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Book 4, Chapter 8
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
Jenny comes back to Riah and tells him about how Fledgeby got beaten up. She tells him she’s figured out the truth: that “Pubsey and Co.” isn’t a front for Riah but for Fledgeby. Jenny asks Riah to forgive her for how angrily she acted toward him earlier. Riah says that unfortunately, he is used to people thinking the worst of him because when it comes to Jewish people living in Christian countries, “they take the lowest of us as presentations of the highest.”
This passage explores the origin of Christian prejudice against Jewish people in England. As Riah tells it, the issue is that because Jewish people are so rare, the “lowest” examples of Jewish people often get taken as the “highest.” Because of people’s prejudice, whenever any other Jewish person does something wrong, Riah suffers for it.
Themes
Riah tells Jenny that he sent a letter to Fledgeby that he will no longer work for him. As they’re talking, a messenger brings a letter for Riah. Fledgeby writes that because Riah’s own debts are square, he’s free to go, but Fledgeby calls him “an unthankful dog of a Jew.” Jenny suggests that if Riah has nowhere to go, he come back to her place, since she has space after Lizzie left.
Even after being beaten up by Alfred, Fledgeby hasn’t learned anything, showing how stubborn he is as a person. Once again, Fledgeby realizes that he doesn’t have unlimited power to push people around, as Riah asserts his own authority by leaving his job with Fledgeby.
Themes
While Jenny is away, her father (Mr. Dolls) goes out drinking in a busy part of the city. He gets in a fight with a group of young men, goes to a pub, and tries to leave without paying. When he gets caught without any money on him, someone dumps a bucket of water on him and tells him not to come back. He begins to tremble. Not knowing where to go, Mr. Dolls heads toward the office of Eugene and Mortimer. Both of them are out, but the young assistant Blight gives him enough money for a coach home.
Like Fledgeby, Mr. Dolls also shows an inability to learn from his mistakes, as he continues drinking even after already getting thrown out of a pub. The trembling that Mr. Dolls experiences, perhaps from the cold water or perhaps from alcohol withdrawal, represents how he isn’t in control of his own body due to his addictions.
Themes
Mr. Dolls spends the money immediately and comes back to the office, but this time Blight closes the door. Mr. Dolls collapses outside, and someone sends for a stretcher. Just then, Jenny and Riah are passing on their way back to Jenny’s. Jenny, referring to her father as her “bad boy” as always, doesn’t know what to do. They take him to a doctor, but it’s too late, and he’s dead.
Blight’s gift of money for a ride home is a well-intentioned gesture that ends up having unfortunate consequences, leading indirectly to Mr. Dolls’s death. This is yet another example of how even with good intentions, charity can be complicated. Like many characters in the novel, Mr. Dolls ignores the negative consequences of his own actions until it’s too late to do anything about it.
Themes
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Jenny makes plans for a very simple funeral for Mr. Dolls. Soon after, Mortimer comes to Jenny and leaves a short note for her. The note says that Eugene is dying of his injuries and is often insensible. Still, both Mortimer and Lizzie are certain that in his delirium, Eugene has for some reason requested to see Jenny.
Jenny has only had a couple short conversations with Eugene, so his request to see her on his deathbed is mysterious. Still, it suggests that just as Lizzie gained clarity from seeing Eugene seriously injured, Eugene’s near-death experience may have led him to his own revelation.
Themes
