# Mrs. Jupp — The Way of All Flesh character guide

> Mrs. Jupp in The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** poor old Jupp, Mrs. Jupp the landlady, Poor old Jupp

**First appearance:** 0053-li

## Snapshot

Ernest's coarse, warm-hearted landlady in Laystall Street, the one woman in London he thinks might serve as a mother confessor.

## Who they are

Mrs. Jupp keeps lodgings and a knowing sympathy for the fallen; of all tasks a mortal woman might perform, coaxing out a young man's grief is the one she would relish most. Ernest, fresh from prison and frightened of the streets, resolves to confide in her, only to be intercepted by Ellen before he reaches her door. Her importance lies in that missed meeting: she represents the practical, unshockable kindness Ernest keeps almost finding, and the novel's quiet argument that such women understand more than the pious ever will.

## Relationships

### [Ernest Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/ernest_pontifex)

_friendship_

Ernest's landlady who offers him shelter and a degree of maternal care, though she is also a gossip and a schemer.

### [Theobald Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/theobald_pontifex)

_social_

Acquaintances through Ernest's lodgings, with Mrs. Jupp providing a mocking, lower-class contrast to Theobald's clerical dignity.

### [Ernest Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/ernest_pontifex)

_friendship_

Ernest's landlady who offers him shelter and a degree of maternal care, though she is also a gossip and a schemer.

### [Theobald Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/theobald_pontifex)

_social_

Acquaintances through Ernest's lodgings, with Mrs. Jupp providing a mocking, lower-class contrast to Theobald's clerical dignity.

### [Ernest Pontifex](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/ernest_pontifex)

_friendship_

Ernest's landlady who offers him shelter and a degree of maternal care, though she is also a gossip and a schemer.

## In the story

### [LIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/liii)

Landlady of the house in Ashpit Place; tells Ernest that Miss Snow's visitors are her brothers and cousins.

### [LV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/lv)

Ernest's landlady; speaks freely with Overton, expressing concern that Ernest looks sad and might die.

### [LVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/lviii)

The landlady who advises Ernest and offers to prepare Miss Snow for his visit.

### [LX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/lx)

Informs Ernest that Miss Snow would like to see him; later involved in the incident leading to Ernest's arrest.

### [LXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/lxi)

Fetches Overton to the police station; expresses her distress and her dislike of Pryer; provides comic relief with her rambling speech.

### [LXXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/lxxi)

Ernest considers visiting her for advice but the meeting is postponed when he meets Ellen.

### [LXXXV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/lxxxv)

Receives a small weekly allowance from Ernest; visits his chambers, talks about the opera and manuscript, and shows her characteristic bawdy humor.

### [LXXXVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/chapters/lxxxvi)

Very old, still living in the same house, managing her finances with a weekly flat iron ritual, and occasionally visiting the narrator.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters/mrs_jupp
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_way_of_all_flesh_se/characters