The novel Dombey and Son by C. Dickens and its place in the writer's work Contents

2.2. Satire, subject matter and ways of its realization in the novel Dombey and Son.

As already noted above, satire exposes moral and social evils, vices that, in the writer's opinion, should be highlighted, ridiculed, brought to the surface, as they disfigure and distort people, their behavior, actions and thoughts. Evil can be destroyed only when the mask is torn from it; when vice appears as something terrible, because it will not be covered by anything, when it will frighten and make you think about its eradication.

In Dombey and Son, a deeper understanding of reality and all its contradictions (compared to Dickens ' earlier works) is expressed in the fact that the writer's indignation and anger are combined with merciless laughter. Dickens satirically portrays both moral deformities (inherent in individual characters) and social evils (systems and associations created by society). Thus, it is these objects that are the subject of the writer's satire.
The bearers of moral vices in Dombey and Son are Carker the Manager ("rapacious”, calculating, malicious, unfaithful, self-seeking, hypocritical); Major Bagstock (flattering, hypocritical, selfish); Mrs Pinchin (malicious, gluttonous, selfish, narrow-minded); Mrs Skewton (selfish, unnatural, parasitic); Mrs Chick (callous, cruel)... If the hero is satirically depicted, then his portrait( appearance), speech and actions, as well as the situations in which he finds himself, become the object of satire, but in a more private sense. All of them express a common subject of satirical depiction – moral vice.
Here is a portrait of Mrs. Pinchin “ "a wonderfully ugly, mischievous old lady, with a face as mottled as bad marble, a hooked nose, and hard gray eyes that could be hammered like an anvil without doing any damage”" whose constitution “required hot food, chops, and afterward rest." All the above-mentioned vices of Mrs. Pinchin appear in the description of her appearance, and Dickens uses the method of satiric sharpening of individual traits of her character: ruthlessness, malice. The effect is achieved with the help of epithets: "hooked nose" ("hock nose”); ” hard... eyes“; comparisons (in combination with epithets):” with a mottled face, like bad marble“;” evil eyes, which... could be beaten with a hammer like an anvil “(”with... eyes, that looked as if it might have been hammered at on an anvil“). Mrs. Pinchin's gluttony is revealed not only by the ironic remark that “her constitution required warm nourishment... and mutton-chops”, but also by the designation of her as a“fair ogress”. Dickens uses a metonymic technique (Mrs. Pinchin wears a black bombazine skirt (“black bombzine skirt”) and resembles a savage cannibal). Pinchin's selfishness can be evidenced by the following statement: "... Whatever it was, I'm leaving. I can't stay here. I would have died in a week. I was supposed to roast a pork patty yesterday, and I'm not used to it. My health will suffer." Pinchin leaves the bankrupt owner, since there is no one to take care of her now, and she is forced to take some independent actions herself, which is not in her interests (Dickens very accurately notes this trait of Pinchin's character in her own statement: "I had to cook my own pork chop yesterday, and I'm not used to it“). Dickens maliciously and aptly makes fun of the disgusting flaws embodied in the image of Mrs. Pinchin.
Another example of satirical depiction of moral vices is the image of Mr. Carker, the manager. In describing his appearance, Dickens constantly refers to his “predatory nature”, emphasizing the presence of “two immaculate rows of shiny teeth, whose perfect shape and whiteness were truly depressing. It was impossible not to pay attention to them, because when talking, he always showed them and smiled such a wide smile... that there was something like a cat's grin in it” ("two unbroken rows of glistening teeth, whose regularity and whiteness were quite disturbing. It was impossible to escape the observation of them, for he showed them whenever he spoke; and bore so wide a smile upon his countenance, that there was something in it like the snarl of a cat”).
