Little Dorrit Book 1, Chapter 4 Summary

Mrs. Flintwinch has a Dream

  • Affery goes to bed. Then she has what she thinks is a dream. (It's not actually a dream, it's really happening.)
  • She "dreams" that she goes downstairs and sees Flintwinch talking to himself – no, literally, talking to a double of himself. She totally freaks out and becomes sort of catatonic and paralyzed with fear.
  • The double picks up an iron box and goes out the door.
  • Flintwinch sees Affery on the stairs and pushes her back to the bedroom silently.
  • Then he chokes the living daylights out of her, while shaking her awake. He tells her she's been having a nightmare and if she has another one, he's going to give her a big dose of medicine. You know, the beating-the-crap-out-of-you kind of medicine.