Our Mutual Friend · Character

Charley Hexam

Lizzie's ambitious brother, clawing his way up through Headstone's schoolroom, ashamed of the river and the sister who kept him afloat.

supporting

Also known as Charley, young Charley Hexam, Charley Hexam, Charles Hexam

First appearance: i on the look out

As a supporting figure in Our Mutual Friend, Charley Hexam is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Son of Jesse Hexam; delivers the note to Mortimer and shows literacy and curiosity about books.

In the storyAnother ManOpen this moment free

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Charley is the waterman's son who has been lifted into respectability by education and now wants to keep climbing, even at the cost of the family he came from. His flaw is a self-serving shame that Jenny Wren names outright—selfish, thinks only of himself—and it sets him against Lizzie's loyalty and Headstone's increasingly dangerous fixation. He matters because his upward striving pulls the plot's respectable and criminal worlds into the same room.

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The fuller portrait of Charley Hexam sits in Reading Lens — open the free preview to keep reading with notes on the page.

See Charley Hexam in i on the look out

Character Web

12 connections

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

Relationship types

Other

Character groups

Lower-class and supporting figures
Central characters and rivals
Protagonist
Minor characters and background figures

+7 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 scene is the dramatic climax because it marks the emotional and psychological peak of Betty Higden’s life…

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In the story

Charley Hexam appears across 8 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Another Man
Son of Jesse Hexam; delivers the note to Mortimer and shows literacy and curiosity about books.
Cut Adrift
Resists leaving at first but ultimately accepts his sister's plan to go to school and better himself.
I: Of an Educational Character
A sharp boy who rose through the poor school and now attends a better one; he is conflicted about his sister Lizzie's lack of education and its potential impact on his own prospects.
A Riddle Without an Answer
Aggressively demands that Eugene Wrayburn end his acquaintance with his sister Lizzie; insists on controlling her prospects.
XI: Some Affairs of the Heart
Mentioned as having gone to get books and as being displeased with his sister Lizzie.
More Birds of Prey
Mentioned as Gaffer Hexam's son; the visitor wants to prevent stigma attaching to him.
XV: The Whole Case So Far
Pressures Lizzie to accept Bradley, then angrily disowns her when she refuses, accusing her of preferring Eugene Wrayburn.
Better to Be Abel Than Cain
Confronts Bradley Headstone, severing ties and blaming him for compromising his respectability through his obsession with Lizzie.

Chapter companion notes

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See Charley Hexam in i on the look out

See Charley Hexam in Another Man