Customer Reviews

Dombey and Son (New Oxf. Ill. Dickens)

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Upon finishing Dombey and Son this morning, I thought back to the first Dickens work I ever read, which was David Copperfield, as a freshman in high school. Since then I have read many others, all with the same extensive cast of characters, side plots, etc.....

Except this one....which makes me question why it is not used as an introduction to the works of Dickens in school curriculums.

Dombey and Son, as a title, refers to the business which provides wealth, title, and position to Mr. Dombey, the aforementioned father. The 'son' refers to a succession of partners in that business, as well as an arrival at the opening of the book, which leads to the demise of Mrs. Dombey. But little Paul Dombey, sharing in his father's first and last names, joins an already present sibling in the world, his sister Florence.

Through the course of the novel, you realize that Dombey and Daughter are really the focus of this story....the fortunes and misfortunes that befall them both, the grievous neglect of one for the other, despite the efforts of the one neglected to reconcile...and a host of others that enter and exit from their lives.

But to recapture and jusitfy my initial point, this book is a marvelous starting point to read Dickens. It is far easier to keep track of the cast of the story, as it is more limited than other Dickens novels, while sharing the same length as most others. The story lines all really do feed into the central plot, and while the 'comedy' that I so enjoy in Dickens's prose is, admittedly, more limited here...it still is a highly enjoyable tale, and a great place to get your feet wet with one of history's best tale-weavers.

Although bittersweet and melancholy in tone, for the majority of the story, Dombey and Son holds up with Dickens's other novels as a true classic.

If you love Dickens, you'll like this book. If you're not committed to the work and style of Boz, you may have a hard time getting through it. It gets off to a very slow start; it wears its didactic aims more prominently on its sleeve than most of Dickens' novels do (the preceding novel, Martin Chuzzlewit, having been a study of the perils of greed, this one is likewise a study on self-destroying pride.) Its heroine is so self-sacrificing, uncomplaining, sweet and forgiving that a modern reader is likely to feel the impulse to throttle her more than once. I found it the least satisfying of the dozen Dickens novels I've read, and have rounded its three and a half stars up rather than down, in honor of all the other good stuff he's produced.

All that being said, the book contains plenty of rewards for the persevering. Dombie's daughter, the over-gentle Florence, is more than made up for by a string of sharply drawn women who are nobody's wallflowers: the peppery Susan Nipper, the fearsome landlady Mac Stinger, and the magnificent second Mrs. Dombey, whose inflexible, bent pride puts steel to her husband's flint as the story gains headway halfway through. The plotting is intricate and tight, the peeks into Victorian hypocrisies (never far removed from our own) are trenchant, and we are treated to what is possibly the most riveting death scene in the whole oeuvre, which Dickens chose to present from the decedent's point of view in a stream of consciousness passage as remarkable for its technical daring as its sentimentality.

Throw in the superbly menacing, dentally impeccable villain, Mr Carker, and a rogue's gallery of lesser despicables from the streetwise dunce Chicken, to the blustering toady Joe Bagstock, to the second Mrs. Dombey's outrageous tin magnolia of a mother, and it's a book you'd be happy to stumble across in the cabin some snowbound weekend.

The Oxford World Classics edition has an extremely useful set of notes, which includes in full Dickens' initial outline of the work.

This is one of the best Dickens novels I have ever read. The character of Florence is so beautifully developed, and while I was reading, I got the sense that Dickens himself was in love with Florence. There's also that sense of mystery, in the dealings of Mrs. Brown and Alice, and their hatred of Mr. Carker. This book is full of surprises, and I was kept riveted to every single page. This is definitely a book that I would recommend to anyone, and one that I will be reading again and again.

I was not overly thrilled with Dickens' previous novel Martin Chezzlewit, despite those amazing American scenes. That was a transitional work - where Dickens was going can be seen quite clearly in Dombey and Son.

In Dombey and Son we have the biting satire (the title being the biggest black joke of all) and the more expansive social criticism of Dickens' later work. Dombey is a proud business man and wants an heir. What he does to his children is chilling and his second marriage becomes its own nightmare. Dombey is also where Dickens starts using an overriding symbol for his longer works - here the railroads as a symbol of progress and brute force.

The plot is surprisingly linear for such a long Dickens novel - it lacks the myriad of subplots that his other novels have. The going is slow at times but the psychology gets deeper and more intricate as you continue. This novel is too often overlooked but it is a fine work of the author's early maturity. It points the way to Dickens' two best novels which immediately follow - David Copperfield and Bleak House.

Although this novel is 800 pages long, it is so well constructed that you do not notice how long it is. Careful reading of this enables you to see that Dickens had this novel very carefully thought out from the start. Characters such as Paul Dombey, Florence, and little Paul are very well drawn and very convincing. I can not overestimate the grace in which Dickens balances suspense, good and bad omens, comic relief, and powerful images. The reconciliation scene between Florence and her father is a scene of such rare and exquisite beauty. (even to me an English Major) Along with "David Copperfield" (1850), "Bleak House" (1853), and "Hard Times" (1854), this is a phenomenal masterpiece beyond expectations.

I just finished reading this gargantuan tome today after two weeks of diligent reading. It is second only to "David Copperfield" in my opinion. It is easy to be intimidated by a book this size (almost 1000 pages) but you must give this one a try! If you adore books that revolve around family dysfunction, this one is perfect for you. It's got characters you will love to hate and it is replete with genuine mysteries. If you have read "Oliver Twist," you will be glad to know that this story's good characters are a little less flat and boring.

