The quest for an egalitarian relationship: Charles Dickens and the pseudo-sibling romance

Charles Dickens uses the pseudo-sibling romance to argue for an egalitarian relationship within marriage. The pseudo-sibling bond enables Florence Dombey and Walter Gay of Dombey and Son to overcome rejection by the bourgeois and transcend class barriers. Agnes Wickfield encourages David Copperfield to be resilient in the face of disillusionment and loss and teaches him to aspire to greater achievements. Both Miss Havisham and Magwitch's desire in Great Expectations to live vicariously through their foster children is a reflection of their inability---or unwillingness---to resolve past injustices. In his final novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Dickens presents the pseudo-sibling bond as a compromise between Rosa's and Edwin's duty to their parents and their own inclinations.