The Old Curiosity Shop · Chapter
XXXVI explained
Richard Swiveller rises in influence in the Brass household due to his perceived connection with the mysterious single gentleman, and he also gains favor with Miss Sally Brass through his entertaining antics.
What happens
Richard Swiveller rises in influence in the Brass household due to his perceived connection with the mysterious single gentleman, and he also gains favor with Miss Sally Brass through his entertaining antics. He becomes increasingly curious about the small servant, who is kept in miserable conditions, and secretly observes Miss Sally feeding her a meager portion of food while administering cruel blows.
Themes in this chapter
Greed and Exploitation
Miss Sally Brass exploits the small servant, providing barely enough food to survive while locking away provisions, and physically abusing her.
Class and Social Hierarchy
The small servant occupies the lowest social rung, invisible and neglected, while Swiveller and the Brasses hold power over her.
Poverty and Suffering
The small servant's living conditions are described as dark, damp, and starvation-level, highlighting her extreme poverty and suffering.
Characters to notice
- Richard Swiveller
Rises in importance in the Brass household, entertains Miss Sally with tricks, and becomes curious about the small servant's treatment.
- Sally Brass
Shows a cruel and miserly nature, feeding the small servant a tiny portion of meat while beating her, and is amused by Swiveller's antics.
- Sampson Brass
Mentioned as being absent during the events; his sister Sally runs the household and office in his stead.
- The Small Servant
Kept in a dark, damp kitchen, starved and beaten by Miss Sally, and rarely seen above ground.
- The Schoolmaster
Referred to as the single gentleman; he communicates only with Swiveller and is a desirable lodger.
Key passages
“The pinched and meagre aspect of the place would have killed a chameleon. He would have known at the first mouthful that the air was not eatable, and must have given up the ghost in despair.”
The kitchen was so barren and miserable that even a chameleon, which can survive on air, would starve there.
Hyperbolic description of the small servant's wretched environment.
“Mr. Swiveller gradually came to look upon her as her brother Sampson did, and as he would have looked upon any other clerk.”
Swiveller began to treat Miss Sally Brass like a fellow clerk, just as her brother did.
Swiveller's growing familiarity with Sally Brass, treating her as an equal in the office.