As I am leaning into holiday content right now, here’s a delightfully niche literary connection for the very specific overlap in the Venn diagram of Dickens enthusiasts and Bedford Falls fans.
(That was a little bit of a fib. I wouldn’t say I’m a Dickens “enthusiast,” but I liked reading Bleak House and enjoyed the Little Dorrit television mini-series, and I love the idea of serialized novels, but he’s mostly a miss for me.)
The Connection You Didn’t Know You Needed
First, let’s acknowledge that this is a rather specific literary conversation. The overlap of people who have both read Bleak House AND analyze It’s a Wonderful Life might fit in George Bailey’s old suitcase.
But for those few of us here, I have some thoughts.
At first glance, Charles Dickens’ sprawling novel Bleak House and Frank Capra’s holiday film It’s a Wonderful Life might seem to have little in common. Bleak House: a scathing indictment of the Victorian Legal systems vs. It’s a Wonderful Life: a heartwarming tale of a small-town hero.
But, both works have some surprising parallel explorations of systemic corruption, power dynamics, and the possibilities for resistance.
Table of Contents
Systemic Corruption with a Respectable Face
Both stories center on institutions that drain their communities while maintaining complete legal legitimacy:
Chancery (Bleak House):
- Endless legal proceedings that consume estates
- Operates entirely within the law while destroying lives
- Maintains respectability while creating devastation
- Feeds on property and inheritance disputes
Potter’s Bank (It’s a Wonderful Life):
- Predatory financial practices that drain community wealth
- Operates legally while morally bankrupt
- Maintains veneer of business respectability
- Preys particularly on housing and property issues
In Bleak House, the Court of Chancery is a labyrinthine mess that perpetuates itself at the expense of the people it’s suppose to serve. The narrator wryly observes, “Jarndyce and Jarndyce drones on. This scarecrow of a suit has, in course of time, become so complicated that no man alive knows what it means.” The court’s endless proceeding devour estates, time, and loves. And with such an air of respectability.
And in It’s a Wonderful Life, Potter is over here masking predatory practices with his “business respectability.” Remember when he offers George’s clients “a thrift mortgage on a half share basis?” That’s just a fancy way of saying he can “foreclose and take the property” at the first missed payment.
Like Chancery, Potter’s bank operates within the law, but with really devastating consequences for the community it exploits.
The Power of Position: A Tale of Two Wheelchairs
This is what got me going down this thinking spiral. There is a scene where Potter says something like “help me up” and it always reminds me of Phil Squod. Both stories use wheelchair-bound characters to explore power and position:
Phil Squod (Bleak House):
- Must be constantly “wound up” by raising his chair
- Position reflects powerlessness in the system
- Physically manipulated by others
- Represents those ground down by the system
Potter (It’s a Wonderful Life):
- Uses wheelchair to maintain elevated position
- Height emphasizes power over others
- Controls rather than is controlled
- Represents system’s oppressive force
In Bleak House, Phil Squod is constantly being “wound up” by others, his physical position mirroring his lack of agency within the legal system. As Jo the street sweeper notes, “He must be wound up reg’lar, or he’d never get out of bed.” Phil’s wheelchair is a symbol of his entrapment in a system that grinds him down.
But Potter’s wheelchair? That’s a throne from which he wields his power (please don’t tell me I’m the only one that the wheelchair is reminiscent of a throne.) When he barks “help me up!” it’s a command, not a request. Potter’s elevated position, both literal and figurative, allows him to look down on and control those around him.
The Resistance Within
Both stories offer alternatives to corrupt systems:
Jarndyce (Bleak House):
- Works within system while fighting its corruption
- Protects others from systemic harm
- Maintains humanity in face of dehumanizing system
- Creates shelter from institutional corruption
Building & Loan (It’s a Wonderful Life):
- Offers alternative to predatory banking
- Protects community from economic exploitation
- Maintains human values in face of pure profit
- Creates pathway to housing security
John Jarndyce of Bleak House is a beacon of humanity, using his resources to help those like Esther Summerson and Charley Neckett who have been orphaned or impoverished by the machinations of Chancery. As Esther notes, “He was always doing something for somebody.”
The parallel here is strong. In It’s a Wonderful Life, the Building & Loan offers a counterpoint to Potter’s predatory practices, bringing affordable homes and a path to financial stability for the working people of Bedford Falls.
“Just remember this, Mr. Potter, that this rabble you’re talking about…they do most of the working and paying and living and dying in this community.”
…So?
Beyond being an entertaining literary connection, this parallel helps us see how both stories explore:
- Systemic corruption in respectable disguise
- The particular vulnerability of housing/property
- How legal structures can enable moral corruption
- The possibility of resistance within systems
For fellow English teachers, (in the unlikely event that you teach all or some of this text) here are opportunities to discuss:
- How systemic corruption operates
- The role of respectability in maintaining power
- Ways physical position reflects social power
- How resistance to corruption can work
If you’re one of the dozen people in the center of this Venn diagram, please comment and let me know if you think this is fair analysis or a stretch.
Are you teaching (or considering teaching) It’s a Wonderful Life? Check out some resources here!
