Little Dorrit · Character

Mr. Meagles

A retired businessman with a warm heart and a blind spot, whose kindness to strangers cannot quite reach the daughter he keeps.

supporting

Also known as Meagles, honest Mr. Meagles

First appearance: Fellow Travellers

As a supporting figure in Little Dorrit, Mr. Meagles is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Cheerful and practical, he advises Arthur and shares his family's travels.

In the storyFellow TravellersOpen this moment free

Mr. Meagles is the novel's most generous spirit, a man who befriends Arthur Clennam without calculation and opens his cottage to the lonely. Yet his affection for his daughter Pet is so possessive that it distorts her choices, and his treatment of the adopted Tattycoram reveals the limits of his benevolence. He embodies the novel's tension between genuine goodness and the unconscious cruelties of even the kindest English household.

See Mr. Meagles in Fellow Travellers Book page

Free preview opens at this moment — character cards, Character Web, and themes sit beside the text as you read.

Character Web

37 connections

A slice of how Mr. Meagles sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Friendship
Other

Character groups

Circumlocution Office and Society
Legal and Investigative Support
Protagonist
Inventors, Artists, and Shadows

+32 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This excerpt represents the story's dramatic climax because it depicts Arthur Clennam’s psychological nadir an…

Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.

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Relationships

Arthur Clennam
friendship · positive
Little Dorrit
friendship · positive
Arthur Clennam
friendship · positive
Little Dorrit
friendship · positive
Arthur Clennam
friendship · positive
Little Dorrit
friendship · positive

Arthur Clennam
Mr. Meagles is a genial, practical friend and father figure to Arthur, sharing business and personal concerns.
Little Dorrit
Mr. Meagles treats Little Dorrit with paternal kindness and admiration, becoming a supportive friend to her.
Arthur Clennam
Mr. Meagles is a genial, practical friend and father figure to Arthur, sharing business and personal concerns.
Little Dorrit
Mr. Meagles treats Little Dorrit with paternal kindness and admiration, becoming a supportive friend to her.
Arthur Clennam
Mr. Meagles is a genial, practical friend and father figure to Arthur, sharing business and personal concerns.
Little Dorrit
Mr. Meagles treats Little Dorrit with paternal kindness and admiration, becoming a supportive friend to her.

Relationship notes

How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.

See Mr. Meagles in Fellow Travellers

In the story

Mr. Meagles appears across 16 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Fellow Travellers
Cheerful and practical, he advises Arthur and shares his family's travels.
Containing the Whole Science of Government
Encountered by Arthur outside the Circumlocution Office, visibly angry and collaring a short man after his own frustrating experience.
Bleeding Heart Yard
Accompanies Arthur and Daniel Doyce to Bleeding Heart Yard and later arranges another meeting with Arthur.
Nobody's Weakness
Welcomes Arthur and Daniel Doyce; shows off his old bank scales and scoop; expresses concern about Tattycoram's temperament.
Nobody's Rival
Visibly distressed by Gowan's presence and his daughter's attachment to him.
Machinery in Motion
Facilitates the negotiation between Clennam and Doyce, reporting Doyce's cautious but honorable response to the partnership proposal.
Nobody's State of Mind
Referenced as being clouded by concern over Gowan's relationship with Pet.
Five-and-Twenty
Distraught over Tattycoram's disappearance; explains the events leading to her flight and seeks Arthur's help in finding Miss Wade.
Nobody's Disappearance
Persistently tries to recover Tattycoram through letters, a personal visit by his wife, and an advertisement, but is ultimately forced to give up.
Mrs. Merdle's Complaint
Mentioned as having yielded his consent to the marriage, which was the sole obstacle.
A Shoal of Barnacles
The father of the bride, overwhelmed by the Barnacle company and not himself during the festivities.
The Dowager Mrs. Gowan Is Reminded That "It Never Does"
Visited by the Dowager Mrs. Gowan; shows a lingering sadness over his daughter Pet's marriage and is defensive against Mrs. Gowan's condescension.
Appearance and Disappearance
Decides to travel to Italy to see his daughter Pet, concerned about her health and Gowan's debts.
Introduces the Next
Inquired about by Tattycoram; mentioned as not being at home.
Going!
Travels abroad to trace Rigaud's papers, enduring comic language barriers and false accusations; returns to give Little Dorrit a box.
Gone
Visits Arthur in the Marshalsea with Little Dorrit, appearing sun-browned and jolly.

Chapter companion notes

Spoil-light check-ins for Mr. Meagles unlock in the free preview.

See Mr. Meagles in Fellow Travellers