"But what is the matter, Floy?" — sixteenth illustration by W. L. Sheppard for Dickens's "Dombey and Son" (American Household Edition, 1873)

"But what is the matter, Floy?" by W. L. Sheppard. Sixteenth illustration for Dickens's Dombey and Son in the American Household Edition (1873), Chapter XIV, "Paul grows more and more Old-fashioned, and goes Home for the Holidays," 87. 9.4 x 13.6 cm (3 ¾ by 5 ⅜ inches) framed. [Click on the image to enlarge it.]

Passage Illustrated: Paul absents himself from the End-of-Term Party

Paul now slipped away from the cushioned corner of a sofa, which had been his post of observation, and went downstairs into the tea-room to be ready for Florence, whom he had not seen for nearly a fortnight, as he had remained at Doctor Blimber’s on the previous Saturday and Sunday, lest he should take cold. Presently she came: looking so beautiful in her simple ball dress, with her fresh flowers in her hand, that when she knelt down on the ground to take Paul round the neck and kiss him (for there was no one there, but his friend and another young woman waiting to serve out the tea), he could hardly make up his mind to let her go again, or to take away her bright and loving eyes from his face.

“But what is the matter, Floy?” asked Paul, almost sure that he saw a tear there.

“Nothing, darling; nothing,” returned Florence.

Paul touched her cheek gently with his finger — and it was a tear! “Why, Floy!” said he.

“We’ll go home together, and I’ll nurse you, love,” said Florence.

“Nurse me!” echoed Paul.

Paul couldn’t understand what that had to do with it, nor why the two young women looked on so seriously, nor why Florence turned away her face for a moment, and then turned it back, lighted up again with smiles. [Chapter XIV, "Paul grows more and more Old-fashioned, and goes Home for the Holidays," pp. 86-87]

Commentary: What Paul Fails to Grasp

The composition makes it clear what Paul fails to grasp: he is dying. Sheppard answers the indirect questions on page 87 and visually defines "Old-fashioned." By giving Paul an emaciated head and stick-like body Sheppard signals the boy's deteriorating health, which Florence has immediately apprehended after not having seen her brother for two weeks: he has gone down hill rapidly. The young women serving tea form a chorus of commiseration. They are charmed by the affectionate scene, but also apprehend that this sickly boy will never return from the school holidays.

As befits Dickens's "streaky bacon" alternation of serious, sentimental, and comic scenes, the lachrymose "But what is the matter, Floy?" follows a scene which showcases James Carker's machinations, "Only Myself", and in turn is followed by a scene involving the comic character Captain Cuttle, "Now, Wal'r, my boy, you may help me on with them slops." for Chapter Fifteen. Sheppard, then, through his choice of scenes, emphasizes the mixed theatrical nature of Dickens's final novel for the Hungry Forties, which ranges from light-hearted burletta to domestic melodrama.

Parallel Illustrations from the Household and Other Editions (1846 through 1910)

Left: Fred Barnard's Household Edition illustration of the same chapter: The Breaking-up Party at Dr. Blimber's (1877). Right: Phiz's original depiction of Dr. Blimber's end-of-term reception: Paul goes home for the holidays (February 1847).

Left: Harold Copping's study of Paul on the couch, alienated at the breaking-up party (1893). Right: Harry Furniss's version of Dr. Blimber's reception: Florence singing at Dr. Blimber's (1910)./p>

Related Material, including Other Illustrated Editions of Dombey and Son (1846-1910)

Scanned image and text by Philip V. Allingham. [You may use these images without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the person who scanned it and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.]

Bibliography

Dickens, Charles. Dombey and Son. Illustrated by W. L. Sheppard. The Household Edition. 18 vols. New York: Harper & Co., 1873.

__________. Dombey and Son. Illustrated by F. O. C. Darley and John Gilbert. The Works of Charles Dickens. The Household Edition. 55 vols. New York: Sheldon and Company, 1862. Vols. 1-4.

__________. Dombey and Son. Illustrated by Sol Eytinge, Jr., and engraved by A. V. S. Anthony. 14 vols. Boston: Ticknor & Fields, 1867. III.

__________. Dombey and Son. Illustrated by Fred Barnard [62 composite wood-block engravings]. The Works of Charles Dickens. The Household Edition. 22 vols. London: Chapman and Hall, 1877. XV.

__________. Dombey and Son. With illustrations by H. K. Browne. The illustrated library Edition. 2 vols. London: Chapman and Hall, c. 1880. II.

__________. Dombey and Son. Illustrated by Fred Barnard. 61 wood-engravings. The Household Edition. 22 vols. London: Chapman and Hall, 1877. XV.

__________. Dombey and Son. Illustrated by W. H. C. Groome. London and Glasgow, 1900, rpt. 1934. 2 vols. in one.

__________. Dombey and Son. Illustrated by Harry Furniss. The Charles Dickens Library Edition. 18 vols. London: Educational Book, 1910. Vol. IX.

__________. Dombey and Son. Illustrated by Hablot K. Browne ("Phiz"). 8 coloured plates. London and Edinburgh: Caxton and Ballantyne, Hanson, 1910.

__________. Dombey and Son. Illustrated by Hablot K. Browne ("Phiz"). The Clarendon Edition, ed. Alan Horsman. Oxford: Clarendon, 1974.

Dickens, Mary Angela, Percy Fitzgerald, Captain Edric Vredenburg, and Others. Illustrated by Harold Copping with eleven coloured lithographs. "Little Paul Dombey," the tenth chapter in Children's Stories from Dickens. London: Raphael Tuck, 1893. Pp. 101-109.

Created 31 January 2022