Samuel Pickwick is a fictional character and the main protagonist in ''

The Pickwick Papers ''The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club'' (also known as ''The Pickwick Papers'') was the Debut novel, first novel serialised from March 1836 to November 1837 by English author Charles Dickens. Because of his success with ''Sketches by Bo ...

'' (1836-37), the first novel by author

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...

. One of the author's most famous and loved creations, Pickwick is a retired successful businessman and is the founder and chairman of the Pickwick Club, a club formed to explore places remote from London and investigate the quaint and curious phenomena of life found there.

Character

Mr Pickwick is believed to have been named after the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

businessman Eleazer Pickwick (c.1749–1837). Although he is the main character in ''The Pickwick Papers'', Samuel Pickwick is mostly a passive and innocent figure in the story around whom the other more active characters operate. Having an almost childlike simplicity, Pickwick is loyal and protective toward his friends but is often hoodwinked by conmen and poseurs; he can be quick to anger when confronted by the actions of tricksters such as Alfred Jingle. He is always gallant towards women, young and old, but can also be indecisive in his dealings with them. Dickens develops Pickwick's character as the novel evolved from the original concept of the Pickwick Club, a series of comic "

cockney Cockney is a dialect of the English language, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by Londoners with working-class and lower middle class roots. The term ''Cockney'' is also used as a demonym for a person from the East End, ...

sporting plates" by illustrator Robert Seymour. The subsequent suicide of Seymour early in the publication afforded Dickens the opportunity to change both the course of the novel and the character of Pickwick. In Chapter One of ''The Pickwick Papers'' Dickens describes Pickwick:

A casual observer might possibly have remarked nothing extraordinary in the bald head, and circular spectacles, which were intently turned towards his (the secretary’s) face, during the reading of the above resolutions: to those who knew that the gigantic brain of Pickwick was working beneath that forehead, and that the beaming eyes of Pickwick were twinkling behind those glasses, the sight was indeed an interesting one. There sat the man who had traced to their source the mighty ponds of Hampstead, and agitated the scientific world with his Theory of Tittlebats ... The eloquent Pickwick, with one hand gracefully concealed behind his coat tails, and the other waving in air to assist his glowing declamation; his elevated position revealing those tights and gaiters, which, had they clothed an ordinary man, might have passed without observation, but which, when Pickwick clothed them—if we may use the expression—inspired involuntary awe and respect.

The Pickwick Club

To extend his researches into the quaint and curious phenomena of life, Pickwick creates the Pickwick Club and suggests that he and three other "Pickwickians" (Mr Nathaniel Winkle, Mr Augustus Snodgrass and Mr Tracy Tupman) should make journeys to places remote from London and report on their findings to the other members of the club. Pickwick careens from one comic disaster to another in pursuit of adventure or honour attended by the other members of the Pickwick Club. Pickwick becomes involved in several sub-plots in the novel, including thwarting Jingle's various money-making matrimonial schemes, and assisting his friend Winkle in eloping with Arabella Allen. Pickwick encounters troubles during his adventures because, as one of nature's innocents, he is unaware of the presence of deception and tricksters such as

Jingle A jingle is a short song or tune used in advertising and for other commercial uses. Jingles are a form of sound branding. A jingle contains one or more hooks and meanings that explicitly promote the product or service being advertised, usually ...

in the real world. By the end of the novel he has received an education in morality and is filled with goodness and Christian charity towards his fellow man - and woman. Always on hand to save the day is his able manservant Sam Weller; the relationship between the idealistic and unworldly Pickwick and the astute

Weller has been likened to that between

Don Quixote , the full title being ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'', is a Spanish novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts in 1605 and 1615, the novel is considered a founding work of Western literature and is of ...

and

Sancho Panza Sancho Panza (; ) is a fictional character in the novel ''Don Quixote'' written by Spain, Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra in 1605. Sancho acts as squire to Don Quixote and provides comments throughout the novel, ...

