Vanity Fair: A Novel Without a Hero

As Jos reacquaints himself with life in London, the family fortunes improve. Amelia begins to venture out more. Now that she has some money, the people who disdained her while she was poor are prepared to meet with her. She entertains them in the house. Jos’s friends also visit, bringing their wives. Men try to court Amelia, but she remains uninterested in romance, Dobbin assures himself. Jos dedicates himself to becoming “a loyal subject” (706) of the King.

The deaths of John Sedley and John Osborne happen in quick succession, both unexpectedly. Before he passes away, Mr. Osborne confesses to Georgy that his rival, Mr. Sedley was the “better man” (712). In recent times, John Osborne has been working on repairing the fractured relationship between the families. He was surprised to discover that Dobbin—now widely respected in society—was responsible for helping Amelia in the wake of George’s death. Dobbin confessed to Mr. Osborne how much Amelia struggled to send Georgy to him. This shocked Osborne, but he did not have a chance to apologize to Amelia before his unexpected death. His estate is split in half between Georgy and Osborne’s daughters. Osborne’s will also dictates that Georgy is to be returned to Amelia, who in turn will receive a sizeable allowance from Osborne’s estate.