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Smike
Squeers is Mrs. Squeers’s husband and Fanny’s father. He is one of the main antagonists of the novel. He runs Dotheboys Hall, a school where parents, stepparents, and guardians send unwanted children so they do not have to care for them. Though Squeers tells parents and guardians their children will be well cared for, he abuses those children and forces them to work without pay. Squeers serves as an example of how loudly proclaiming one’s own benevolence and generosity is often a sign that one’s motives are actually selfish. Ultimately, Squeers is undone by his selfish motives. His self-serving behavior leaves him alone and isolated, while people like Nicholas and Smike—because they act with true benevolence and loyalty—have become friends who band together to collectively take down Squeers. After Squeers is arrested for burning legal documents with Peg, he promises Ralph that if he goes down, he’ll bring Ralph with him. In that way, Squeers again demonstrates his inherent selfishness and lack of loyalty and shows that Ralph surrounds himself with people who, like Ralph, have no capacity for loyalty.
Squeers Quotes in Nicholas Nickleby
The Nicholas Nickleby quotes below are all either spoken by Squeers or refer to Squeers . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 7
Quotes
My dear young Man.
I know the world. Your father did not, or he would not have done me a kindness when there was no hope of return. You do not, or you would not be bound on such a journey.
If ever you want a shelter in London (don't be angry at this, I once thought I never should), they know where I live, at the sign of the Crown, in Silver Street, Golden Square. It is at the corner of Silver Street and James Street, with a bar door both ways. You can come at night. Once, nobody was ashamed—never mind that. It's all over.
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 42
Quotes
'If it's fated that listeners are never to hear any good of themselves,' said Mrs. Browdie, 'I can't help it, and I am very sorry for it. But I will say, Fanny, that times out of number I have spoken so kindly of you behind your back, that even you could have found no fault with what I said.'
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Squeers Quotes in Nicholas Nickleby
The Nicholas Nickleby quotes below are all either spoken by Squeers or refer to Squeers . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 7
Quotes
My dear young Man.
I know the world. Your father did not, or he would not have done me a kindness when there was no hope of return. You do not, or you would not be bound on such a journey.
If ever you want a shelter in London (don't be angry at this, I once thought I never should), they know where I live, at the sign of the Crown, in Silver Street, Golden Square. It is at the corner of Silver Street and James Street, with a bar door both ways. You can come at night. Once, nobody was ashamed—never mind that. It's all over.
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 42
Quotes
'If it's fated that listeners are never to hear any good of themselves,' said Mrs. Browdie, 'I can't help it, and I am very sorry for it. But I will say, Fanny, that times out of number I have spoken so kindly of you behind your back, that even you could have found no fault with what I said.'
