Unit: 5
HT: Appreciation
"The next morning was too bright a morning for sleep, and James Harthouse rose early, and sat in the pleasant bay window of his dressing-room, smoking the rare tobacco that had had so wholesome an influence on his young friend. Reposing in the sunlight, with the fragrance of his eastern pipe about him, and the dreamy smoke vanishing into the air, so rich and soft with summer odours, he reckoned up his advantages as an idle winner might count his gains. He was not at all bored for the time, and could give his mind to it." (174).
This passage sticks out because of its particular imagery of the smoke of Harthouse's pipe. Dickens calm word choice, such as "dreamy," "soft," and "rich" creates a light and pleasurable image and tone in the setting.
Alright Thomas, I'm going to start this off with a cliche, if there's smoke, there's fire. I think that the symbolism of the smoke and the symbolism of the fire are as intertwined as the physical objects themselves. Let me explain. In Book 1, Chapter 5 Dickens says, "It was a town of red brick, or of brick that would have been red if the smoke and ashes had allowed it; but as matters stood, it was a town of unnatural red and black like the painted face of a savage" (27). The pairing of fire and smoke, "red and black", is what made me think of this passage. Now for my attempt to tie this all together. The fire in the factory, in Louisa, all "blacken" the world around them. The factory, and the monotony of Coketown blacken the city itself, both physically with ash, and by creating an environment where people have a pessimistic view of life. I was thinking about it, and maybe the same can be applied to Louisa. What is the main difference between Bitzer and Tom? One is functional coming out of the Gradgrindian education, and one burns out. The difference between their upbringing is Louisa. Tom is exposed to Louisa's initial creative desires, and is with her when they are caught at the circus. This exposure to "temptation" could explain the difference between Bitzer and Tom receiving the same education, and becoming polar opposites in life. Wow, I rambled a bit, sorry about that. Props to you if you read all the way to here.
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