Wherever Carker appears, the writer always pays special attention to the state and peculiar activity of his character. This is a technique of hyperbolic sharpening – the predator's teeth become full participants in the life of their owner, they are equal to him. Dickens uses the method of repetition, the method of listing actions conveyed using special verbs: Carker's teeth "vibrate in tune with the song" (“his many teeth vibrated to it [song]"), "sparkle”," observe all around " ("observing all around”); Karker himself " aired his teeth” (“bestowed his teeth upon a great many people”), “bared himself to the tops and bottoms of his gums”). To create a satirical image, Dickens uses the epithets " glistening” (“glistening”), “burdened with teeth man” (“the man of teeth”); “smiling gentleman” (“smiling gentleman”); comparisons. As a rule, the Carker is compared to a cat: "in his smile there was something resembling a cat's grin" ("that there was something in it like the snarl of a cat”); “with hair and whiskers... more like the coat of a sandy tortoise-shell cat", or with a wolf: "What a wolf's face! Even the inflamed tongue was visible from the distended mouth, when his eyes met Mr Dombey's!” (“Wolf’s face that it was then, with even the hot tongue revealing itself through the stretched mouth, as the eyes encountered Mr. Dombey’s!”).
Another object of Dickens ' satire is social evil. Its carriers in Dombey and Son are private educational institutions (Dr. Blimber's school, Mrs. Pinchin's boarding school. the old Charity Grinders ' Establishment); society (represented by Mrs Skewton, Major Bagstock, Sir Barnet Skeciles, and the guests at the Dombey House party); and finally, the so – called Dombey phenomenon, a business environment where money alone rules.
Mr Dombey subordinates everything to the interests of his firm, and at the same time the firm itself consumes him, turns him into a kind of soulless automaton that serves its prosperity. Money, which is the reason that its owners are " revered, feared, respected, fawned over”, money makes its owners “influential and great in the eyes of all people, because they “can do anything”. Here is the god of Dombey's world, a world to which only wealth inspires self-confidence and gives power; the welfare of money enterprises is the goal of the life of businessmen, merchants. Here is their idea of their own omnipotence “ " The earth was made for Dombey and son to trade on, and the sun and moon were made to shine upon them... the rivers and seas were made for the navigation of their ships... the stars and planets moved in their own orbits to keep the system of which they were the center inviolable.” The brilliant technique of hyperbole that turns grotesque (the firm's interests are fantastically dominated by celestial bodies) allows Dickens to highlight more deeply the harmful phenomena of hoarding and egoism that are characteristic of the bourgeois world. Monetary relations, the interests of the company replace family, human relations, interest in the beautiful, alive. The lives of those who worship the power of money become a mechanical existence. Dickens raises questions that are fundamental to the existence of society, namely, the incompatibility of hoarding with morality, money with humanity. Dombey's paternal sense of love for his son is deformed, and love for his daughter turns out to be completely impossible (he treats his daughter “like a fake coin that can't be invested "– ” a piece of base coin that couldn't be invested " – a brilliant comparison). Dombey's wife, son, and all those around him are considered only in relation to the firm, and the firm itself becomes something of a myth (a grotesque device). Dombey's feelings freeze, and he becomes like a block of ice. In describing Mr Dombey, Dickens constantly draws attention to the cold that lives in and spreads around the frozen gentleman himself: "Mr Dombey represented wind, dusk and autumn… While waiting for the guests, he stood ... stern and cold as the weather itself, and when he looked at the trees in the garden, their brown and dark leaves fluttered to the ground, as if his gaze was bringing them destruction”" A vivid image, contrasted with the very life of nature by its deadly coldness, is created with the help of hyperbole (leaves fall from Dombey's gaze).); metaphors ("Mr Dombey represented wind, dusk, and autumn" – "Mr Dombey was a man of the world." Dombey represented in himself the wind, the shade, and the autumn”); эпитетов “замороженный” (“frozen”), “холодный” (“cold as the weather”). Finally, Mr Dombey is compared to the fire-irons: “Of all ... things, the stiff and stark fire-irons appeared to claim a nearer relationship than anything else there to Mr Dombey, in his buttoned coat, white cravat, heavy gold watch-chain, and creaking shoes” (“The stiff and stark fire-irons appeared to claim a nearer relationship than anything else there to Mr Dombey). Dombey, with his buttoned coat, his white cravat, his heavy gold watch-chain, and his creaking boots”). The hyperbolic nature of the cold is wonderfully reflected in the dinner scene at Dombey's house after Paul's christening:
"At home they found ... a cold appetizer, set in the cold splendor of crystal and silver, and looking more like a dead man than a hospitable treat...
