This essay will focus on William Dorrit's collapse (Book 2, Ch. 19) and examine William's imprisonment to self-deception in this passage as a consequence of his moral debts towards society and Amy, what effects this has on her character in the novel as a whole, and whether her collapse and death can be seen as an escape or submission to the “crippling stagnation” (Daleski, 1970) of her imprisonment . to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Self-deception is not unique to William, and Showalter (1979, pp. 23) implies that it may also be a means of survival in Marshalsea, according to which “the inhabitants sustain a precarious identity by systematically denying the reality of their situation". Just as the prisoners call themselves collegians, Dorrit also pretends to be above her station; his welcome speech claims that he is "no beggar" (Dickens 1996, pp. 614) and survives on euphemistically defined "testimonials, subscriptions" and "tributes" that he creatively fails to acknowledge, e.g. by welcoming them covertly packages or by handshake. It could therefore be argued that self-deception is what keeps William alive and well for so long; It is to the safe haven of Marshalsea self-deception and grandeur that William retreats in his final days. When Amy first refuses Arthur's help, she recognizes this point, that release from the Marshalsea "may be anything but a service to him... He may not be treated so kindly outside... he may not be so suitable to life outside" (Dickens 1996, p. 95). This duality of the Marshalsea in providing both captivity and protection is mirrored by Dickens in William's prison of self-deception; it is a means of survival as much as a means of imprisonment. The self-deception for William, however, is more exaggerated than for the collegians because his debt is much more exaggerated; he has not only substantial financial debts, but also a deep moral debt to Amy, what Scott calls a "human debt" arising from his obsession with Amy's status as the caretaker of him and his siblings; a debt that, as far as testimony goes, he “creatively refuses to acknowledge” even when “the payment of [these human debts]…is their mere recognition” (Scott 1979, pp. 161-165). William is shown by his internal conflict, the "interjections of 'ha' and 'hem'... suggest that he is going through some struggle with himself" (McKnight 1993, pp. 64, cited in Smith 2005) and become more frequent as as his deception deepens. ; his Marshalsea speech in Rome contains 23 stammers plus numerous repetitions. This internal conflict is destructive to William, showing “the inability of the human mind… to give credence to its own lies” (Scott 1979, pp.159). William's final collapse is the “terrible revenge of [this] mind which finally breaks out of its prison and destroys its captor in the process” (Lucas, 1970). The self-deception that kept him in the Marshalsea has now killed William in terms of wealth, but the impact can be seen as further influencing his life when self-deception is taken as the basis for his greed and social pretentiousness. William's obsession with status is rooted in his self-deception and supposed need to maintain "a tone" (Dickens 1996, pp. 614) in the Marshalsea, showing the self-deception not only of William but also of the collegians who provide the season tickets , and this obsession with status pervades his character throughout, fueling even further deceptions, for example by not talking about his life in Marshalsea or when he commissions a,. 20-40