"Pip at Mr. Jaggers's Office" by Harry Furniss — Twenty-third illustration for "Great Expectations" (1910)

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Pip at Mr. Jaggers's Office

Harry Furniss

1910

12.9 cm by 8.6 cm (5 ¼ by 3 ¼ inches), vignetted

7.4 x 4.8 inches

Mr. Jaggers being highly dictatorial, and Wemmick obstinately justifying himself whenever there was the smallest point in abeyance for a moment, I had never seen them on such ill terms. They were both happily relieved by the opportune appearance of Mike, the client with the fur cap." — p. 394.

Dickens's Great Expectations, Library Edition, facing p. 392.

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Scanned image and text by Philip V. Allingham.

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Passage Realised: Revelations in Jaggers' Office

. . . I made a passionate, almost an indignant appeal, to him to be more frank and manly with me. I reminded him of the false hopes into which I had lapsed, the length of time they had lasted, and the discovery I had made: and I hinted at the danger that weighed upon my spirits. I represented myself as being surely worthy of some little confidence from him, in return for the confidence I had just now imparted. I said that I did not blame him, or suspect him, or mistrust him, but I wanted assurance of the truth from him. And if he asked me why I wanted it, and why I thought I had any right to it, I would tell him, little as he cared for such poor dreams, that I had loved Estella dearly and long, and that although I had lost her, and must live a bereaved life, whatever concerned her was still nearer and dearer to me than anything else in the world. And seeing that Mr. Jaggers stood quite still and silent, and apparently quite obdurate, under this appeal, I turned to Wemmick, and said, “Wemmick, I know you to be a man with a gentle heart. I have seen your pleasant home, and your old father, and all the innocent, cheerful playful ways with which you refresh your business life. And I entreat you to say a word for me to Mr. Jaggers, and to represent to him that, all circumstances considered, he ought to be more open with me!” [Chapter LI, 393-394]

Commentary: The Enigmatic Attorney "Puts the Cas," But Concedes Nothing

Significantly, even years after receiving the news of his "Great Expectations" from Jaggers at the Jolly Bargemen, Pip still thinks of his guardian as "Mr." Jaggers. Their relationship remains legally rather than personally defined, and Pip remains his ward and responsibility rather than his adopted son. And the inscrutable attorney, keeper of secrets, even now refuses a frank communication about Estella's origins; he merely "puts the case" in a series of hypotheticals about Miss Havisham, Molly and Abel Magwitch. He affirms nothing in this scene that is critical to the revelation of a major plot secret. Furniss poses Jaggers as if he is in court, cross-examining a witness, and making a hypothetical case.

Furniss presents a somewhat theatrical Jaggers, who, striking a courtroom pose, is the only dynamic figure within the frame. As he points upward, as if to underscore his point about "an atmosphere of evil" (392), what he seems to be indicating physically is a pistol mounted on the wall (undoubtedly a key piece of evidence in some long-forgotten Old Bailey trial) and the death-masks of former clients, ominous reminders of the usual consequences of crime, even with so brilliant a defence attorney (barrister) as Jaggers. Pip, his arm still in a sling from burns sustained in trying heroically to rescue Miss Havisham, is once again a passive listener. Furniss captures the moment before Pip achieves enlightenment about the origins of Estella, and the connection between her, Molly (whom Pip has rightly identified as Estella's natural mother), and Abel Magwitch, the returned felon and "the young lady's father" (389). Wemmick, attending to every word, leans back in his chair. The fourth figure is Mike, the client in the fur cap, who in fact does not enter the office until after Jaggers has finished "putting the case."

Parallel Illustrations for Mr. Jaggers from Other Editions (1861-1910)

Left: Sol Eytinge, Jr.'s portrait with one of his dubious "clients" in the streets of Little Britain in the Diamond Edition: Jaggers (1867). John Mclenan's description of the circumstances of Jaggers' initial appearance in the narrative: Saturday night at the Three Jolly Bargemen (9 February 1861). Right of centre: F. W. Pailthorpe's depiction of Pip's confidential interview with his guardian about Estella: Confidential with Mr. Jaggers (1885 in the Robson and Kerslake Edition). Right: H. M. Brock's parallel representation of Jaggers as an uncompromising realist without a touch of sentiment "putting the case" regarding Estella's parentage: He . . . steadily looked at me (1901-3 in the Imperial Edition).

Bibliography

Allingham, Philip V. "The Illustrations for Great Expectations in Harper's Weekly (1860-61) and in the Illustrated Library Edition (1862) — 'Reading by the Light of Illustration'." Dickens Studies Annual, Vol. 40 (2009): 113-169.

Dickens, Charles. Great Expectations. Illustrated by John McLenan. [The First American Edition]. Harper's Weekly: A Journal of Civilization, Vols. IV: 740 through V: 495 (24 November 1860-3 August 1861).

______. ("Boz."). Great Expectations. With thirty-four illustrations from original designs by John McLenan. Philadelphia: T. B. Peterson (by agreement with Harper & Bros., New York), 1861.

______. Great Expectations. Illustrated by Marcus Stone. The Illustrated Library Edition. London: Chapman and Hall, 1862. Rpt. in The Nonesuch Dickens, Great Expectations and Hard Times. London: Nonesuch, 1937; Overlook and Worth Presses, 2005.

______. A Tale of Two Cities and Great Expectations. Illustrated by Sol Eytinge, Jr. The Diamond Edition. 16 vols. Boston: Ticknor and Fields, 1867. XIII.

______. Great Expectations. Volume 6 of the Household Edition. Illustrated by F. A. Fraser. London: Chapman and Hall, 1876.

______. Great Expectations. The Gadshill Edition. Illustrated by Charles Green. London: Chapman and Hall, 1898.

______. Great Expectations. The Grande Luxe Edition, ed. Richard Garnett. Illustrated by Clayton J. Clarke ('Kyd'). London: Merrill and Baker, 1900.

______. Great Expectations. "With 28 Original Plates by Harry Furniss." Volume 14 of the Charles Dickens Library Edition. London: Educational Book Co., 1910.

Paroissien, David. The Companion to "Great Expectations." Westport, Conn.: Greenwood, 2000.

Created 16 February 2007

last updated 26 October 2021