The death of Mr Dorrit

A little bit of a spoiler here but I was surprised that Dickens did away w Mr Dorrit before the final chapters of Little Dorrit. Dorris's demise begins on his return trip to London to straighten out his estate - it looks as if he was investing it all w that Madoff-like phony, Merdle - when he is paid a visit in his posh hotel by that sad innocent who works now as a "turnkey" at the Marshalsea prison. Dorrit is shocked and humiliated to be reminded of his past life and takes his wrath out on the young man. Returning to Europe to join Little Dorrit and that other phony, mrs Governor, he buys expensive engagement jewels to offer to mrs G. She rejects him - I'm not sure why or how final her off-putting was meant to be - but he goes into a deep swoon, highlighted or low lighted by an outburst at a dinner party in which he believes he is a prisoner once more. He declines to his death over the next few days, with daughter Amy/Little still by his side. We really get sick of her doormat personality by this point and wish and still hope that she might tell someone, anyone, off at some point. She is now a wealthy attractive single woman- though we still suspect that her wealth will disappear and we'll see who's still interested in her at that point - Clemson, or the prison turnkey perhaps? Good to see at this point in the move that we are also learning more about the much-abuses Tattycorum, now known as Harriet, and her protector - an early feminist it seems - Miss Wade. Unclear still how this episode fits into the overall scheme of this novel except as another example of the blindness of class prejudice and injustice within even "upright" families.

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