The Old Curiosity Shop · Chapter
XXXVII explained
The single gentleman's obsession with Punch and Judy shows disrupts Bevis Marks, much to Sampson Brass's annoyance.
What happens
The single gentleman's obsession with Punch and Judy shows disrupts Bevis Marks, much to Sampson Brass's annoyance. After a performance, he summons the showmen, Codlin and Short, and learns that they encountered Nell and her grandfather at the races. Short mentions a man named Jerry who saw the old man with a traveling waxwork, and the single gentleman hires them to help track the pair down.
Themes in this chapter
Innocence vs. Corruption
Nell's innocence is contrasted with the corrupt, self-serving interests of Codlin and Short, who exploit the single gentleman's desperation for gain.
Greed and Exploitation
Codlin and Short are motivated by money, and Brass's complaints about the shows are tempered by his unwillingness to lose a paying lodger.
Characters to notice
- Sampson Brass
Frustrated by the constant Punch shows and the crowds they attract, he vents to Sally and Swiveller.
- Sally Brass
Defends the shows against her brother's complaints and watches the performance from the window.
- Richard Swiveller
Favors the entertainments as a distraction from work; dusts Sally's headdress with the window glass.
- Tommy Codlin
One of the Punch showmen; melancholy and self-pitying, he claims Nell called him her friend and 'Father Codlin.'
- Short
Codlin's partner; more practical, he tells the single gentleman about Jerry who saw the old man with a waxwork.
- Nell Trent
Referenced as the 'blessed child' and 'darling child' by Codlin; she and her grandfather fled the races and were seen with a traveling waxwork.
Key passages
“‘Codlin’s my friend,’ she says, with a tear of gratitude a trickling down her little eye; ‘Codlin’s my friend,’ she says—‘not Short.’”
Codlin falsely claims that Nell expressed a special fondness for him over Short.
Codlin manipulates the single gentleman by exaggerating his bond with Nell to gain sympathy and reward.
“‘I wish I only knew who his friends were,’ muttered Sampson filling his pocket with papers; ‘if they’d just get up a pretty little Commission de lunatico at the Gray’s Inn Coffee House and give me the job, I’d be content to have the lodgings empty for one while, at all events.’”
Brass wishes he could have the single gentleman declared insane so he could evict him and end the nuisance.
Brass's legal mind turns to exploiting the law for personal convenience, showing his opportunistic nature.