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Character analysis · Pip's sullen, wealthy fellow pupil at Mr. Pocket's, who marries Estella

Bentley Drummle

in Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

Bentley Drummle is a classmate of Pip's, residing at Mr. Pocket's house in Hammersmith. Dickens portrays him as the most unlikable character in the novel: he's large, slow, tightfisted, and distrustful, yet he exudes an unshakeable confidence in his wealth and social standing. He hardly engages in conversation, borrows money while mocking the act of lending, and nearly throws a glass at Startop during dinner at Mr. Jaggers's. Mr. Jaggers, who nicknames him "the Spider," watches him with a peculiar fascination. Drummle's main role is his pursuit of Estella, which leads to their marriage — an event Pip views as disastrous and one that Miss Havisham seems to support. When Pip encounters him at the Blue Boar inn, Drummle is already in the area courting Estella, and the tension between the two men is thick as they stand shoulder to shoulder by the fireplace, silently conveying their mutual disdain. Mr. Jaggers's toast to "Mrs. Bentley Drummle" confirms their marriage, and his dry comment — "he either beats or cringes" — casts a bleak shadow over Estella's future. Throughout the story, Drummle acts as a dark reflection of Pip's aspirations: he embodies wealth and status stripped of emotion, and he is the man Estella chooses over those who genuinely care for her.

About this character

Role
Pip's sullen, wealthy fellow pupil at Mr. Pocket's, who marries Estella
Form
Novel
Author
Charles Dickens
First published
1861

The person01–03

01·Who they are

Who is Bentley Drummle?

Bentley Drummle is introduced in Chapter XXIII as "an old-looking young man of a heavy order of architecture." He’s lazy, proud, stingy, reserved, and suspicious. He comes from wealthy families in Somersetshire who "had nursed this combination of qualities until they made the discovery that it was just of age and a blockhead," as the narrator observes. Drummle is the next heir but one to a baronetcy, which piques the interest of the title-obsessed Mrs. Pocket, while only Mrs. Coiler, the sycophantic neighbor, seems to care about that aspect of the conversation. His physical description often highlights his heaviness and sluggishness: he has a large, clumsy tongue, round shoulders, and a slow, amphibious manner when on the river. Mr. Jaggers's nickname for him — "the Spider" — captures his patient, lurking nature and the predatory quality of his pursuit.

02·Arc & motivation

What is Bentley Drummle's arc and motivation?

Drummle doesn't have an inner arc; he stays static intentionally. His motivation centers around displaying superiority through wealth and status, without any real effort or emotion behind it. His "blockhead confidence in his money and in his family greatness" allows him to outlast "many brighter insects" in his quest for Estella.

03·Key moments

What are Bentley Drummle's key moments?

  • Chapter XXIII: He’s first seen at Mr. Pocket’s table, where his chat with Mrs. Pocket about baronetcies lays bare his social pretensions and sulky attitude.
  • Chapter XXVI: At Mr. Jaggers's dinner, Jaggers refers to him as "the Spider," riling him up with talk of rowing and specifically toasting him — all while Drummle nearly throws a glass at Startop.
  • Chapter XXXVIII: At the Finches, Drummle toasts Estella, calling her from Richmond, which nearly sparks a duel with Pip and leads to Estella confirming she has danced with him. Pip realizes Drummle is now closely pursuing her, and she allows it.
  • Chapter XLIII: The confrontation at the Blue Boar culminates in a silent physical standoff by the fireside, ending with Drummle riding off toward the marshes, displaying an "insolent triumph," while Pip sees a figure resembling Orlick lighting Drummle's cigar.
  • Chapter XLVIII: Mr. Jaggers states that the Spider has played his cards, toasting "Mrs. Bentley Drummle," while predicting that Drummle "either beats or cringes."

The cast04–05

04·Relationships

What are Bentley Drummle's most important relationships?

Drummle’s relationship with Pip is purely antagonistic, marked by class contempt from both sides, with Pip’s disdain complicated by jealousy over Estella. The Blue Boar scene turns their rivalry into a physical and almost comedic conflict, yet Pip’s narrative voice recognizes the "meanness" this rivalry brings out in him. With Estella, Drummle is more of a persistent figure she manipulates — at times encouraging, at others discouraging, sometimes flattering him, and at times openly despising him — until she ultimately marries him. Mr. Jaggers's interest in Drummle creates the novel's most unsettling dynamic: he treats Drummle as a specimen, drawing out his worst traits for entertainment, yet his toast and prediction imply he sees Drummle’s brutality clearly and finds it, grimly, unavoidable.