– …I've got a cold calf's foot, sir, ' said Mr Chick, rubbing his stiff hands assiduously.
– …I have cold veal head, then cold poultry ... ham... salad... lobster...
Everything threatened toothache. The wine was so unbearably cold that Miss Tox gave a little squeak. The veal was brought in from such an icy cupboard that the first bite made Mr. Chick feel as if his hands and feet were freezing…”

Repetitions of the words “cold” (“cold”), “icy”, comparisons associated with the feeling of cold (“as if freezing hands and feet”; “everything threatened toothache” – “there was a toothache in everything”; “snack, similar... to the dead” – “cold pomp... looking... like a dead dinner”) create an atmosphere of unbearably freezing cold that reigns throughout the Dombey house, surprisingly in harmony with the appearance of the owner: a gloomy, dark structure that does not let in the rays of the sun, inside which everything expressed “one thought, namely, the thought of icy cold.” Dombey's cold is the usual condition of a soulless machine that keeps track of cold, lifeless money. Moral vice seems to flow from the social, which is very subtly noted by the writer.

It is not for the first time that Dickens has drawn attention to the appalling system of education and upbringing that exists in private schools, boarding schools and other educational institutions in England. He attached great importance to the problem of education, because he believed (and quite rightly) that the fate of citizens largely depends on the state of school education (the question was raised in the novel “The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby”).
What is it like to be brought up in the home of the “beautiful Peruvian” Mrs. Pinchin? "She was generally spoken of as a” great manager” of children; and the secret of her management was, to give them everything that they didn't like, and nothing they did“. It's a perfect contrast, showing that Mrs. Pinchin's parenting system has nothing to do with love of children and pedagogy. The pupils ' lunch (as opposed to Mrs Pinchin's) consisted “mainly of flour and vegetable food”. In front of half-starved children, a soulless Pinchin eats chops, which, in her opinion, should improve children's morals, although in reality it develops downtroddenness, envy and greed. The Pinchin system is dominated by one moral: everything must be held on the fear of punishment. Finally, Mrs. Pinchin's plan was “not to encourage a child's mind to develop and expand itself like a young flower, but to open it by foreclosure like an oyster”. Vivid comparisons emphasize the contrast: if " bud” (“young flower”) reveals as“oyster” ("oyster"), it violates the natural process of cognition of the world and development, education is anti-education, anti-education. However, public opinion calls Mrs Pinchin's system "excellent". Society does not notice how such an education disfigures the child's mind, and Dickens considers it his duty, by satirically outlining the first stage of children's education, to directly point out the obvious evil that such a system brings.
