Little Dorrit · Chapter
The Evening of a Long Day explained
Mrs.
What happens
Mrs. Sparkler (Fanny Dorrit) and her husband Edmund Sparkler endure a stifling evening in their fashionable but uncomfortable London home. Fanny complains about her brother Edward's illness and her sister Amy's low spirits, while expressing satisfaction that Edward paid off Mrs. General. The illustrious Mr. Merdle pays a visit, borrowing a penknife before departing. Fanny feels worn out by the idiotic and lumpish people around her.
Themes in this chapter
Wealth and Moral Decline
Mr. Merdle's immense wealth and social ambition are contrasted with his hollow, detached demeanor, suggesting moral decay beneath the glittering surface.
Social Class and Hypocrisy
Fanny's concern with mourning attire and Mrs. General's dismissal highlights the superficiality and hypocrisy of high society.
Family Dynamics and Obligation
Fanny's mixed feelings about her siblings—criticizing Amy's low tendency while praising her nursing—reveal complex family obligations.
Characters to notice
- Fanny Dorrit
Now Mrs. Sparkler, she is fretful and bored, mourning her father while criticizing her sister Amy and brother Edward.
- Edmund Sparkler
Fanny's husband, who is awkward and absent-minded, drawing her irritation.
- Mr. Merdle
The illustrious financier visits the Sparklers, borrowing a penknife and appearing detached.
- Little Dorrit
Mentioned by Fanny as nursing Edward in Sicily and needing to be roused from low spirits.
- Tip Dorrit
Edward Dorrit, Fanny's brother, is ill with malaria fever in Sicily, attended by Amy.
Key passages
“That illustrious man and great national ornament, Mr. Merdle, continued his shining course.”
The famous and admired Mr. Merdle kept rising in prominence.
Introduces Mr. Merdle's continued social ascent.
“It began to be widely understood that one who had done society the admirable service of making so much money out of it, could not be suffered to remain a commoner.”
People agreed that someone who had made a fortune from society deserved a title.
Highlights the theme of wealth and social class.
“So quietly did the mowing of the old scythe go on, that fully three months had passed unnoticed since the two English brothers had been laid in one tomb in the strangers’ cemetery at Rome.”
Time passed so quietly that three months had gone by since the two brothers were buried together in Rome.
References the recent death of William Dorrit and his brother Frederick.
“Mrs. Sparkler, who was not unfeeling, had received them with a violent burst of grief, which had lasted twelve hours; after which, she had arisen to see about her mourning, and to take every precaution that could ensure its being as becoming as Mrs. Merdle’s.”
Fanny grieved dramatically for twelve hours, then focused on making her mourning clothes as stylish as Mrs. Merdle's.
Shows Fanny's superficiality even in grief.
“Thoroughly convinced, as he went out of the room, that it was the longest day that ever did come to an end at last, and that there never was a woman, not wholly devoid of personal attractions, so worn out by idiotic and lumpish people, Fanny passed into the balcony for a breath of air.”
Fanny felt the day had been unbearably long and that she was exhausted by stupid, clumsy people, so she stepped onto the balcony.
Reveals Fanny's frustration and sense of superiority.
