What was the secret the mother was trying to keep?

[Farrah]

I love this story for many reasons but what exactly is the secret the mother was trying to keep?

[Robin]

I read this book a while back, and no wonder Mrs. Clennam was so harsh with Arthur.

[Yulia]

Farrah, the secret was that Arthur was not her son.

[Robin]

She was very harsh on him, I didn't think she was very maternal towards him, and no wonder. Did the mother have any children, probably not. It was a nice switch in scenarios though between being poor and becoming rich. I personally found the poor theme of the book more intriguing.

[Lori Lynn]

I haven't read the book yet but I just finished BBC's 2008 version of it and loved it! But, I'm still kinda scratching my head. How are the fates of Arthur and Amy bound??? I know that Arthur is the son of Mr. Clennam and the dancer, but how in the world does Amy factor into this and why would Amy get money from the Clennam's? I'm so confused!

[Kaion]

Lori wrote: "I haven't read the book yet but I just finished BBC's 2008 version of it and loved it! But, I'm still kinda scratching my head. How are the fates of Arthur and Amy bound??? I know that Arthur is th..."

Arthur is the son of Mr. Clennam and a singer. The singer had been a poor orphan girl that Frederick Dorrit (Amy's uncle) had sort of taken under his wing, and he'd gotten her singing lessons (was her "patron" as the book calls it).

So when Mr. Clennam's uncle Gilbert Clennam (the man with all the money) died, he felt sorry for the singer, and left a legacy both to the singer (1000 guineas) and a legacy (another 1000 guineas) to Frederick Dorrit's youngest daughter (or niece, if he didn't have any daughters at 50). That niece would be Amy of course.

[Connie]

Connie wrote: "The other link between Amy and Arthur's fates involved The Will of Arthur's father. He left his fortune to Amy."

[Feliks]

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I'm still wondering what was the financial 'fix' which Plancks figured out to get William Dorrit his money back; pay off his debt; and allow his family out of prison. I know how the Dorrits got into prison (the father, failing to service a royal contract) but what was the fortune which he regained?

[Brolie]

Feliks wrote: "SPOILERS

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I'm still wondering what was the financial 'fix' which Plancks figured out to get William Dorrit his money back; pay off his debt; and allow his..."

He was the heir to a family fortune and Pancks eliminated all the possible relatives to finally figure out that William was the true heir to it.

[Feliks]

Thanks. Seems in contrast to the rest of his downfall, though. Early on, it appeared as if Mrs. Clenman's secret had something to do with the Dorrit's imprisonment; not just something specific with regard to Amy as is eventually revealed. I was wondering if somehow the Clenman's business, had affected the Dorrit's ability to carry out their royal contract, somehow.

[Rachael]

Feliks wrote: "Thanks. Seems in contrast to the rest of his downfall, though. Early on, it appeared as if Mrs. Clenman's secret had something to do with the Dorrit's imprisonment; not just something specific with..."

Well, if she had given the money from the will to Amy, she wouldn’t have been in the Marshallsea her entire life. All of that would have been avoided if the Uncle’s money had gone to Little Dorrit.