Step two is an image of the education of students at Dr. Blimber's school. Here is how Dickens describes this educational institution: "Dr. Blimber's institution was a large greenhouse, where the forcing apparatus was constantly working. All the boys were blooming prematurely. The mental green peas were ripe for Christmas, and the intellectual asparagus was ripe all year round. Under Dr. Blimber's supervision, mathematical gooseberries ... usually appeared at the most unexpected times of the year… All kinds of Greek and Latin vegetables were brought with the driest branches and in any frost. Nature didn't matter. Whatever fruit the young gentleman was intended for, Dr. Blimber made him bear the standard fruit in one way or another… But... there was no proper taste in the precocious products, and they were poorly preserved." The whole description is based on metaphors, and each of them seems to refute the statement " children are the flowers of life." In the” hothouse“of Blimber “ "flowers" produce fruits ("green peas" – "green pears”," intellectual asparagus "- ” intellectual asparagus“; "mathematical gooseberries" – " mathematical gooseberries”; “Greek and Latin vegetables” – “Greek and Latin vegetable”) in“the most unexpected time of the year” (“untemely seasons”), and the abilities of students (“nature” - "nature") did not matter at all. In Blimber's accelerated learning system, boys “bloomed prematurely” (“blew before their time“), they were” forced to bear fruit of a set pattern “(”made... bear to pattern, somewhere or elsewhere“), but they” did not have the right taste “(”was not the right taste"). That is, the Blimber system is completely ineffective: accelerated education, which does not take into account the individual abilities of children, led to the fact that all the fruits of learning “did not keep well” (did not keep well”). The results of such training are sad: “a young gentleman... suddenly stopped blooming one day "("left off blowing") and “remained in the establishment a mere stalk”("remained in the establishment a mere stalk"). Under the influence of the accelerated system, " the young gentleman usually lost his vigor (“took leave of his spirits”) after three weeks… By the end of the first year, he was coming to the conclusion, which he never changed, that all the dreams of poets and the teachings of sages were a mere collection of words and grammar, and had no other meaning in the world. The Blimber system puts as much knowledge as possible on the shoulders of unhappy students; children gradually develop not a desire for knowledge, but a real aversion to science, and some students become ... just idiots. The Blimber itself is similar to a soulless mechanism (Dickens often compares it to a clock), and students call it the "education" yoke of Blimber ("allegiance of Blimber").
What kind of young person should be trained in such a school? Here is the example of Toots, who “lost his brains when his whiskers began to show” (”when he began to have whiskers he left off having brains“), Briggs and Tozer, who are haunted by nightmarish lessons in their dreams, and many other victims of this” pedagogical " system.
Nor is "the old Charity Grinders Institution," where, in the words of Mr Dombey, “the pupils receive a beneficent education”" And this institution is dominated by the so – called “teacher”-“an overripe former Grinder of a ferocious temper, who was appointed a teacher because he knew nothing and was not suitable for anything” (“super-rannuated old grinder of savage disposition, who had been appointed schoolmaster because he did not know anything”).
It's a startling phenomenon: the system creates good-for-nothing people who, in turn, can teach nothing but fear; but the number of young people who, like Rob Toodle, “lose their way” (or, in other words, become criminals) increases. And how can the result be different if such” education " is given by people who occupy “the place of a teacher with the same right as a hunting dog could occupy it”?
An angry denunciation of the disfiguring nature of such education was nevertheless heard: after the publication of Dickens ' works, in which he dealt with the education system, a large number of private schools in England were inspected, which led to the closure of many of them and, ultimately, to the improvement of education and upbringing systems.
Secular society, with all its vices, cruel laws, baseness and immorality, Dickens ridicules mercilessly. How ugly and terrible it is to have monsters like Major Bagstock, Mrs. Skewton, empty-headed vermin like Sir Barnet Snettles! Secular society dictates its own terms, passes its own sentences, and expands with the addition of upstarts and snobs seeking profit and power.
Its falseness and unnaturalness, as well as parasitism, are emphasized in the image of old Mrs. Skewton, who dresses up like a young girl; flirts, coquettishes and screams; lies in the pose of Cleopatra (for half a century), has an unnatural pink complexion. The terrible contrast is presented in the evening, when the touch of one of the maids “was the touch of Death. The painted old woman shrank under her hand, the figure shrank, the hair fell, the dark arched eyebrows became thin tufts of gray hair, the pale lips sunk in, the skin became dead and flabby; an old woman with a shaking head and red eyes took Cleopatra's place… The maid reappeared to collect Cleopatra's ashes, so that in the morning they might rise again to life”" The satirical effect of Dickens is based on contrast: Cleopatra becomes an old woman, turns into " ashes“, which is carried away by a maid who has become” skeleton-Death“. It is not only Cleopatra's appearance that is false (Dickens uses a metonymy to describe Skewton), but also her feelings and words. An example of this is the following episode: Carker and Mrs Skewton look at the paintings, Carker is kind and addresses Mrs Skewton, but the "sensitive lady “" became so ecstatic with the works of art that after an hour she could only yawn (they are so inspiring, " she said…)” (“was in such ecstasies with the wok of art, after the first quater of an hour; that she could do nothing but yawn (they were such perfect inspirations, she observed…)”. Indifference to art, its lack of understanding is hidden under the mask of enthusiastic praise. When talking about Mrs. Skewton, Dickens constantly uses repetitions of the word “fake” (“lady... slightly adjusting her false curls and false eyebrows with a fan and showing false teeth, which were sharply highlighted by her false complexion” – “lady... slightly settling her false eurls and false eyebrows with her fan, and showing her false teeth, set off by her false complexion), increasing the expression and impression of the image Skewton. The image of Mrs. Skewton is grotesque; but, as is the case with Dickens, it is extraordinarily plausible. The author's comment also serves as a satirical representation of falsehood and unnaturalness:
"We are outrageously real, Mr Carker," said Mrs Skewton, " aren't we?
