Summary

Our Mutual Friend, Charles Dickens's final completed novel, is a dark and complex tale of greed, redemption, and social criticism in Victorian London. Published in monthly installments from 1864 to 1865, the story revolves around the inheritance of a dust-heap fortune and features a sprawling cast of characters from all levels of society. The novel is considered one of Dickens's most sophisticated and experimental works, admired for its intricate plot, sharp satire, and vivid depictions of 19th-century urban life.

Plot

Our Mutual Friend opens with Gaffer Hexam, who makes his living by robbing corpses he finds in the River Thames, with the reluctant assistant of his daughter, Lizzie. Meanwhile, John Harmon, heir to a dust contractor's fortune, is presumed drowned on his way to London. The inheritance passes to a kindhearted but illiterate dustman, Mr. Boffin, and his wife, who take in Bella Wilfer—a beautiful but mercenary young woman who had planned to marry Harmon as a condition of his inheritance.

As it turns out, John Harmon survived the attempt on his life. Taking on the alias of John Rokesmith, he becomes secretary to Mr. Boffin to observe Bella and the Boffins. As the story unfolds, their lives intertwine with other characters, including Jenny Wren, the crippled dolls' dressmaker; the villainous one-legged Silas Wegg, who tries to blackmail Mr. Boffin; the dissolute lawyer Eugene Wrayburn, who falls in love with Lizzie Hexam; and Lizzie’s other suitor, the violent schoolmaster Bradley Headstone.

Many plot twists, involving false identities, attempted murder, blackmail schemes, and dramatic rescues from the Thames, follow. Ultimately, John Harmon reveals his true identity and marries Bella, who has grown from a shallow gold-digger into a genuinely caring woman. Lizzie saves Eugene’s life, after he is attacked by Bradley, and they marry as well. The virtuous characters find happiness while the villains meet unhappy fates, in true Dickensian fashion.

Themes

• The corrupting influence of money and greed
• Social class divisions and mobility
• Identity, disguise, and reinvention
• Love and marriage across class lines
• Death and rebirth
• The power of education and literacy
• Environmental and social pollution in Victorian London

Setting

Our Mutual Friend is set in Victorian London in the 1860s, during the peak of the Industrial Revolution. The city is portrayed as a place of stark contrasts between the wealthy and the poor, with descriptions of both opulent mansions and squalid slums. The polluted River Thames features prominently as both a source of livelihood for some characters and a symbol of death and rebirth.

Much of the action takes place around the dust heaps on the outskirts of London, where mountains of household refuse are sorted for valuables. These dust heaps represent the corrupting influence of money and materialism in society. Other key locations include the wealthy Veneering household, which hosts lavish dinner parties, and the humble dwellings of characters like Lizzie Hexam and Jenny Wren.

The novel briefly ventures outside of London to rural settings. Betty Higden's journey takes her through picturesque countryside, providing a contrast to the grime of the city. Overall, Dickens paints a vivid picture of mid-Victorian London as a place of both opportunity and struggle, where fortunes can be made or lost and where societal changes are creating upheaval for people of all classes.

Characters

• John Harmon/John Rokesmith: Heir to the Harmon estate who fakes his own death and then takes on an alias to investigate his intended bride and others' reactions to his demise.
• Bella Wilfer: A beautiful but mercenary young woman who was to marry John Harmon, Bella undergoes moral transformation over the course of the novel.
• Nicodemus (Noddy) Boffin: An illiterate but kindhearted man who inherits the Harmon fortune when John is presumed dead.
• Mrs. Henrietta Boffin: Noddy's wife, a motherly woman who takes in an orphan boy.
• Lizzie Hexam: Gaffer Hexam’s daughter and reluctant business partner. She is pursued romantically by both Eugene Wrayburn and Bradley Headstone.
• Eugene Wrayburn: A lazy young barrister who falls in love with Lizzie Hexam.
• Mortimer Lightwood: Lawyer and friend of Eugene Wrayburn.
• Bradley Headstone: A repressed schoolmaster who is obsessively in love with Lizzie Hexam.
• Jenny Wren: A disabled dolls’ dressmaker and friend of Lizzie.
• Silas Wegg: A one-legged ballad seller hired to read to the illiterate Mr. Boffin, who attempts to blackmail him.
• Mr. Venus: A taxidermist who helps Wegg in his schemes.
• Mr. and Mrs. Veneering: Newly rich social climbers.
• Mr. and Mrs. Lammle: A husband and wife who married each other for their money, only to discover neither has any.
• Rogue Riderhood: A villainous waterman who accuses Gaffer Hexam of murder.
• Gaffer Hexam: Lizzie’s father, a waterman who makes his living retrieving corpses from the Thames.
• Charley Hexam: Gaffer’s son and Lizzie’s brother, who tries to rise above his station through education.
• Mr. Riah: A kind Jewish moneylender who helps Lizzie and Jenny.
• Betty Higden: A poor old woman who takes in orphans.

Quick facts

• Our Mutual Friend was Dickens's last completed novel, published in monthly installments from 1864 to 1865.
• The novel's opening scene of a body being pulled from the River Thames was inspired by Dickens witnessing a similar event in real life.
• Dickens was involved in the Staplehurst rail crash while writing the novel, which he references in the postscript.
• It was the first of Dickens's novels not to be illustrated by his long-time collaborator Hablot Knight Browne ("Phiz").
• The character of Mr. Venus was based on a real taxidermist Dickens had encountered.
• Dickens created the character of Riah, a kind Jewish moneylender, as a response to criticism of his portrayal of the unscrupulous Jewish moneylender Fagin in Oliver Twist.
• T.S. Eliot's working title for “The Waste Land” was a quote from Our Mutual Friend, “He Do the Police in Different Voices."
• In 1998, Our Mutual Friend was adapted into a popular BBC miniseries, starring Paul McGann and Anna Friel.
• Despite mixed reviews when published, Our Mutual Friend is now considered one of Dickens's most sophisticated and complex works.

About the author

Charles Dickens (1812-1870) was one of the most popular and influential English novelists of the Victorian era. He began his career as a journalist before achieving fame with his first novel, The Pickwick Papers, in 1837. He went on to write numerous beloved and acclaimed classics including Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities, and Bleak House. Dickens's vivid characters, intricate plots, and sharp social commentary made him immensely popular with readers across class lines during his lifetime.

Born in Portsmouth, England, Dickens endured a difficult childhood that included working in a factory at age 12 when his father was imprisoned for debt. His early experiences profoundly influenced his writing. A master of serialized fiction, Dickens would publish most of his major novels in monthly or weekly installments, building suspense with cliffhanger endings that kept Victorian readers eagerly awaiting the next chapter. His writing style was marked by a flair for caricature, flights of fancy, and sentimental scenes juxtaposed with harsh social realities. Through his fiction, Dickens powerfully depicted the ills of Victorian society and championed social reform.

Beyond his literary output, Dickens was a tireless performer who captivated audiences with dramatic readings from his works. He undertook numerous reading tours in Britain and America that further cemented his fame. Dickens died at age 58, leaving his final novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, unfinished.