05·Connected characters

How is Bentley Drummle connected to the other characters?

Pip

Fellow pupil and mutual antagonist: Pip holds Drummle in contempt, quarrels with him at the Finches and at the Blue Boar, and is tormented by Estella's willingness to encourage him.

Estella

Drummle pursues Estella persistently, toasts her at the Finches of the Grove, and ultimately marries her — a match Pip begs Estella to refuse and that Mr. Jaggers greets with a grim prediction of domestic violence.

Mr. Jaggers

Mr. Jaggers singles Drummle out at dinner, nicknames him 'the Spider,' winds him up for sport, and later toasts his marriage with sardonic foreboding.

Mr. Pocket

Drummle is a paying pupil in Mr. Pocket's household; his departure after about a month is described as a great relief to everyone in the house except Mrs. Pocket.

Herbert Pocket

Herbert finds Drummle's baronetcy-talk painful and lends him money that Drummle openly despises him for lending.

Miss Havisham

Pip accuses Miss Havisham of giving Estella to Drummle as 'the greatest slight and injury' to those who love her, and Miss Havisham does not deny it.

Study06–07

06·Questions

Questions readers ask about Bentley Drummle

Why does Mr. Jaggers take such an interest in Drummle?

Jaggers picks on Drummle during dinner, calling him "the Spider," and intentionally provokes him to bring out his worst traits — his gloomy disdain, aggression, and sulky pride. Jaggers appears to view Drummle as a sort of specimen or an added "zest" to his wine, yet the novel doesn't delve into why he finds this unsettling fascination with human brutality.

What happens between Pip and Drummle at the Blue Boar inn?

In Chapter XLIII, the two men face off in the coffee-room, engaging in a drawn-out, nearly silent struggle for position by the fireplace. They nudge each other with their shoulders, neither willing to give way. The standoff finally breaks when three farmers push them aside; Drummle departs with an expression of "insolent triumph," leaving Pip too unsettled to touch his breakfast.

How does Drummle come to toast Estella at the Finches of the Grove?

In Chapter XXXVIII, Drummle is up next to toast a lady as per the club's rules. He picks Estella of Richmond, which makes Pip furious. The Finches agree that Drummle must present a certificate of acquaintance from Estella herself, and she quickly writes a note confirming that she has danced with him multiple times.

What does Mr. Jaggers mean when he says Drummle "either beats or cringes"?

After disclosing that Drummle has tied the knot with Estella, Jaggers offers this straightforward evaluation of Drummle's character: a man like him either resorts to violence or submits, and the issue of who holds power in the marriage will never be resolved to the satisfaction of both the lady and the gentleman.

Why does Pip find Drummle's pursuit of Estella so unbearable?

Pip admits in Chapter XXXVIII that he would have felt unhappy no matter who Estella chose, but Drummle's outright uselessness adds a different and deeper kind of suffering—he can't bear the idea of her "stooping to that hound." In Chapter XLIV, he also pleads with Estella to "bestow yourself on some worthier person than Drummle."

What is Drummle's background?

He hails from a wealthy family in Somersetshire and is the second heir to a baronetcy. His relatives nurtured his lazy, arrogant, and distrustful traits until they recognized he had reached adulthood and was rather dull-witted. At that point, they sent him to Mr. Pocket for some kind of education.

07·Essay angles

Use this in your essay

Tool · Essay angles

  • Drummle as social critique

    How does Dickens use Drummle to illustrate that inherited wealth and status lead to moral emptiness rather than true gentility?

  • The Spider metaphor

    Explore how Mr. Jaggers's nickname shapes the reader's perception of Drummle's courtship of Estella as predatory patience rather than romantic pursuit.

  • Drummle and Pip as doubles

    Both are "gentlemen" through wealth rather than birth; how does Drummle serve as a dark reflection of what Pip's great expectations could yield?

  • Estella's choice

    What does Estella's decision to marry Drummle — despite her clear disdain for him — reveal about the damage Miss Havisham has done to her ability to feel?

  • Foreshadowing and domestic violence

    Jaggers's prediction that Drummle "either beats or cringes" — how does Dickens use this moment to implicate the legal and social systems that uphold such a marriage?

Great Expectations

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