Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Dr. Tony William's Gresham College Lecture Notes

Main idea- acting with children and friends in drama, The Frozen Deep. (personal significance) In 1857, assisted friend in writing the play, The Frozen Deep. He played the noble hero that sacrificed himself.

-Met Ellen Turner during the production of the play, played lucy and then separated with his wife. Dickens wrote about a character named lucie, and gives her some appearance of lucy.

-Parallelism by the the names from the play and the book.
-1858- Public readings for profit instead of charity readings. 
-1859- 75% ownership, chapter 1-3 of the novel was published.

-London and Paris;London's significance: 
As a child, 10 yrs. old, Dickens was brought there by his father because of workings due. 
 A place of unsettling sights and darkness. 
But also as great fascination, later as an adult he saw it as vile.

-Paris; 
1844: first impressions- Extraordinary place, perfectly and distinct character. Half the size of London. 
-He visited 14 times between 1844 to 1856. 
-Vibrant and modernized city. 

-Fascinated by the darker side of the city, calling it wicked. Drawn to see the morgue.
-Uses Historical setting for a clear parrell.
-English setting basis; timeline 1757 1793-4
-Reveals the outbursts and the poverty of the Revolution era
-Similarities of France and Britain.
-One or two chapters a week were published. Cliff hangers and wrote as he went along.

-Suspense and tension; form of writing 
-Carlye's history of the french revolution was splendid and symbolic; insights and events happening at nights with torch lights. 
-Dickens approach to those events and insights; example:  storming of the Bastille, the chapter called echoing footsteps; he builds up the momentum.
-Dickens own experiences

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