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Carpal Tunnel
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"Mr Merdle's right hand was filled with the evening paper, and the evening paper was full of Mr Merdle. His wonderful enterprise, his wonderful wealth, his wonderful Bank, were the fattening food of the evening paper that night. The wonderful Bank, of which he was the chief projector, establisher, and manager, was the latest of the many Merdle wonders. So modest was Mr Merdle withal, in the midst of these splendid achievements, that he looked far more like a man in possession of his house under a distraint, than a commercial Colossus bestriding his own hearthrug, while the little ships were sailing into dinner."
Webster's 1913 Dictionary Definition: \Dis*traint"\, n. [OF. destrainte distress, force.] (Law) The act or proceeding of seizing personal property by distress. --Abbott.
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Joined: Sep 2001
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Mr. Merdle is an humble oddity, Colossus that he is, isn't he? What did he end up doing in this story, wwh?
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Carpal Tunnel
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He borrowed a tortoise shell penknife, and severed his jugular vein. Incidentally, though he must have had a Ponzi type of scam, he didn't have the flambouyance of a typical Ponzi. I think Dickens goofed in his portrayal of him as totally colorless, seeking no publicity.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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He's complex, isn't he? I suppose I'd have to read the book to see what else there is about this Richard Cory sort of character...
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Dickens makes only a straw man out of him, just to make the plot possible. To me that part of the plot just doesn't gel. It is from Little Dorrit. And I'll bet few of us could really believe that Little Dorrit could be so completely devoted to her father.
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