Our Mutual Friend · Chapters

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Chapter companions for Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens.

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Chapter 1
Book the First: The Cup and the Lip
The chapter introduces the aftermath of John Harmon's death and the inheritance passing to the Boffins. Silas Wegg is hired by Mr. Boffin as a reader, and John Rokesmith becomes his secretary. Bella Wilfer meets Rokesmith, and the dynamics of wealth, class, and identity begin to unfold.
Chapter 2
On the Look Out
The novel opens on the Thames at dusk, where Gaffer Hexam and his daughter Lizzie are out in a small boat. Gaffer, a scavenger of the dead, searches the river for bodies and valuables. He retrieves money from a corpse, which horrifies Lizzie. They encounter Rogue Riderhood, who tries to claim partnership, but Gaffer rebuffs him, asserting moral superiority over robbing the living. Lizzie rows them home, haunted by the grimness of their trade.
Chapter 3
The Man from Somewhere
At a dinner party hosted by the Veneerings, Mortimer Lightwood recounts the story of the Harmon family—a wealthy dust contractor who disowned his daughter for marrying against his wishes, and whose son, the 'Man from Somewhere,' was believed to have drowned. The chapter introduces the social dynamics of the Veneering circle, including the guests Twemlow, Podsnap, Lady Tippins, and Eugene Wrayburn, and ends with the revelation that the man has been found dead.
Chapter 4
Another Man
The chapter details the inquest into John Harmon's death, the public fascination with the case, and the introduction of Mortimer Lightwood and Eugene Wrayburn as disaffected professionals. Mortimer visits the Hexam home with Eugene, meeting Charley Hexam and learning about his father Jesse's discovery of the body.
Chapter 5
The R. Wilfer Family
This chapter introduces the Wilfer family, focusing on the patriarch Reginald Wilfer, a poor clerk with a cherubic appearance and a grand name that belies his humble circumstances. His wife is tall and angular, and their daughters Bella and Lavinia bicker over Bella's lost prospects of wealth and her disdain for poverty. The family prepares to take in a lodger, Mr. John Rokesmith, whose arrival is anticipated with suspicion.

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Book the First: The Cup and the Lip

On the Look Out

The Man from Somewhere

Another Man

The R. Wilfer Family