Hard Times

Louisa is “very weak,” so she stays at Stone Lodge while recovering from her fainting incident. She’s sick, but her father has pledged to help his “unfortunate child” in any way he can, even if he’s unsure how to navigate these emotional issues that he has long since criticized. Sissy, who has always known how to be in touch with her emotions, promises to “guide” Louisa.

After Louisa’s incident, Sissy decides to visit Harthouse. Ever since Louisa’s disappearance, he has been worried because she didn’t meet him in Coketown. Sissy confronts Harthouse, telling him that he’ll “never see [Louisa] again” (178). He should leave Coketown, she says, and he must never come back. Harthouse is embarrassed and confused but admits that he’s “not a moral sort of fellow” (179). Most of all, he’s struck by Sissy’s beauty and demeanor. He has no choice but to agree to her demands. He leaves Coketown, writing a letter to his brother explaining that because he’s “bored of the place” (181), he’s going to Egypt.

Mrs. Sparsit falls ill. Like Louisa, she ran through the pouring rain and now has a “violent cold.” Nevertheless, she tells Bounderby that she thinks Harthouse and Louisa are having an affair.