Bookaholic : "BLEAK HOUSE" by Charles Dickens

One of the best novels written by Charles Dickens, "Bleak House" makes us get into another mood filled with sorrow and darkness. Friendly characters entwined in a mysterious story behind them like the case Jarndyce & Jarndyce. Dickens describes every single detail about the streets of London in the middle 19th century. Here's an excerpt from the opening chapter:

1. The Court of Chancery

London, 1852. London in November. It was cold winter weather. There was mud in the streets. Dogs were covered in mud, almost drowned in it. Horses, pulling carriages through the city streets, were splashed up to their eyes. Shivering crossing-sweepers tried hard to sweep back the mud and dirt on the busy roads.

There was fog too. The fog was everywhere. It came up the river and down the river. Fog covered the boats on the river and filled the boatmen's eyes. Street lamps sent a pale, yellow light through the thick, foggy air.

Cold, mud and fog filled the streets of London. And the fog was thickest and the mud was deepest near Lincoln's Inn, the very heart of London. The Lord High Chancellor was there, sitting in his High Court of Chancery.

Chancery had ruined many men and driven others to madness. Whole families had been destroyed by Chancery and Chancery had brought great houses to decay and destruction. The streets of London were dark that day an in the Court of Chancery it was darker.

The case before the Court was the case of Jarndyce and Jarndyce, and that case had never done anyone any good. The lawyers had lost all interest in the case many years before. Whole families had been born and died during the history of Jarndyce and Jarndyce. Pretty young wards of court had grown old and sad; strong young men had lost hope, and still the case had not ended. Over the years, Jarndyce and Jarndyce had slowly ruined the lives of many innocent people.

Bleak = inhóspito, desolado
sorrow = pena,tristeza
to entwine = entrelazar
excerpt = pasaje
court = tribunal
mud = barro
to drown = ahogarse
carriages = carruajes
splash up = salpicar
to sweep = barrer
fog = niebla
street lamps = farolas
thick = espeso
to ruin = arruinar, destrozar
decay = decadencia
Jarndyce & Jarndyce = nombre del caso
lawyers = abogados
wards of court = pupilos