Bleak House · Chapter
The Smallweed Family explained
This chapter introduces the Smallweed family, a grotesque and miserly clan living in a gloomy London neighborhood.
What happens
This chapter introduces the Smallweed family, a grotesque and miserly clan living in a gloomy London neighborhood. Grandfather Smallweed, a bitter old man confined to a chair, rules over his household with his wife, who is mentally diminished, and his sharp granddaughter Judy. The family's history is one of relentless penny-pinching and emotional barrenness. Mr. George, a former trooper, visits to pay interest on a loan, providing a stark physical and moral contrast to the Smallweeds. The chapter explores themes of dehumanization, greed, and the corrosive effects of a life devoted solely to money.
Themes in this chapter
Bureaucracy and Dehumanization
The Smallweed family embodies dehumanization through their stunted physical and emotional growth, reduced to mere vessels for money-grubbing and legal calculation.
Social Class and Inequality
The contrast between the Smallweeds' miserly existence and Mr. George's robust, open manner underscores class divisions and the harsh realities of poverty.
Family and Loyalty
The Smallweed family is a perversion of familial bonds, marked by mutual contempt and exploitation rather than love or loyalty.
Characters to notice
- Mr. Smallweed
Grandfather Smallweed is introduced as a bitter, money-obsessed old man confined to a chair, who throws cushions at his wife and hoards wealth.
- Judy Smallweed
Judy is the sharp, stunted twin sister of Bart, who manages the household with a sour demeanor and has never known childhood joys.
- Mr. George
Mr. George, a former trooper, visits the Smallweeds to pay interest on a loan, presenting a strong, open contrast to their pinched and grasping nature.
- Mrs. Smallweed
Grandmother Smallweed is mentally diminished, often mumbling and screeching about money, and is treated with contempt by her husband.
- Charley
Charley is mentioned as a girl who works for the Smallweeds, though she is not present in the scene.
Key passages
“In a rather ill-favoured and ill-savoured neighbourhood, though one of its rising grounds bears the name of Mount Pleasant, the Elfin Smallweed, christened Bartholomew and known on the domestic hearth as Bart, passes that limited portion of his time on which the office and its contingencies have no claim.”
Bart Smallweed lives in a grim, unpleasant area ironically called Mount Pleasant, spending his rare free time at home.
Introduces the Smallweed residence and its ironic name, setting the tone for the family's dreary life.
“The name of this old pagan’s god was Compound Interest. He lived for it, married it, died of it.”
The Smallweed ancestor worshipped money and compound interest above all else, dedicating his entire life to it.
Highlights the family's all-consuming greed and materialism.
“It is a broadsword to an oyster-knife.”
Mr. George and the Smallweeds are as different as a large sword and a tiny knife.
Emphasizes the stark physical and temperamental contrast between Mr. George and the Smallweed family.