Reply #3: In Dickens time disease was rampant

[JitterbugPerfume]

an urchin in the streets could sneeze , and ultimately infect the Queen. We think of ourselves as a unit but we breathe in , eat and touch things that can cause life changing events and it changes us in fundamental ways .

As Lydia said, it forms a new "family " because your family ultimately are those who truly love you.

Another way to look at it is , if you get something like small pox from someone what is your true relationship to that person? Does sickness and disease form a kind of family? It is a harsh family to be sure but a relationship none the less.


I love Dickens . His writing is rich beyond belief .The more you think about it , the better it gets!