Mr. Bentley Character Analysis in The Woman in Black

Arthur Kipps’s boss at his London law firm, Mr. Bentley is a businesslike but kind man who unknowingly sends Arthur into a dangerous situation in Crythin Gifford. In the years following Arthur’s ordeal with the woman in black, Mr. Bentley assumes a kind of guilt for Arthur’s pain and suffering; the two nevertheless enjoy one another’s friendship and company.

Mr. Bentley Quotes in The Woman in Black

The The Woman in Black quotes below are all either spoken by Mr. Bentley or refer to Mr. Bentley. 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:

The business was beginning to sound like something from a Victorian novel, with a reclusive old woman having hidden a lot of ancient documents somewhere in the depths of her cluttered house. I was scarcely taking Mr. Bentley seriously.

Related Characters: Arthur Kipps (speaker), Mr. Bentley

Page Number and Citation: 26-27

Explanation and Analysis:

Mr. Bentley Character Timeline in The Woman in Black

The timeline below shows where the character Mr. Bentley appears in The Woman in Black. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...town in a pony trap—a small, two-wheeled, horse-drawn carriage—with his partner at his law firm, Mr. Bentley . Having reached old age, Mr. Bentley lived primarily in the country and came to... (full context)

...the property will be his, and felt suddenly lighthearted. Before returning to London, Arthur asked Mr. Bentley to let him know if the house ever went up for sale. (full context)

...cast by the events of the past.” Arriving in town and greeting his new neighbor, Mr. Bentley , Arthur saw that Bentley, too, seemed to have had a burden lifted from his... (full context)

...foreboding as he makes his way in a carriage through London towards King’s Cross station. Mr. Bentley , his boss (Arthur has not yet been made partner at the firm) has sent... (full context)

Earlier that morning, Arthur was summoned to his boss Mr. Bentley ’s office, where Bentley began telling Arthur about “the extraordinary Mrs. Drablow” of Eel Marsh... (full context)

Mr. Bentley assures Arthur that the business will take a day or two at most. Arthur is... (full context)

Arthur returns to the inn to find a note from Mr. Jerome—the man Mr. Bentley arranged to be Arthur’s companion at the funeral and guide in Crythin Gifford—stating that he... (full context)

...decides to wait until the morning to figure out how to broach the topic with Mr. Bentley . (full context)

Arthur returns to the inn and composes a letter to Mr. Bentley . He reveals that he has discovered a hoard of papers in the old house... (full context)

...at Eel Marsh. At nine, the landlord informs Arthur he has a phone call—it is Mr. Bentley , who tells Arthur that despite the odd-sounding tone of his letter, he must stay... (full context)

...is too disturbed by all that has befallen him. He writes a “guarded” letter to Mr. Bentley and a more detailed one to Stella, informing them of what has happened to him,... (full context)