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Chapter 104
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Of Human Bondage, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Maturation and Finding Purpose
Marriage and Family
Religion and Belief
Poverty and Injustice
Summary
Analysis
Philip receives his wages once a month. Of Philip’s monthly salary, 18 shillings remain after all the various mandatory deductions, the first money he’s ever earned. He doesn’t feel proud, just disappointed in how little it is. He tries to pay Betty the money he owes her and Athelny, but she only accepts a small portion of it. Whenever Philip glimpses Athelny at work, he seems small and eager to go unnoticed.
Philip’s experience challenges the idea that there is inherent value in hard work. Philip is glad to have some money but doesn’t feel happy about the amount of money or about what he had to do to earn it. Philip determination to pay off his debts shows how he is determined to become independent and finally become the master of his own life, however long it takes.
Active
Themes
Philip tries to keep reading his medical books so as not to forget what he learned, but he struggles to concentrate. He longs to return to the hospital but isn’t sure when that’ll happen. Meanwhile, he fears he’ll lose his current job when men start coming back from war. Philip figures the only way he’ll get enough money to continue his medical education is if William dies and leaves a few hundred pounds. Philip becomes obsessed with wishing death on William and hopes he will die soon—Philip doesn’t want to forget too much of his medical knowledge.
Philip’s inability to read books while working his new job shows the negative effect the job has on his state of mind. Philip’s wishes for the death of William show how desperate Philip has become for money and how it has forced him to become hard-hearted. It’s also perhaps a testament to how William’s distant parenting style has had its consequences, ultimately alienating his nephew from him.
Active
Themes
Once a month, Philip has to go in early and stay late to manage the sweepers in the shop, and it’s always his worst day of the month. One day, the manager gets angry at the buyer Mr. Sampson over a poor window display. Mr. Sampson takes out his anger on the assistants and suggests that the manager has Philip do the window display instead, and to Philip’s surprise, the manager approves of Philip’s work. He gets assigned to do the window more regularly. Philip, however, doesn’t like the extra attention that he gets from working in the window. Some of the young women working at the shop notice Philip and start to flirt, but he feels too tired and hungry to care.
Active
Themes
