Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens

Our Mutual Friend is a novel by Charles Dickens, first published in monthly installments from May 1864 to November 1865. The story follows John Harmon, a young man who is the sole heir to a large fortune. He is to inherit the fortune only if he marries Bella Wilfer, a young woman he has never met. When John is presumed dead after a shipwreck, his father's will is put into effect and Bella is left with the fortune. Meanwhile, John has survived the shipwreck and is living under an assumed identity. He meets and falls in love with Lizzie Hexam, the daughter of a Thames River scavenger. John and Lizzie's relationship is threatened by the machinations of the Veneerings, a wealthy family who are trying to marry off their daughter to John. John's identity is eventually revealed, and he is reunited with Bella. However, John and Bella's relationship is strained by the presence of the Veneerings and the machinations of the unscrupulous Mr. Boffin, who is trying to manipulate John and Bella for his own gain. The novel follows the characters as they navigate the complexities of love, money, and social class. In the end, John and Bella are reunited and the Veneerings are exposed. Mr. Boffin is revealed to be a kind-hearted man who has been manipulated by the Veneerings. The novel ends with John and Bella's marriage and the promise of a happy future.

By Charles Dickens · First published 1865 · Genre: Realistic Fiction, Social Commentary, Romance · 60 chapters

Contents

• Setting Traps
• On the Look Out
• Lodgers in Queer Street
• Of an Educational Character
• Still Educational
• The Man from Somewhere
• A Respected Friend in a New Aspect
• The Golden Dustman Rises a Little
• The Golden Dustman Sinks Again
• The Same Respected Friend in More Aspects Than One
• Another Man
• A Piece of Work
• A Happy Return of the Day
• The R. Wilfer Family
• Cupid Prompted
• A Runaway Match
• Boffin's Bower
• The Golden Dustman Falls Into Bad Company
• Mercury Prompting
• Concerning the Mendicant's Bride
• A Riddle Without an Answer
• A Cry for Help
• The Golden Dustman Falls Into Worse Company
• Cut Adrift
• Mr Wegg Looks After Himself
• The Friendly Move Takes Up a Strong Position
• Better to Be Abel Than Cain
• In Which a Friendly Move is Originated
• A Few Grains of Pepper
• Mr Boffin in Consultation
• In Which an Innocent Elopement Occurs
• The End of a Long Journey
• In Which the Orphan Makes His Will
• Mr and Mrs Boffin in Consultation
• Somebody Becomes the Subject of a Prediction
• Two Places Vacated
• A Successor
• Scouts Out
• The Dolls' Dressmaker Discovers a Word
• A Marriage Contract
• Effect is Given to the Dolls' Dressmaker's Discovery
• In the Dark
• Some Affairs of the Heart
• Podsnappery
• More Birds of Prey
• The Passing Shadow
• The Sweat of an Honest Man's Brow
• Meaning Mischief
• A Solo and a Duett
• Give a Dog a Bad Name, and Hang Him
• Tracking the Bird of Prey
• Showing How the Golden Dustman Helped to Scatter Dust
• Checkmate to the Friendly Move
• The Bird of Prey Brought Down
• Mr Wegg Prepares a Grindstone for Mr Boffin's Nose
• Strong of Purpose
• The Whole Case so Far
• The Golden Dustman at His Worst
• What Was Caught in the Traps That Were Set
• Two New Servants

More by Charles Dickens

• Great Expectations (1861)
• A Christmas Carol (1843)
• A Tale of Two Cities (1859)
• David Copperfield (1849)
• Oliver Twist (1837)
• Hunted Down (1870)
• The Mystery of Edwin Drood (1914)
• A Child's Dream of a Star (1870)
• All works by Charles Dickens