. By the end of the novel Pickwick looks upon Sam Weller almost as a son,Character analysis: Samuel Pickwick
''The Pickwick Papers'' - Cliff'sNotes Study Guides online a feeling which is reciprocated by Sam.Michael Pointer, ''Who's Who in Dickens'' - Grange Books (1995) - pgs 112-113

Bardell v. Pickwick

Another sub-plot in the novel is the romantic misunderstanding between Pickwick and his

landlady A landlord is the owner of property such as a house, apartment, condominium, land, or real estate that is rented or leased to an individual or business, known as a tenant (also called a ''lessee'' or ''renter''). The term landlord appli ...

Mrs Bardell that results in one of the most famous legal cases in English literature, the breach of promise to marry suit '' Bardell v. Pickwick''. Fitzgerald, Percy Hetherington
Full text of ''Bardell v. Pickwick''
(1902)

Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg (PG) is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the oldest digital li ...

eBook When Pickwick discusses with Mrs Bardell his idea of taking a servant ( Sam Weller), expressing the view that three may eat as cheaply as two, she mistakes this for a marriage proposal and accepting his 'offer', much to his dismay, faints into his arms, possibly deliberately, as his three friends Winkle, Snodgrass and Tupman walk through the door and witness the scene: When Pickwick refuses to marry her Mrs Bardell is persuaded by the unscrupulous lawyers Dodson and Fogg into bringing a legal suit against Pickwick. During the trial at the Guildhall Sittings in London before Mr. Justice Stareleigh, Mr. Serjeant Buzfuz prosecutes Pickwick and bullies the witnesses into giving incriminating testimony, leading to Pickwick being falsely convicted. The height of Pickwick's moral and spiritual development occurs at the Fleet Prison where he is imprisoned for refusing to pay Mrs Bardell's damages and costs. Here Pickwick encounters his nemesis Alfred Jingle as a fellow resident. Moved with compassion, Pickwick forgives him and charitably bails him out and later arranges for Jingle and his servant Job Trotter to pursue their fortune in the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

. When Mrs. Bardell herself is sent to the Fleet Prison Pickwick learns that the only way he can relieve her suffering is by paying her costs in the action against himself, thus at the same time releasing himself from the prison.

Media portrayals

Portrayals in adaptations

In film, television and on stage Mr Pickwick has been portrayed by: *A. Younge in '' Samuel Weller, or, The Pickwickians'' (1837) * John Pritt Harley in ''Mr. Pickwick'' at the

St James's Theatre The St James's Theatre was in King Street, St James's, King Street, St James's, London. It opened in 1835 and was demolished in 1957. The theatre was conceived by and built for a popular singer, John Braham (tenor), John Braham; it lost mone ...

in London (1837). * Arthur Cecil in '' Pickwick'' (1889) * De Wolf Hopper - ''Mr. Pickwick'' (1903) at the Herald Square Theatre and later the Grand Opera House. * William Wadsworth in ''Mr. Pickwick's Predicament'' (1912). *

John Bunny John Bunny (September 21, 1863 – April 26, 1915) was an American actor. Bunny began his career as a stage actor, but transitioned to a film career after joining Vitagraph Studios around 1910. At Vitagraph, Bunny made over 150 short films – m ...

in the silent short ''The Pickwick Papers '' (1913). *

Frederick Volpe Frederick Volpe (31 July 1865 – 7 March 1932), sometimes printed Volpé, was an English actor. He made his stage debut in his early twenties. From 1894 until his death he was a familiar figure on the West End theatre, West End stage, generally ...

in '' The Adventures of Mr. Pickwick'' (1921), silent

lost film A lost film is a feature film, feature or short film in which the original negative or copies are not known to exist in any studio archive, private collection, or public archive. Films can be wholly or partially lost for a number of reasons. ...

