Franklin Blake and Ezra Jennings

The first page of the July 11, 1868 publication of The Moonstone from Harper’s Weekly presents two images of Franklin Blake and Ezra Jennings. In the upper-left corner, Franklin Blake is displayed as a well-mannered gentleman, sitting with excellent posture despite the ragged exhaustion on his face. He is seated before large windows, and his space is clean and orderly, displaying his station as a respectable gentleman of the upper class.

Ezra Jennings, by contrast, is slumped in a chair in the midst of a crowded and chaotic space. Papers are strewn about the floor, the plaster of the wall beside him is cracked, and glass bottles and vials cover every available inch of space. The room is cluttered and dark, situating Mr. Jennings as an undesirable Othered counterpart to Mr. Blake.

The difference in characterization is significant, as it contributes to the designation of Ezra Jennings as Other, through both his racialized identity and his lower-class status. Jennings is initially described as having a complexion of a “gipsy darkness”, and a nose reminiscent of the “ancient people of the East”, both of which work to designate him as a racial minority in Victorian England (Collins 319). The contrast between the visual portrayals of Franklin Blake and Ezra Jennings emphasise the contrasts between upper class and intersecting designations of Other as denoted in this novel, and reaffirms Franklin Blake’s status as a wronged hero while calling into question the integrity and trustworthiness of Ezra Jennings as an Othered individual. This characterization differs greatly from the European reading of this passage, as without the context of “distinctly American additions to Collins’s original”, readers in Europe would have no choice but to judge Ezra Jennings on his character in the novel rather than appearance of class (Leverenz 22). This changes the reading of Jennings’s character completely, from a lower-class and disorderly person to one of kindness and eagerness to help those in need, based entirely upon textual characterization which emphasises his “soft brown eyes” (Collins 379), sharp mind, and willingness to provide aid to Franklin Blake (384-389). 

Works Cited

Collins, Wilkie. The Moonstone. Oxford University Press, 2008, New York.

Collins, Wilkie. "The Moonstone." Harper's Weekly, vol 12, Harper & Brothers, July 11 1868, New York.

Leverenz, Molly Knox. “Illustrating The Moonstone in America: Harper’s Weekly and Transatlantic Introspection.” American Periodicals: A Journal of History & Criticism, vol. 24, no. 1, 2014, pp. 21–44.