Little Dorrit, Chapter 9 summary

What happens

1. Arthur leaves the prison after a stormy morning and pays a messenger to arrange a meeting with Little Dorrit at her uncle’s lodging.
2. While waiting, Arthur hears her uncle praise Amy and feels that her family takes her service for granted.
3. Walking with Arthur, Little Dorrit denies knowing any earlier connection between their families and asks him to understand her father fairly.
4. She names Tite Barnacle as influential, doubts her father can manage freedom, and gives Arthur Plornish’s address.
5. They meet Maggy, whose childhood fever leaves her thinking herself ten, and Little Dorrit describes her work and independence.
6. Arthur watches Maggy demonstrate her reading before parting from Little Dorrit at the prison entrance.

In this chapter

What to notice

Mr Dorrit’s uncle acknowledges the family’s dependence on her. Arthur nevertheless senses that they treat her extraordinary care as an ordinary duty.

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