Bleak House (Masterplots, Revised Second Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Charles Dickens
- First Published: 1852
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Social realism
- Time of Work: Mid-nineteenth century
- Setting: London, Lincolnshire, and Hertfordshire, England
- Principal Characters: John Jarndyce, Richard Carstone, Ada Clare, Esther Summerson, Allan Woodcourt, Lady Dedlock, Tulkinghorn, William Guppy, Snagsby, Krook, Jo
- Genres: Long fiction, Social realism
- Subjects: Murder or homicide, Nineteenth century, Social issues, England or English people, Blackmail, Lower classes, Inheritance or succession, Lawyers, Moral conditions, Mysteries, Victorian era or Victorianism, Courts or courtrooms
- Locales: London, England, Hertfordshire, England, Lincolnshire, England
The Story:
The suit of Jarndyce vs. Jarndyce was a standing joke in the Court of Chancery. Beginning with a dispute as to how the trusts under a Jarndyce will were to be administered, the suit had dragged on, year after year, generation after generation, without settlement. The heirs, or would-be heirs, of suits like Jarndyce vs. Jarndyce spent their lives waiting. Some, like Tom Jarndyce, blew out their brains. Others, like tiny Miss Flite, visited the court in daily expectation of some judgment that would settle the disputed estate and bring her the wealth of...
[The entire page is 2561 words long]
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