Marigold Featherstone

[ssowle]

I'm relatively new to Rumpole and have a question I hope someone may be
able to answer. In "Rumpole and the Case of Identity," Marigold
Featherstone visits Rumpole to ask if he would represent her in
divorcing her husband (which, of course, she doesn't do in the end).
In the novel "Rumpole's Return," there is a very similar scene that
includes dialogue very close to (but not identical to) the dialogue in
the earlier story. In "Return," there is no mention of there ever
having been an earlier, similar exchange between the two, and indeed at
the start of the scene they exchange remarks suggesting they've never
had a private conversation before. Does anyone know if there's an
explanation for this?

[Edward Cowling London UK]

In message <20050327232938.535$N...@newsreader.com>, Sir-...@webtv.net
writes
>
> Rumpole has a very strange relationship with other characters

Indeed. I remember being quite surprised that Rumpole quite clearly says
he doesn't like Erskine Brown, but seems to befriend him on several
occasions.

And don't get me onto the whole "sort of got engaged" nonsense from
Penge Bungalow Murders. Would Rumpole ever let himself be manipulated
like that ? Nah !!

--
Edward Cowling North London UK

[kk2...@gmail.com]

On Jun 4, 2:20 am, Edward Cowling London UK
<edw...@genghis0.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> In message <20050327232938.535...@newsreader.com>, Sir-j...@webtv.net

[kk2...@gmail.com]

On Jun 4, 2:20 am, Edward Cowling London UK
<edw...@genghis0.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> In message <20050327232938.535...@newsreader.com>, Sir-j...@webtv.net

> writes
>
>
>
> >  Rumpole has a very strange relationship with other characters
>
> Indeed. I remember being quite surprised that Rumpole quite clearly says
> he doesn't like Erskine Brown, but seems to befriend him on several
> occasions.
>
> And don't get me onto the whole "sort of got engaged" nonsense from
> Penge Bungalow Murders. Would Rumpole ever let himself be manipulated
> like that ?   Nah !!
>
> --
> Edward Cowling               North London    UK

Rumpole is compassionate. He has no friends outside of his office.
His law practice and the law are his life. He'll be friendly with
those he doesn't like or respect.

Similarly, Rumpole has a tin ear for anything that doesn't involve the
law. Thus he lets himself be embroiled with a woman he doesn't love,
may respect ,but doesn't even like. His first love died, and another
woman he liked married a man far inferior to him. So Rumpole probably
felt he couldn't attract the sort of woman he wanted to marry. So he
married Hilda.

[kk2...@gmail.com]

On Jun 4, 2:20 am, Edward Cowling London UK
<edw...@genghis0.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> In message <20050327232938.535...@newsreader.com>, Sir-j...@webtv.net

> writes
>
>
>
> >  Rumpole has a very strange relationship with other characters
>
> Indeed. I remember being quite surprised that Rumpole quite clearly says
> he doesn't like Erskine Brown, but seems to befriend him on several
> occasions.
>
> And don't get me onto the whole "sort of got engaged" nonsense from
> Penge Bungalow Murders. Would Rumpole ever let himself be manipulated
> like that ?   Nah !!
>
> --
> Edward Cowling               North London    UK

Regarding the first post re Marjorie Featherstone's conversation with
Rumpole, I think that this is simply a lapse on Mortimer's part. R's
Return was written later than the Case of Identity.

[kk2...@gmail.com]

...sorry, Marigold Featherstone!

[Kate Killebrew]

There are lapses in the long, convoluted story of Rumpole outside of his cases.

[Kate Killebrew]

For example, the story of how Horace ended up engaged to Hilda. The most credible is that Hilda went with a place in chambers. She was amiable, interested in the law (then--when it appeared to lead to Horace becoming head of chambers). HOrace had had his heart broken twice already and was not prepared to fall in love again, and his first love was the practice of law, anyway, if not law itself. Hilda seemed amiable enough. She became embittered when she saw that Horace was never going to become head of chambers, that he would always be on the outside, practicing criminal defense, and Hilda would remain outside with him. Nick, sensing all of this, removes himself physically and psychologically.

The less credible story of Hilda spotting the condoms in Horace's billfold, assumes that they're for her (they weren't) and assumes that they represent an offer of marriage (they didn't).

[Kate Killebrew]

On Sunday, January 23, 2005 at 9:22:26 AM UTC-7, ssowle wrote:

I don't think that the author of Rumpole, John Mortimore, paid a lot of attention to the threads that hold the law stories together. For example, he has different stories of how Rump ended up engaged to Hilda. Hilda and I think her father seemed to think that Hild and a place in chambers went together, and Rumpole came to think the same thing. Rumpole wanted a place in chambers and if Hilda went with it, so be it. He had lost his heart a couple of times already and didn't seem interested in losing it again. It belonged to the law anyway. So Hilda, it was. She also seemed interested in the law early on, when it appeared to lead to Horace's becoming head of chambers, and Hilda acquiring status. When this did not happen, and Rumpole's practice increasing became criminal defense, Hilda lost interest. Nick, seeing all of this, left physically and emotionally.