Dombey And Son Essay, Research Paper

In an excerpt from Dombey and Son by Charles Dickens, a man’s wife just gave birth to their newborn child and he’s already planning out the future of his son. Through a god-like view, the reader sees the arrogance of Dombey and feels pity towards his wife and son. Using rhetorical devices, Dickens tells of this man and his thoughts.

Dickens’ use of diction and detail shows the kind of smugness that the reader finds and hates in Dombey. He tells his wife that their son would be “christened” Paul and believes that the common abbreviation, AD, stood for “anno Dombei and son”. His ignorance of his wife’s views shows how much he really cares for her. His future plans for him are basically just to follow in his own footsteps and take over their company, “Dombey and Son”. He thought that the “sun and moon were made to give them light” and they were the center of an “inviolate system”. Basically Dombey was the high God everyone and everything hailed to. He was the heart of the universe and all of its contents; at least he thought he was. Dickens despises these properties of Dombey and the reader shares his feelings.

Using the third person omniscient point of view, Dickens shows both what Dombey thinks and what is thought of Dombey. Dombey obviously thinks the world of his new son in the business fashion, not truly in the family manner. Dickens adds in some small movements of the child, things that if told in first person would not be noticed much. The clenching fists of the infant seem to produce an image of rebellion or a struggle against his father.