Few people had less reason to complain about their reality than Cleopatra, who had as much that was false about her as could well go to the composition of anyone with a real individual existence.”
In addition to the unnatural nature of light, Dickens exposes another vice of it – hypocrisy. Major Bagstock's example is an excellent example of this. He makes the acquaintance of Mr Dombey, as he is rich and influential, and can therefore serve the Major well.
The Major, when he meets Dombey, immediately begins to flatter him; and he achieves his purpose by praising Dombey himself (“that's a name, sir, a man will know with pride... by jove, it's a glorious name!” – “It is a name, sir, that a man is proud to recognise… By the lord, it’s a great name!“J. B. is a thorough – going, down – right, plain–spoken old Trump... That boy, sir, will live in a history”), and a small Field (“J. B. is a straightforward, simple-minded, outspoken man; that boy, sir, will live in a history”). The major's speech is simple, blunt (and this is how she impresses). He always speaks about himself in the third person, often repeats the same thing (the goal is to make the interlocutor remember something about him, the major), in relation to his superiors, he uses the respectful address “sir” through each word. The Major is ready to flatter anyone who can satisfy his desire for worldly pleasures and good society. If the idol and patron loses its power and authority, the secular society, which previously exalted the object of its flattery, now immediately turns away from it. In Bagstock's face, it looks like this: "To Major Bagstock, Dombey's bankruptcy was a real disaster. The Major was not one of those who knows how to think about his neighbor – all his attention was focused on J. B.... " The author's assessment does not require comment. G. Chesterton commented on the image of Major Bagstock: "Major... is the purest grotesque ... Dickens is most accurate where he is particularly fantastic. He exaggerates when he finds a truth that can be exaggerated… In the grotesque Bagstock, what is called the worst and most dangerous of hypocrisies is violently and obviously exaggerated. The most vile and dangerous hypocrite is not the one who dresses up as an unpopular virtue, but the one who flaunts a fashionable vice. The world loves rough, experienced soldiers, scolding servants and winking at ladies... ". And that is why very few people notice the hypocrisy of the major, because he seems to say everything directly and frankly, played the role of a simple and naive eccentric. Even his appearance (very evilly described by Dickens with epithets and comparisons: “purple face” (“purple face”), “crayfish eyes” (“lobster eyes”) disposes to trust; such people are considered entirely " their own”, entertaining and interesting interlocutors, deeply devoted to friends. Dickens shatters these illusions.
Finally, in the example of Sir Barnet Snettles, we see Dickens ' denunciation of the insignificance, emptiness, and parasitism of secular society. “Sir Barnet, "he wrote," made a great show of his own person, chiefly by means of an old gold snuff-box, and a heavy handkerchief, which he drew impressively from his pocket, like a banner, and unfurled with both hands.” Dickens emphasizes the insignificance of Snettles 'personage by showing the ostensible solemnity of the hero's actions, “had an imposing manner of drawing" a handkerchief, which is compared to a banner (“like a banner”).
