Back in London, Arthur's business with Doyce is thriving. Arthur has also taken over Doyce's project of trying to get the Circumlocution Office to approve his invention; in the rest of his time, he visits the Meagles family, and finds himself feeling surprisingly lonely without Little Dorrit around. One day when he is visiting the Meagleses, Mrs. Gowan arrives. Mrs. Gowan laments that Henry made a bad marriage, which she always objected to, and hints that Mr. Meagles should send money to support his daughter, son-in-law, and the child they are expecting. Mr. Meagles objects that he never supported the marriage, that Pet is the one who has been disappointed, and that he is not going to give them any money. Mrs. Gowan leaves in a huff, complaining that people from different class backgrounds will never be able to get along. In fact, she has orchestrated the whole confrontation in order to have an excuse to cut her in-laws out of her life.
Shaken by the conversation, Mr. and Mrs. Meagles decide to go to Italy to see Pet, and Arthur agrees to keep an eye on their house while they are away. One day, he is shocked to see Tattycoram walking with Blandois, and when he follows them, they meet up with Miss Wade. He is able to overhear Miss Wade promising to pay Blandois, and when the group splits up, he follows the two women, becoming even more confused when they go to Mr. Casby's house. By the time Arthur has chatted with Flora, the women have left, and Mr. Casby will not give him any information. Fortunately, Pancks arrives at the house and shares with Arthur that Miss Wade gets some sort of payment through Casby, and he probably knows where to find her. Arthur connects the events and suspects Miss Wade was collecting money from Casby in order to use it to pay Blandois.
Arthur goes to see his mother, and is shocked to see Blandois entering the Clennam house just ahead of him. Arthur is confused by the tense atmosphere in the meeting between him, Blandois, Mrs. Clennam and Flintwinch, but when his mother tells him to leave, he does so. On his way out, he tries to find out if Affery knows what's going on, but she is so confused that she can no longer tell what is real and what is a dream. Amy sends another letter to Arthur, explaining that Pet has given birth to a baby boy, but that her marriage is still unhappy and that there is a lot of tension between Henry Gowan and the Meagles family. Amy herself still feels melancholy and overwhelmed as she tries to take in the sights of Rome.
Money from the Dorrit family has allowed the Plornishes to purchase a grocery business in Bleeding Heart Yard. Maggy and Old Nandy live with them, and Pancks also visits them regularly. Mr. Baptist has been behaving more anxiously, claiming he has seen "a bad man" (obviously Blandois, whom readers know is now back in London). Meanwhile, Mrs. Merdle has written to her husband demanding that he secure a high-profile position for her son, and through backdoor political scheming, Mr. Merdle arranges for Edmund Sparkler to gain a position at the Circumlocution Office. Merdle's own reputation is rising, and everyone is eager to invest in his business, believing it is the way to get rich. One evening, Pancks tells Arthur that he has invested all his money in the Merdle scheme and suggests Arthur do the same.
News of Edmund Sparkler's new and lucrative job puts pressure on Fanny to decide if she would actually be open to marrying him, and she consults with Amy. Fanny explains that she sees the marriage as beneficial because it ensures she would not get stuck under the control of Mrs. General if she manages to go ahead and marry Mr. Dorrit, and that it would give her an opportunity to taunt and torment Mrs. Merdle. Amy is horrified that her sister would marry for reasons other than love but Fanny shrugs her off, and becomes engaged to Edmund a short time later. Fanny does briefly seem to grieve the choice she has made, but then commits to never looking back.
Analysis
The mystery plot continues to deepen, with Miss Wade and Tattycoram now somehow implicated in whatever scheme is happening between Blandois, Flintwinch, and Mrs. Clennam. Arthur can observe all of this happening, but is powerless to do anything about it. His only possible ally is Affery, who is too broken by abuse to take any action or even trust her own perception. Arthur's impotence over the Clennam family business and whatever dark deeds are being conducted there is perhaps part of the reason why he impulsively decides to invest in the Merdle scheme. Arthur is not usually hasty, and he has been explicitly warned by his partner, Doyce, not to get mixed up in speculation. Nonetheless, Arthur falls prey to the temptation Pancks holds out. It is significant that when he does so, he has been cut off from the characters who have served as moral centers and sources of affection for him. Amy and the Meagleses are all abroad, leaving Arthur at loose ends and with no one to consult before making a reckless decision.
Arthur is hardly alone in falling prey to the temptation of the Meagles scheme: almost all of London is abuzz with the hope of making a rapid profit. Dickens cleverly points out how both the poor and the wealthy are equally tempted to get involved, and this allows him to articulate a critique of capitalism. For Dickens, more is never enough, and while the poor understandably want to get rich, the rich simply want to get richer. Importantly, no one really wants to work for it. Doyce is perhaps the only character with the patience to stay the course and do the work: everyone else is seduced by the idea of making money quickly and without labor.
The theme of characters making risky investments and relying on backdoor dealings continues through the marriage plotlines related to Pet and Fanny. The Meagleses realize too late that they have been duped and manipulated by Mrs. Gowan. Mrs. Gowan has managed to secure a wealthy bride for her son without damaging her social standing because she can now avoid having anything to do with the Meagles family. Although Mr. Meagles is angry with Henry's laziness, he won't refuse to take care of his daughter and grandson.
Mrs. Merdle is another scheming mother who is determined to set her son up for success. She knows Edmund is incompetent, but she also knows that no talent or effort is required to work in the Circumlocution Office. She asserts her power over her husband, who then exhibits how social connections work. Even though Merdle is incredibly awkward and incompetent, the combination of many powerful men ensures that Edmund ends up with the job offer he needs.
This shift in Edmund's fortune forces Fanny to make a decision she has been delaying. She is totally transparent, horrifying Amy with her frank assessment of having no feelings whatsoever for Edmund. While Fanny is portrayed here as cold and calculating, Amy's perception of love as total self-abnegation and self-sacrifice is disturbing in its own way. As readers have already seen in Amy's behavior, she is only happy when her identity is totally consumed by caring for others. Fanny is actually being quite intelligent and pragmatic in calculating that if she wants to be economically comfortable and in charge of her own destiny, marrying a well-connected but stupid husband is a smart move. She also knows that she risks ending up being bossed around by Mrs. General if her father remarries, and Fanny makes a clear-eyed choice. While cynical, she also is willing to accept the consequences of her choice.
