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Chapter 39
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Pickwick Papers, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Male Friendship
Predatory Social Institutions
Social Class and Inequality
Marriage and Courtship
Generosity and Forgiveness
Summary
Analysis
Pickwick follows Tom Roker, a prison officer, through the grim halls of Fleet Prison. Roker leads him to a small, uncomfortable room with iron bedsteads. Despite the filthy conditions, Pickwick remains determined to face his situation without complaint. As he walks through the prison, he observes a variety of prisoners—some drinking, smoking, and playing cards noisily, while others sit alone. The prison teems with noise, smoke, and the stench of alcohol, making Pickwick realize that imprisonment for debt hits honest men much harder than those used to idle or reckless lives. Sam, who is still present and in Pickwick’s employ, recounts a story about a long-term prisoner known as Number Twenty, who became so attached to life in jail that he refused to leave, even when given the chance.
Pickwick’s walk through Fleet Prison serves as both a literal and symbolic introduction to the harshness of the debtors’ prison. His quiet acceptance of his surroundings speak to his strength of character, while his observations reveal his growing awareness of the system’s injustice. Sam’s story about Number Twenty further emphasizes how prison warps the mind, suggesting that incarceration becomes a way of life for some, blurring the boundary between punishment and comfort. Overall, Pickwick is beginning to understand that the psychological burden of imprisonment is just as punishing as its physical discomforts.
Themes
That night, loud, drunken antics awaken Pickwick. One man performs a ridiculous hornpipe dance while another drunkenly sings a comic song. Mr. Smangle, a rakish prisoner with a boastful attitude, encourages the chaos and also introduces himself to Pickwick. Despite the rowdy atmosphere, the prisoners show Pickwick a strange kind of respect, and they share some burnt sherry together. Smangle, eager to impress, launches into exaggerated stories of his past adventures. Throughout the night, Pickwick drifts in and out of sleep, enduring the noise and antics as Smangle continues his wild tales.
Pickwick’s uneasy night among the prisoners is marked by a strange mixture of chaos and camaraderie. The drunken revelry, led by Smangle, showcases how these men cope with their circumstances. The party and behavior recall what Pickwick often experienced with his fellow Pickwickians outside of prison, but there is something far more desperate and insidious about what Smangle is doing. For Pickwick, partying was also a luxury. For Smangle, on the other hand, it is simply a way to survive.
Themes
