Chapter Seven: Mrs. Sparsit
Mrs. Sparsit is the housekeeper for Mr. Bounderby‹as he is a bachelor and in need of someone to keep his house tidy. Mr. Bounderby especially relishes the arrangement because Mrs. Sparsit was once a "highly connected" lady and she had seen better days. But she had fallen on "hard times" after marrying young and being widowed by a man who left her only debts and little fortune to rely upon. Bounderby's boasting often dwelled upon the difference between their stories‹for he was low-born and moved himself up in society and she was high-born and now she is his housekeeper.
Mrs. Sparsit is a very good housekeeper and in spite of Bounderby's often uncivilized manner, she always retains the graces that befit a lady of her standing. Bounderby discusses both Louisa and Cecilia Jupe and it is clear to see that he is very interested in Louisa but not at all amused by the idea of the Gradgrinds "bringing up the tumbling-girl." There is the hope that Cecilia might be a good influence on Louisa‹by providing her with a perfect example of all that can go wrong when one is not rooted in a disciplined upbringing. Bounderby thinks that if anything, Cecilia will corrupt Louisa.
Concerning young Tom Gradgrind, Mr. Bounderby decides that at some point in the near future, after the young man has further progressed in his studies, he will make a job for him at the bank. When Mrs. Sparsit attempts to interpose an opinion, Bounderby reminds her that she knows very little about these subjects because she has grown up in "devilish high society" though she has done very well at accommodating herself to the changes life has dealt her. Cecilia and Gradgrind are both present and Gradgrind overlooks Cecilia's social awkwardness and makes his final decision to bring the girl into his household. He announces that she will be "reclaimed and formed" and that her previous education‹reading stories about fairies, dwarves and hunchbacks‹has come to an end.
Analysis:
Characterization is very important in this chapter, which center on the character for whom it is named. Mrs. Sparsit's name can be read as a combination of the words "sparse" and "sit." Throughout the novel, the reader will find that Sparsit is almost always described in terms of her posture (and she is usually sitting). Her character and her history are riddled with contradictions and contrasts. There is, for example, the irony of her husband dying of alcoholism ("brandy") in the midst of French decadence (the port city of Calais). And yet, Sparsit is to be considered as a moral example and as for power, she is both a "conqueror" and a "princess."
Bounderby is described with various symbols of his own power; chief among them are his portrait and his bank do*****ents. The portrait is an especially interesting symbol as it is a likeness of Bounderby and is also an artistic image. Why should Bounderby be so interested in an artistic rendering of himself? Perhaps it is because the portrait is not an element of fancy, but is an extremely accurate representation. It is, essentially, a second Bounderby.
Finally, there are a few instances of hyperbole in this chapter, as seen in much of Gradgrind and Bounderby's dialogue about Cecilia Jupe. The reference to Fairies, Dwarves and the Hunchback as "destructive nonsense" is a little extreme. But this hard line of reasoning does situate Jupe's experience within the themes of education and conversion. It is interesting to note that Cecilia is to be "reclaimed and formed" both intellectually and morally.