“Sir Barnet object in life was constantly to extend the range of his acquisition... Sir Barnet was proud of making people acquainted with people”, even if in response to his invitation to make a guest meet someone at his own request, he was called a person“whom Sir Barnet knew personally”. no more than Ptolemy the Great “(”of whom Sir Barnet had no more personal knowledge than of Ptolemy the Great“).
The pointlessness and pointlessness of the existence of some members of secular society (the embodiment of the main features of which is Barnet Snetls) lead to the fact that their idleness turns into parasitism: they do not really know how to do anything, they live at the expense of others.
In addition to the pronounced satirical characterization of objects, Dombey and Son provides examples of the so-called “transition area” between humor and satire. The "transition area" should be understood as those phenomena in which the humorous way of portraying it loses its good nature, becomes angrier, more mocking, but this method still does not reach satire with its merciless denunciation of evil as a vice that needs to be identified and destroyed, which is dangerous for further development. Laughter becomes moralizing; the hero (phenomenon, situation) subjected to such “transitional” ridicule is somehow justified by the writer.
Examples of the "transition area" are the images of Miss Tox and Miss Cornelia Blimber. Dickens notes rather angrily Miss Tox's sycophancy, obsequiousness, and stupidity. But she, as it turns out in reality, is sympathetic, kind and loyal, knows how to sympathize and sympathize, and, most importantly, is capable of a sincere, high feeling – love. She is a former pupil of Mrs. Pinchin's, but refuses the methods of education introduced by the “beautiful ogress"; she brings up the Toodle children as she sees fit, and does it superbly.
Miss Cornelia Blimber seems like a soulless creature who is alien to all living things. She even seems scary when describing how she teaches the pets of Dr. Blimber's school at the “initial stage” – after all, it is she who puts an unbearable load of knowledge on their shoulders. But, despite all her shortcomings, Cornelia gets an excuse: she, it turns out, “did not want to be too... harsh at all… She just stuck to the faith she was raised to believe in." She doesn't have Mrs. Pinchin's selfishness and malice, and unlike her father (Dr. Blimber), she understands that these are children, not academics.
It awakens human feelings: she loves little Paul in her own way, and at the end of the novel marries Mr. Feeder, for whom she feels genuine sympathy. There is also hope for improving the educational conditions at the school, which passes into the hands of the Feeder: Blimber's “ig” is being replaced by a more lenient training regime.
If the hero shows even a drop of warmth, if his vices do not pose a threat to others (if they can be easily corrected), he is never completely described in Dickens satirically. If at the beginning of the characterization of such a hero, elements of satire can be found, then later, when the image is revealed and it becomes clear that it belongs to the "transition area", the character is characterized as quite positive and the satire is replaced by mild humor. I emphasize that in this case we are talking about characters like Miss Tox and Cornelia. It is difficult to speak of Mr Dombey on the basis of a similar attitude - besides, the purpose of this article is not to study the transformation of this character, although this transformation certainly took place.
In general, speaking about the ways of satirical portrayal, it should be noted that, despite the undoubted power and depth of denouncing evil, the writer's satire in Dombey and Son still does not reach the scale that it will receive a little later (for example, in the novels “Little Dorrit” and “Bleak House” the writer creates “generalized images that are deliberately devoid of individual features and features and reflect in the most general form the most characteristic features”, for example, state institutions – the Ministry of Red tape, Clerical Court). But how vividly the images of Mrs. Skewton, Carker, and Bagstock are created! How wonderfully satirical are the ways in which children are brought up (in Mrs. Pinchin, Dr. Blimber, and The Merciful Grinders)! As satirical techniques, Dickens brilliantly uses the technique of hyperbole, grotesque, various types of tropes, repetitions, author's assessment and special lexical means. Writing Dombey and Son, Dickens believed in the possibility of correcting the shortcomings and injustices of reality, so the objects of satire (as carriers of evil) are defeated in this work.
The novel Dombey and Son contains all the shades of Dickensian laughter that appeared in his works of the period of the 30s and late 40s. The mastery of humorous and satirical images combined with the most entertaining plot and the depth of the problems posed by the writer make the novel Dombey and Son a masterpiece of world classics.