Mountains of costly nonsense // Justin Johnson

 In Bleak House, Dickens presents a very dour and pessimistic view of the civil law system in England at the time of the novel. This general sentiment was already an old and time-honored tradition already by Dickens’ time, and somewhat carries to this day, but window we’re given into this world and these specific circumstances makes our modern complaints of frivolous lawsuits seem almost childish in comparison. The sentiment of the uselessness of chancery court is so widespread that it has simply become a common recreation to laugh at the misfortunes of those who find themselves wrapped up in chancery. Even those who find themselves irreversibly tangled in the web of Jarndyce and Jarndyce or similar cases find a bit of morbid humor in it. Miss Flite, for example, has resigned herself to making light of the situation. As she tells our young protagonists: "I expect a judgement, shortly. On the day of judgement. I have discovered that the sixth seal mentioned in the Revelations is the Great Seal" (Dickens 34.15-17). The case has become so drawn out and utterly worthless that those involved in the case can hardly be bothered to conjure up an ounce of hope that it will ever be resolved in their favor, seeking escape from the debacle even in suicide. Peace seems to come only in ignorance in the Jarndyce case, and as our characters get swept up in its ramifications it seems that they will find they would rather have never heard of the case at all

Comments

  1. Hailey WalshOctober 26, 2021 at 9:13 AM

    I agree; Dickens' description of the Jarndyce and Jarndyce case is both unfortunate and humorous. The fact that those involved have so lost hope in the case that the rapture seems closer to closure is a miserable but relatable image, especially for many of those in Dickens' day who must have experienced something similar with the corrupt and ignorant courts of the time.

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  2. Justin JOctober 26, 2021 at 9:22 AM

    I commented on Emma D and Bug's posts

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