As with Henry Fielding's "Tom Jones," there will be a few lulls here and there. In a story of this magnitude, it is hard to avoid...but there are not many. This is truly an enjoyable read. Be sure to get a copy that contains drawings by "Phiz"-- they really add to the overall story.

A previously posted review asks: "How can readers accept that a woman's happiness can be achieved either through living to make men happy OR through living according to one's conscience? Surely one of these characters deserves the author's condemnation yet neither clearly receives it." It is sad when a reader is so intent on pigeonholing complex, richly drawn characters into narrow politically correct categories that he or she misses out on joys of a wonderful novel like this. Florence is denied her father's love, blames herself, and strives harder for it. This is a psychologically accurate portrait of what such a child would do, not an example of "living to make men happy" that Dickens should have condemned or praised. Likewise as to Edith's "living according to her conscience," although in fact she fails to live according to her conscience, and hates herself for it. And another previously posted review says that "the ending is wonderful, and Dickens ties up the numerous subplots with the most delightful precision." I found the final 100 pages the only bad part of the book, as Dickens artificially ties up matters that he had no need to tie up; he should have ended the book sooner. But this is my favorite Dickens novel so far.

This is the first story that has been able to touch my "heart". The touching and heartbreakingly-ended relationship between the young girl Florence Dombey (the main character who was 7 years old in the beginning of the story and around 20 in the end) and her little brother Paul Dombey Jr. left me sleepless for many nights. Florence Dombey's eventual winning of her unaffectionate father's heart made me quite joyful, though I was still haunted and saddened by the earlier parts of the book.

Moreover, Florence Dombey's affection for all who were kind to her has made me fall in love with her. I wish she could come to life, travel through time into the 21st century, and become my adopted sister. Oh, Floy, how I love you, how I love you, dear Floy! ("Floy" is Florence's nickname)

I would definitely recommend this book to all who have a "heart", or more scientifically, a region in the brain that is sensitive and receptive to love and affection.

After tackling the subject of greed and selfishness in "Martin Chuzzlewit",Charles Dickens turned his critical eye on pride and selfishness to achieve another masterwork in "Dombey and Son"."Dombey and Son" presents a vivid "criticism of life" teeming with unforgettable characters and scenes,written with an almost surreal intensity.The novel,like most of Dickens' others,is hauntingly lyrical and is embued with a quiet melancholy."Dombey and Son" tells the story of the destructiveness of a rich merchant's deadening pride on those around him.It details his own "comeuppance",when after ruining much of the lives of those who love him,Dombey is nearly destoyed by the villains and fools surrounding him,who have used his wife-a tragic and desperate golddigger more proud than he-to strike at him."Dombey and Son" illustrates the old message that nothing but love and kindness matter,that we and everything we have will ultimately perish and pride and selfishness are the frailest goods to be bought in this vanity fair.Yet the book's many original characters gives the conception fresh life and its comedy both genial and satiric lightens the sad gloom of such a moral tale.There are(as typical of Dickens)many grotesques in the novel-some good(the affectionate and good-natured Captain Cuttle,the saucy and defensive Susan Nipper),some bad(the sour martinet Mrs. Pipchin,the apoplectic and sycophantic Major) and some just plain evil(that emblem of consummate hypocrisy-Mr. Carker)."Dombey and Son" is like a grand feast where there is so much being served,that you don't know where to begin-and this for some readers may not be a good thing.The book is very long and Dickens' long sentences dwell lovingly on every detail(you will probably never see so many semicolons on one page);they who prefer something that gets to the point quicker or someting lighter may not have the patience for Dickens.However for me this was not a problem-Dickens' use of sentimentality,though, was.It is unfortunate that he chose as with Little Nell,to "angelize" Florence Dombey.She is fatally marred by being made to not only meekly love a father who neglects and despises her but to wander forlornly around their house,kissing the furniture he has touched and spending half the book in tears.This is a shame since Florence is at times charming and some of the book's more powerful scenes make effective use of her.The character of the precocious and doomed Paul Dombey,however is of a different achievement.The chapter entitled(I think)"What the waves were always saying" details with hallucinatory intensity the world to the eyes of a dying child and was one of the most famous scenes with the Victorians;it remains one of the most powerful in all of literature."Dombey and Son" despite its length and flaws will always remain for the true lover of literature-immortal.

Dombey and Son focuses on the life of Florence, the unwanted daughter of Mr. Paul Dombey. She earned the dislike of her Father by being born a girl, rather than being the son and heir that he wished for. When a son finally is born, Mr. Dombey cannot gain his love -- while Florence, in her simple innocence, can -- which lends more to Mr. Dombey's dislike of her. Mr. Dombey's wife dies, as does his son, leaving him and Florence alone together. Rather than seeking friendship with his daughter at this point, Mr. Dombey withdraws from her, leaving Florence to grow up alone, and vainly dream of a day when her father might learn to love her. After a long while of this avoidance, Mr. Dombey marries a cold, hard woman named Harriet; who never loved him and felt that he purchased her with his money. At this point, Dombey almost relents toward his daughter -- until he notices a growing friendship between her and Harriet. Once again Florence has innocently gained the love of one who Dombey cannot, causing him to not only harden toward her, but to his cold wife. Florence's dreams of having her father learn to love her are abruptly shattered as her father's arrogance and her step-mother's hatred drive the Dombey household toward a bitter and infamous end. Dombey and Son is one of Dickens's finest novels; it is complex, riveting and passionate.