Little Lord Fauntleroy

The main theme of Little Lord Fauntleroy is the meaning of true nobility. Burnett uses Dorincourt as a foil to Fauntleroy to dramatize the contrast between the two competing ideas of nobility that clash over the course of the novel. On the one hand, there is the superficial, self-interested idea personified by Dorincourt, a man with all the trappings of nobility but none of the character, and on the other, the thoughtful, generous idea personified by Cedric, a boy who knows nothing of the aristocracy, yet interacts with those less fortunate than him with a natural noblesse oblige.

A truly noble person is a happy person. The proof of this truth lies in the happiness it brings. That the proof is a feeling is typical to sentimental novels, which upheld deep knowledge and trust of emotions over emotionless rationality. The contrast between Dorincourt and Fauntleroy isn’t so much one of reason versus emotion, but of selfishness versus generosity. Dorincourt lived according to the rule of selfish pleasure, using his “wealth and power only to please himself and kill time” (152). In contrast, Cedric’s first impulse after learning of his newfound wealth isn’t to buy toys for himself, like a typical seven-year-old boy, but rather to help his friends and family and those who have been kind to him, such as the apple seller and the woman whose husband is sick.

Cedric’s relationships are the source of his happiness, therefore the source of his true nobility. That Dorincourt either directly or indirectly disapproves of nearly all these relationships indicates another difference between their competing ideas of nobility and ways of life. Dorincourt doesn’t value relationships because he doesn’t trust people, having, as he sees it, been either disappointed or betrayed by his sons. Cedric treats everyone equally, regardless of their social station. He sees nothing wrong with being friends with Dick, an uneducated shoeshine, or with Mr. Hobbs, a grocer.

Mr. Havisham is a stand-in for Dorincourt, as both his employee and envoy and as a fellow cynic and snob, and is affronted by these friendships, worrying that they reflect badly on Cedric’s character. Similarly, upon seeing the small house Cedric and his mother live in, Mr. Havisham assumes that they are tasteless and poorly mannered, reflecting he Dorincourt’s view that nobility lies in material things. Mrs. Errol’s tasteful decoration and simple, dignified presentation quickly disabuse him of these assumptions and make him hope that Cedric will be of similarly good character. Cedric, in far exceeding this hope with his natural grace and charm, makes Mr. Havisham realize that the Earl misjudged them.

That Mr. Havisham is impressed by Cedric’s generosity gets at another aspect of true nobility: even the most cynical people—Dorincourt, Havisham—are drawn to it. Both men, despite themselves, are charmed by Cedric’s confidence and the ease with which he interacts with others. Not only is Dorincourt drawn to Cedric’s nobility, but he also eventually recognizes that it’s good—true nobility. The proof of its goodness—that Cedric’s nobility is better than Dorincourt’s—is the happiness it brings.

Cedric’s idea of nobility is proved right because when Dorincourt finally begins to adopt it, he finally becomes happy: “it was because [Dorincourt] was rather better than he had been that he was rather happier” (283). Dorincourt doesn’t become as good as Fauntleroy, but because he’s allowed himself to become loving and to start to do things for other people, he finally releases himself from his misery. He discovers that love, kindness, and happiness are what matter, they are the essence of nobility—the things that make anyone’s life that of a king (284).

Cedric befriends everyone and anyone, representing the book’s message that everyone, despite their social station, is a part of the same human community, and should be treated as such. As is the case with Cedric’s other noble, moral traits, his willingness to befriend anyone is a result of his childlike innocence and naivete. Cedric admires the grocer Mr. Hobbs greatly, and the two become best friends, even though Mr. Hobbs isn’t well educated, as indicated by his use of improper expressions. Mr. Hobbs and Cedric’s relationship is bolstered by Cedric’s worldly inexperience, as “[Cedric] had not seen enough of society as yet to make him realize that sometimes Mr. Hobbs was not quite conventional” (25). Their friendship continues after Cedric becomes Lord Fauntleroy, despite Mr. Hobbs’s declared animosity toward the aristocracy. This attests to Cedric’s ability to bridge and mend social divides through friendship.

Throughout the book, the narrator suggests the childlike innocence and naivete epitomized by Cedric afford him a unique understanding of what is both meaningful and moral in life—which in this world are one and the same—that is often lost in adulthood. This is made clearest in Fauntleroy’s arrival at Dorincourt Castle. The vast estate with its multitude of servants and tenants that support it symbolizes the selfishness and haughtiness of the one man who it’s all for: Lord Dorincourt. He has used his wealth to serve himself and insulate him from other people: “all his wealth and power, all the benefits from his noble name and high rank, had seemed to him to be things only to be used to amuse and give pleasure to the Earl of Dorincourt” (53). In contrast, Cedric doesn’t see the estate as an instrument of his own pleasure. When he and Mr. Havisham pass through the gate into the estate, Cedric waving at the gatekeeper, he expresses a desire to play with her children, showing that he doesn’t even think to consider her or her sons as being below him. Mr. Havisham, knowing the Earl’s opinion, thinks to himself that Cedric will “scarcely be allowed to make playmates of the gate-keeper’s children” (91). In his innocence, Cedric thinks only the joy of befriending people, whereas the Earl, preoccupied by the adult world of social standing, thinks only of how a friendship between a nobleman and a commoner would look bad.

That it’s right to be kind to everyone, to be willing to befriend anyone regardless of social station, is hinted at throughout Fauntleroy’s stay at Dorincourt. The servants and the tenants all treat him well and admire him because they liked his father, who was always nice to them. When Cedric and his mother first arrive at Court Lodge, they’re greeted by a regal white cat stretched on the hearth, a gift from the housekeeper at Dorincourt Castle, Mrs. Mellon, who was fond of Cedric Sr. (77). Upon Fauntleroy’s arrival, she, expressing the sentiments of the staff, exclaims that it’s a great day for the castle (95). Later, when Fauntleroy attends the Reverend’s service with Dorincourt, the onlookers who knew Cedric Sr. remark enthusiastically that Fauntleroy looks just like his father (160). The fond memories the servants and the tenantry have of Cedric Sr. show the importance of treating everyone equally, with kindness and respect. The legacy demonstrates that it’s possible to grow up and retain the childlike intuition to treat people in this way—there’s hope for adults, even ones as cynical and ill-willed as Lord Dorincourt.