- 16 -
Bucket is depicted as a detective, as an officer, a man who carries out the laws
and as a man in public service who apparently can be hired privately at the same time.
It is time to investigate Bucket's occupation, as he seems to wear several professional caps
simultaneously.
2. Questions
It is now our turn to clear the fog which shrouds Mr Bucket's occupation. Bleak
House was published in 1852. This fact does not remove the question of when the story
is supposed to take place. We can then find out under which legal arrangements officers
fulfilled their duties, what officers were supposed to do and if and so yes, how Bucket
fits into this picture. Another step is to take a closer look at the occupation of a detective,
for it appears from the story that a public sen/ant could be hired for private goals. The
question arises whether that was possible?
Dickens was a well-known social critic. In Bleak House he elaborates, among other
subjects, on the role of the police. How does he view the police? We can try to find this
out at the hand of our meetings with the beadle, the constables and Bucket in several
police - related situations.
Lady Dedlock and Puor Jo
3. Time
The edition of Bleak House I read was edited by George Ford and Sylvere Monod
and published by the Norton Company in 1977. In their introduction we learn that Bleak
House was published in monthly installments. The first parts appeared in March 1852. The
editors explain that the whole novel must have been written during the time Dickens moved
