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Mrs. Sparsit
A poor worker at Mr. Bounderby's factory, Stephen is a victim both of the industrial system and of society's restrictions on marriage. His face and body are much aged because of the grueling work he must do every day at the factory, and his heart is aged ever since his wife became a drunken prostitute and left him, occasionally returning for money. He has longed ceased to love her, and loves a gentle, kind woman named Rachael in her stead, but he cannot marry Rachael because of his preexisting marriage. His fellow workers shun him when he refuses to join the union, and Bounderby fires him after Stephen refuses to give him details about the union that his fellow workers are forming. Tom furthermore frames him in the Bank robbery, and he dies tragically, on his way back to defend his good name.
Stephen Blackpool Quotes in Hard Times
The Hard Times quotes below are all either spoken by Stephen Blackpool or refer to Stephen Blackpool. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Book 1, Chapter 10
Quotes
Stephen looked older, but he had had a hard life. It is said that every life has its roses and thorns; there seemed, however, to have been a misadventure or mistake in Stephen's case, whereby somebody else had become possessed of his roses, and he had become possessed of the same somebody else's thorns in addition to his own.
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Book 1, Chapter 12
Quotes
No word of a new marriage had ever passed between them; but Rachael had taken great pity on him years ago, and to her alone he had opened his closed heart all this time, on the subject of his miseries; and he knew very well that if he were free to ask her, she would take him.
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Book 2, Chapter 5
Quotes
‘You can finish off what you're at,' said Mr Bounderby, with a meaning nod, 'and then go elsewhere.'
‘Sir, yo know weel,' said Stephen expressively, ‘that if I canna get work wi' yo, I canna get it elsewheer.'
The reply was, ‘What I know, I know; and what you know, you know. I have no more to say about it.'
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Stephen Blackpool Quotes in Hard Times
The Hard Times quotes below are all either spoken by Stephen Blackpool or refer to Stephen Blackpool. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Book 1, Chapter 10
Quotes
Stephen looked older, but he had had a hard life. It is said that every life has its roses and thorns; there seemed, however, to have been a misadventure or mistake in Stephen's case, whereby somebody else had become possessed of his roses, and he had become possessed of the same somebody else's thorns in addition to his own.
Related Characters:
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Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Book 1, Chapter 12
Quotes
No word of a new marriage had ever passed between them; but Rachael had taken great pity on him years ago, and to her alone he had opened his closed heart all this time, on the subject of his miseries; and he knew very well that if he were free to ask her, she would take him.
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Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Book 2, Chapter 5
Quotes
‘You can finish off what you're at,' said Mr Bounderby, with a meaning nod, 'and then go elsewhere.'
‘Sir, yo know weel,' said Stephen expressively, ‘that if I canna get work wi' yo, I canna get it elsewheer.'
The reply was, ‘What I know, I know; and what you know, you know. I have no more to say about it.'
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