. * Charles Laughton portrayed the character in the 1928 production, ''Mr. Pickwick'', at the Theatre Royal in London, as well as on the 1944 album ''Mr. Pickwick's Christmas''. * Ray Collins in ''The Pickwick Papers'' -

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

's CBS Radio series. * James Hayter in the 1952 film ''

'' * George Howe (and later Clive Revill) in ''Mr. Pickwick'' at the Plymouth Theatre and the John Golden Theatre in New York (1952), and then the TV movie ''The Pickwick Papers'' (1953). *

Roddy Hughes Rhodri Henry Hughes (19 June 1891 – 22 February 1970) was a Welsh theatre, film and television actor, who appeared in over 80 films between 1932 and 1961. Selected filmography * '' Mr. Bill the Conqueror'' (1932) * '' Reunion'' (1932) * '' Sa ...

- ''Bardell V. Pickwick'' (1955) * John Salew in ''Tales from Dickens'' (aka ''Fredric March Presents Tales from Dickens'') (1959). * Patrick Newell in ''Mr. Pickwick'' - Belgrade Theatre,

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

(1961). * Harry Secombe, in the musical '' Pickwick'' (1963), by Cyril Ornadel, Wolf Mankowitz, and

Leslie Bricusse Leslie Bricusse OBE (; 29 January 1931 – 19 October 2021) was a British composer, lyricist, and playwright who worked on theatre musicals and wrote theme music for films. He was best known for writing the music and lyrics for the films '' D ...

. Secombe also appeared as Pickwick in the BBC TV movie-version '' Pickwick'' (1969). *

Arthur Brough Arthur Brough (born Frederick Arthur Baker; 26 February 1905 – 28 May 1978) was a British actor, theatre founder, producer, and director. He is best known for portraying the bumbling senior menswear salesman Ernest Grainger on the BBC TV sitc ...

in ''Uneasy Dreams: The Life of Mr. Pickwick'' (1970) * Bill Reimbold in ''

Dickens of London ''Dickens of London'' is a 1976 television miniseries from ITV Yorkshire, Yorkshire Television based on the life of English novelist Charles Dickens. Both Dickens and his father John Dickens, John were played by British actor Roy Dotrice. The s ...

'' (1976) * Nigel Stock in the 12-part BBC miniseries ''

'' (1985).

Other media

*In the

Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It was the first theme park opened by the Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney, ...

ride ''

The Haunted Mansion The Haunted Mansion is a dark ride, dark-ride attraction located at Disneyland, Magic Kingdom, and Tokyo Disneyland. The haunted house attraction features a ride-through tour in Omnimover vehicles called “Doom Buggies”, and a walk-through s ...

'', the ghost of a drunken, plump little man in Victorian garb, holding a bottle of wine, can be seen swinging from the chandelier in the ballroom tableau. Blueprints and concept art identify the character as "Pickwick", most likely in reference to Dickens's character.

Legacy

The French composer

Claude Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

dedicated to this character a humorous piano piece: ''Hommage à S. Pickwick Esq. P.P.M.P.C.'' (n. 9 of ''Préludes'', ''2^ème Livre'', published 1913). Pickwick Island is the largest of the Pitt Islands, in the

Biscoe Islands Mendez-Biscoe Islands is a series of islands, of which the principal ones are Renaud Island, Renaud, Lavoisier Island, Lavoisier (named ''Serrano'' by Chile and ''Mitre'' by Argentina), Watkins Island, Watkins, Krogh Island, Krogh, Pickwick Islan ...

, Antarctica. It was named by the

United Kingdom Antarctic Place-Names Committee The UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee (or UK-APC) is a United Kingdom government committee, part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, responsible for recommending names of geographical locations within the British Antarctic Territory (BAT) and ...

(UK-APC) in 1959 after Samuel Pickwick, founder of the Pickwick Club.Pickwick Island.
SCAR Composite Antarctic Gazetteer.

References

External links

''"Mr. Pickwick's Christmas" by Charles Dickens, as told by Charles Laughton''
at

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

Sameer Rahim - ''Mr Pickwick: My favourite Charles Dickens character''
- ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'' - 16 February 2012 {{DEFAULTSORT:Pickwick, Samuel Charles Dickens characters The Pickwick Papers Fictional British people Fictional businesspeople Literary characters introduced in 1836 Male characters in film Male characters in literature Male characters in television Comedy literature characters Inmates of Fleet Prison