ments, but his health did not last long enough for him to complete this final book (pp. 546-550).
Richard M. Baker sees Dickens as driven by a great creative energy and notes that "he began The Mystery of Edwin Drood under most adverse conditions of health and physical well-being" (p. 116). Baker also believes that Dickens knew he was in a race with death to finish this novel because of a clause the author inserted into his contract to the effect that if he became incapable of completing the work in twelve monthly installments as agreed, the amount to be paid should be determined by various parties. Baker says of the novel: "The very heart and soul of The Mystery of Edwin Drood is, in the last analysis, John Jasper himself. In essence, the novel is a study of the warped mentality of a rebel against society, a rebel with whom Dickens associated himself" (pp. 117-1
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