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Book 3, Chapter 2
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Our Mutual Friend, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Society, Class, and Character
Greed and Corruption
Marriage, Adoption, and Family
Education vs. Real-World Experience
Misfits and Outcasts
Summary
Analysis
Roger seems at first to be dead, but Miss Abbey sends out for a doctor and for Roger’s daughter, Pleasant. The doctor asks about the cause of the accident, and a witness says that Roger alone was the only one at fault. To everyone’s surprise, Roger shows faint signs of life. When Pleasant arrives, Roger briefly opens his eyes, and Pleasant tries to explain to him what happened.
Roger’s survival, after he seemed to have died the same way as Gaffer, is another twist in the story. Like John Harmon himself (who also entered the water nearly dead), Roger’s fall into the water is like a baptism. Roger, however, is stubborn and crooked, suggesting he may not experience the same kind of positive transformation that John did.
Themes
Once it becomes clear that Roger will survive, people in the crowd grumble that better men have had worse luck. When Roger regains consciousness, the doctor warns him that he should take this close call as a sign to improve the way he lives. Instead, Roger promises to get vengeance on the steamer that hit him.
Roger survived where Gaffer died, even though Gaffer was the better man. Additionally, Roger tried to pin the murder of John Harmon on Gaffer—a (supposed) murder Roger himself was involved with. This shows how life is especially unfair for the lower classes.
Themes
Literary Devices
