventually finds his way back to the Kenwigses and promises them that their children will inherit his money. The reunion between Mr. Lillyvick and Mrs. Kenwigs shows that reconciliation is always a possibility. It remains to be seen, though, whether Ralph and the Nicklebys could be reconciled or whether either party would be open to that kind of reconciliation.
Themes
