The Evolution of Esther, Krook's Death and More

We are now officially over the half-way mark on Bleak House and Esther has grown quite a bit. Esther has matured and begun to find herself, when sickness struck her. For a while we were left unsure of whether Esther would regain her sight, and when she did we were then left with the fact that Esther had been scarred. Her comment on Charley changed and disfigured looks is a window into Esther's own feelings when she is later afflicted.

The theme of watching and looking-glasses/mirrors was prevalent with not only Esther's brief blindness, but Charley's removal of the mirrors from the rooms so that Esther could not see herself, as well as Mrs. Woodcourt's visit at the beginning of the installment where she makes the fortune of "...it is that you will marry some one, very rich and very worthy, much older -- five-and-twenty years perhaps -- than yourself. And you will be an excellent wife, and much beloved..." (p.367) This fortune mirrors that of Lady Dedlock's marry to Sir Leicester, but also hints at a possible relationship between Esther and John Jarndyce. Which could explain Jarndyce's reaction to being called "Father." More speculation can be made about the interactions of Esther and John Jarndyce as opposed to Esther and Richard or Esther and Guppy.

Esther has sometimes been noted as being unreliable and contradictory. With the final passage we read in class of the installment as well as the great pains Esther takes to keep Ada from becoming sick along with not seeing Esther, we can deduce that Esther does care about looks. As we had said previously, Esther is protecting her own looks by protecting Ada's. Esther's relief that Alan Woodcourt had not professed his love as it would break both their hearts now if Esther had to write to Alan about disfigurement, now brings into question Guppy's response to how Esther now looks. Would Guppy still pursue Esther? Guppy seems to be in love with Esther, but how far will that love go now?

There is also the suspicious events of not only Krook going up in flames along with the blackmail material that Guppy was about to show Lady Dedlock, but Esther contracting smallpox from Charley who had gotten it from Jo. Now, there is very little tying Esther and Lady Dedlock together. Whatever Guppy had to say on the matter is now just hearsay. Jo has been an unreliable witness before and quite possibly dead. The only connection left may lay with Mr. George or even Mr. Bagnet who knew of Captain Hawdon before Nemo, and may hold writing samples that everyone is after. And with the Smallweeds now being connected with Krook through Mrs. Smallweeds, their hold over people is spreading and bringing further corruption.

How ironic is it that Krook/Lord Chancellor has become the Wind that sometimes upsets Jarndyce to enter the Growlery?

Also, to watch out for is the handkerchief that Esther had laid on Jenny's dead child several installments back. It makes a brief mention by Miss Flite who relays the story from Jenny that a "lady with a veil" took the "handkerchief away with her as a little keepsake, merely because" it belonged the Esther. (p.438) Is Esther right that the lady was Caddy? Or can we guess that it's Lady Dedlock who took the handkerchief?

And there is Mrs. Rouncewell crossing paths with Mr. George and Mr. Bagnet outside of Tulkinghorn's office, and of course Mr. George had been so occupied over something else that he hadn't turned around until Mrs. Rouncewell had left despite the fact that Mr. Bagnet and Mrs. Rouncewell had conversed on the fact that she had a son that was a soldier. Did Mr. George know and recognize her, and thus had been hiding? Or was it truly a coincidence that he had been distracted?