Appearance
Excerpt
Excerpt from The Battle of Life, by Charles Dickens
In this office, nevertheless, Snitchey and Craggs made honey for their
several hives. Here, sometimes, they would linger, of a fine evening, at
the window of their council-chamber overlooking the old battle-ground,
and wonder (but that was generally at assize time, when much business had
made them sentimental) at the folly of mankind, who couldn’t always be at
peace with one another and go to law comfortably. Here, days, and weeks,
and months, and years, passed over them: their calendar, the gradually
diminishing number of brass nails in the leathern chairs, and the
increasing bulk of papers on the tables. Here, nearly three years’
flight had thinned the one and swelled the other, since the breakfast in
the orchard; when they sat together in consultation at night.
Not alone; but, with a man of thirty, or about that time of life,
negligently dressed, and somewhat haggard in the face, but well-made,
well-attired, and well-looking, who sat in the armchair of state, with
one hand in his breast, and the other in his dishevelled hair, pondering
moodily. Messrs. Snitchey and Craggs sat opposite each other at a
neighbouring desk. One of the fireproof boxes, unpadlocked and opened,
was upon it; a part of its contents lay strewn upon the table, and the
rest was then in course of passing through the hands of Mr. Snitchey; who
brought it to the candle, document by document; looked at every paper
singly, as he produced it; shook his head, and handed it to Mr. Craggs;
who looked it over also, shook his head, and laid it down. Sometimes,
they would stop, and shaking their heads in concert, look towards the
abstracted client. And the name on the box being Michael Warden,
Esquire, we may conclude from these premises that the name and the box
were both his, and that the affairs of Michael Warden, Esquire, were in a
bad way.
‘That’s all,’ said Mr. Snitchey, turning up the last paper. ‘Really
there’s no other resource. No other resource.’
Explanation
Detailed Explanation of the Excerpt from The Battle of Life by Charles Dickens
1. Context of the Source
The Battle of Life: A Love Story (1846) is one of Charles Dickens’s lesser-known Christmas novellas, part of his series of festive tales (alongside A Christmas Carol and The Chimes). Unlike his more famous works, The Battle of Life is often criticized for its sentimental and moralistic tone, but it still reflects Dickens’s signature themes of human folly, legal bureaucracy, and the contradictions of society.
The story is set in a rural English village built on the site of an ancient battle, symbolizing the contrast between past conflicts and present-day struggles—particularly those of love, duty, and legal entanglements. The excerpt focuses on two lawyers, Snitchey and Craggs, who are examining the financial and legal troubles of their client, Michael Warden.
2. Summary of the Excerpt
The passage describes a late-night legal consultation in the office of Snitchey and Craggs, two lawyers who have spent years handling legal disputes. The scene is set in their "council-chamber" overlooking an old battlefield—a symbolic location that contrasts the literal battles of the past with the metaphorical "battles" of litigation.
- Time and Routine: The lawyers have spent years in this office, marked by the diminishing brass nails in their leather chairs (a metaphor for the passage of time) and the growing piles of legal documents (symbolizing the endless nature of legal disputes).
- The Client: A haggard, distracted man (Michael Warden) sits in their office while they review his financial documents. His disheveled appearance and moodiness suggest deep personal or financial distress.
- The Legal Examination: Snitchey and Craggs methodically go through Warden’s papers, each time shaking their heads—a gesture indicating that his affairs are in dire straits. The unlocked fireproof box (a symbol of financial secrecy and vulnerability) contains documents that reveal Warden’s ruin.
- The Verdict: The final line—"That’s all… Really there’s no other resource. No other resource."—confirms that Warden is financially and legally doomed, with no way out of his predicament.
3. Key Themes
A. The Folly of Human Conflict
- The lawyers mock the "folly of mankind" for not resolving disputes peacefully and instead turning to litigation. This reflects Dickens’s critique of how society institutionalizes conflict rather than fostering harmony.
- The battlefield setting reinforces this theme—past wars are replaced by modern legal battles, suggesting that human nature remains unchanged in its propensity for strife.
B. The Cold Machinery of the Law
- Snitchey and Craggs are detached, mechanical figures who process human misery as mere paperwork. Their repetitive head-shaking reduces Warden’s suffering to a legal formality.
- The fireproof box symbolizes how the law preserves and contains human failures, locking them away in bureaucratic systems.
C. Financial and Moral Ruin
- Warden’s haggard appearance and the lawyers’ bleak verdict suggest that his downfall is not just financial but also personal and moral.
- The diminishing brass nails (a metaphor for decay) and the swelling papers (a metaphor for accumulating problems) reinforce the idea of inevitable decline when one is trapped in legal and financial systems.
D. Time and Inevitability
- The passage of three years since an earlier event (the "breakfast in the orchard," likely a happier time) contrasts with the current despair, showing how time erodes hope.
- The lawyers’ routine, unfeeling examination of Warden’s case suggests that human suffering is cyclical and predictable in their world.
4. Literary Devices
| Device | Example | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Symbolism | The old battlefield | Represents the endless nature of human conflict, now fought in courts rather than with swords. |
| The fireproof box | Symbolizes financial secrets, legal entrapment, and the inescapable nature of debt. | |
| Diminishing brass nails | Metaphor for the passage of time and decay. | |
| Repetition | "Shaking their heads" | Emphasizes the inevitability of Warden’s ruin and the lawyers’ detached judgment. |
| "No other resource. No other resource." | Reinforces the finality of Warden’s doom. | |
| Irony | Lawyers profiting from conflict while lamenting human folly | Highlights the hypocrisy of a system that thrives on disputes it claims to regret. |
| Imagery | "Negligently dressed, somewhat haggard in the face" | Paints Warden as a broken man, visually reinforcing his despair. |
| Foreshadowing | The gradual decline of the office (nails, papers) | Suggests that Warden’s fate was long in the making. |
5. Significance of the Passage
- Critique of Legal and Financial Systems: Dickens exposes how lawyers and institutions profit from human misery, reducing personal tragedies to legal transactions.
- Human Alienation: Warden is silent and passive, a victim of forces beyond his control, while the lawyers dominate the scene, reinforcing the power imbalance in society.
- The Illusion of Progress: The shift from physical battles to legal battles suggests that while society may appear more civilized, conflict and suffering persist in new forms.
- Moral Lesson: The passage serves as a warning about the dangers of financial recklessness and the cold indifference of systemic power.
6. Connection to The Battle of Life as a Whole
The novella contrasts love and self-sacrifice with greed and legalism. This excerpt embodies the dark side of that contrast—where legal and financial systems crush individuals rather than uplift them. Later in the story, Dickens explores redemption through personal virtue, but here, the tone is bleak and cynical, reflecting his broader critique of Victorian institutional cruelty.
Final Interpretation
This passage is a microcosm of Dickens’s social criticism—a snapshot of how legal, financial, and bureaucratic systems dehumanize individuals. The detached, mechanical lawyers, the doomed client, and the decaying office all reinforce the idea that modern "battles" (legal, financial, personal) are just as destructive as the physical wars of the past. The excerpt serves as a caustic commentary on how society perpetuates suffering under the guise of order and civilization.