Bleak House by Charles Dickens - SLoB Book Club returns! (feat. Bret Walker SC)

About this episode

Sophie and Jonty explore the themes and characters of Charles Dickens' Bleak House with guest Bret Walker SC.

SLoB Book Club is back as Sophie and Jonty dive into Charles Dickens’ Bleak House with the help of special guest Bret Walker, SC – one of Australia’s most renowned lawyers. Dickens’ sprawling vision of a nation caught in the fog of corruption, in which human kindness and connection is almost but never quite extinguished, is as relevant today as ever. It contains some of his greatest characters - including the original virtue-signaller Mrs Jellyby, the sinister Mr Krook who collects women’s hair and Inspector Bucket - arguably the first fully-rounded detective in English fiction. It’s a social satire, a murder mystery and a comedy - all tied together by the nefarious Court of Chancery and the interminable case of Jarndyce & Jarndyce.   This episode is devoted solely to Chapter 1. Sophie and Jonty look at what Dickens was up to immediately before and during its composition and ask: what exactly is the famous fog drifting over London in the opening lines? In the second half, as the fog curls into the Court of Chancery, we are joined by Bret Walker SC who explains what Chancery is, how it differs from other law courts, why there were real cases like Jarndyce & Jarndyce…

People in this episode

Hosts: Sophie Gee, Jonty Claypole

Guest: Bret Walker SC

Topics covered

• Charles Dickens
• Bleak House
• Court of Chancery
• social satire
• murder mystery
• literary analysis

Keywords

• Bleak House
• Charles Dickens
• Court of Chancery
• social satire
• murder mystery
• literary analysis
• Mrs Jellyby
• Inspector Bucket

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Court of Chancery

Books & works: Bleak House, Jarndyce & Jarndyce

Places: London

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