Why does Mr. Bumble call the law a bachelor in Oliver?
In the movie Oliver! (1968), during a heated confrontation between Mr Brownlow and Mr Bumble, over the origins of Oliver, a point is made by Mr Brownlow:
Mr. Brownlow: In the eyes of the law, you are the more guilty of the two, for the law supposes that your wife acts under your direction.
Mr. Bumble: If that's what the law supposes, sir, then the law is an ass! If that be the eyes of the law, sir, then the law is a bachelor!
Before this statement is made, they are arguing over the fact that Mr Bumble was not told by Mrs Bumble that Oliver's mother was a young girl who is identified by the picture in the locket.
I would like to know why does Mr Bumble call the law a bachelor? Did this word have some different meaning in the time setting? If I look up the definition of the word on Google, I find no other indication of it being used in a derogatory way or meaning something other than intended.
Does anyone have a clear definition of this, or know what was the point trying to be made mean?
Best Answer
A bachelor is an unmarried man.
Let's bear in mind that this is based on a Victorian concept of marriage & the part each spouse would be expected to play in that marriage in those times.
Bumble's point was that no married man would have made that law.
The law assumes that a wife must act solely under her husband's direction & never independently.
Bumble is quite certain that is not the case - in his own experience, or that of any married man.
Pictures about "Why does Mr. Bumble call the law a bachelor in Oliver?"
What did Mr. Bumble say about the law?
If the law supposes that," said Mr. Bumble, squeezing his hat emphatically in both hands, "the law is a ass \u2014 a idiot. If that's the eye of the law, the law is a bachelor; and the worst I wish the law is, that his eye may be opened by experience \u2014 by experience.\u201dWhy did Mr. Bumble name Oliver Twist?
Mr. Bumble, the beadle, names the poor, wretched children of the workhouse in alphabetical order. As 'T' is the next available letter in the alphabet when Oliver is born, Bumble comes up with the name Oliver Twist.What did Mr. Bumble do in Oliver Twist?
Mr. Bumble is the beadle in the town where Oliver is born. As beadle, he's responsible for running all of the "charitable" institutions in the parish\u2014including the baby farms and the workhouse. He also gets to wear a special cocked hat, of which he is very proud.What does Mr. Bumble inform Oliver?
Brownlow, who forces Monks to explain himself. The reader and Oliver are then informed that Monks is Oliver's half-brother and that Oliver is entitled to a large fortune.Character sketch of 'Mr. Bumble' in 'Oliver Twist' by 'English Family87' | Mr. Bumble's Character
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