All The Year Round Analysis

When Bleak House, by Charles Dickens, was published in 1853, it did not go unnoticed by critics. The reviews of the period where anything but tepid in tone or opinion in regard to Dickens’ newest novel. Most notably, the critics were concerned with the structure of the novel, characterization, and, in particular, Esther as a plausible character. By singling out reviewers from different publications of the time, it is possible to see what the public in 1853 was reading about Bleak House in regard to these issues.

Charles Dickens is one of the most renowned British writers with well-known and widespread work. Dickens was born in England in 1812 and died in 1870. During this time, Victorian England experienced an Industrial Revolution, which impacted his life tremendously. New factories and industrial machinery changed many lives of the lower class citizens. The family grew up impoverished and struggled to maintain a good lifestyle. The family’s financial situation was strained as John Dickens, Charles’s father, spent money that the family didn’t have. These societal factors were influential in Charles Dickens’s life, and the same themes present themselves in his works. When an author creates a work, frequently themes of their life events are incorporated into the theme of the book, consciously or unconsciously. Victorian Age industrial-influenced strife was a common theme in Dickens’s life and presented itself throughout Dickens’s books.

The novel Road to Winter (2016) by Mark Smith is set in the aftermath of a deadly virus that has wiped out most of the of the population in and around Angowrie, Australia. The text follows the adventures of Finn Morrison, a teenage boy who was left stranded after the death of his parents during the epidemic. When Finn encounters another survivor named Rose, his life becomes very chaotic and dangerous, Smith has successfully highlighted that when survival is threatened, it is not every man for himself. Finn and Rose, Ray and Finn and Ramage and his wilder gang are all excellent examples of groups when survival is threatened.

In Robert Hayden’s poem “Those Winter Sundays” tells of an individual reminiscing about their father and the sacrifices he made to provide for them. In the poem, the father was not appreciated for his contribution but the narrator seems to now acknowledge the hard work of the father. As the poem progresses the tone of the narrator is one of regret and remorse. The relationship of the parent and child is often one of misunderstanding and conflict until the experiences life more and come in grasps of the parent’s intention. So, the relation between a parent and child evolves as the child emerges to adulthood.

From the biography, what incident changed Dickens' life and helped to shape him as a writer?

Explore some of the ways in which Dickens’ attitudes to Victorian society are presented in the opening chapter of Great Expectations.

I think Dickens included the incident in the novel because he wants the reader to be more involved in the story

Charles Dickens was the most famous writer of the Victorian era. He believed that writing could play a big role in fixing the problems of the world. He wrote about the problems of the society during his time. His famous works include Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Bleak House etc. He saw the conditions of the people during that age due to the growing things that took place around him in nineteenth century and documented these in the form of a novel or short stories which became very popular. Other writers of that age just wrote about the growing industries and the good part of the society but Dickens was very different from them. He wanted that the readers should know the worst side of that age, the problems that people were facing. Bleak House is one of his dark novel. It is the ninth novel of Charles Dickens which was first published as a serial between March 1852 and September 1853. It contains a number of characters and several sub plots. In the novel all the characters are somehow connected to one another which we will know as the story unfolds. The story has two narrator, one is Esther Summerson and the other one is a third person narrator. Esther is the main character of the novel. She was an orphan girl brought up by Miss Barbary who treated her very badly without any reason. As the story continues we will come to know that Esther is the daughter of Lady Deadlock. So the complete story contains many secrets and subjects.

The Four Seasons is a set of four violin concertos composed by 17th and 18th century composer Antonio Vivaldi. Vivaldi was born on March 4th 1678, in Venice, Italy and was renowned for his Baroque styled concertos and operas. He was a prolific composer who created numerous works and became “a highly influential innovator in form and pattern” (biography.com). He was also ordained as priest but chose to follow through with his passion for music. Giovanni Battista Vivaldi, Vivaldi’s father, was a professional violinist and taught Vivaldi how to play, but as his violin practice flourished “a chronic shortness of breath barred him from mastering wind instruments” (biography.com).

Great Expectations tells the ultimate rags to riches story of the Orphan Pip. Dickens takes his readers through life changing events that ultimately mold the identity of the main character. Dividing these events into sections will provide the basis for interpreting which events had the most profound effect on Pip’s identity towards the end of the novel. These life-changing events provide the catalyst for the development of Pip’s character from childhood, his adolescence, maturing into a social gentleman, and finally becoming a self-aware man of society.

The prominent quote in Book 1, is the perfect example of how he does it“ it was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” This well known quote continues on by saying “ it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we have nothing before us….” Everything Dickens describes opposes the other.

Mickey Spillane once said, “The most important part of a story is the ending. No one reads a book to get to the middle.” Despite the fact that the beginning and middle of story play an important role, the resolution is what tends to stick with the reader the most. From the instant the audience meets Pip to the final chapter where Pip and Estella bump into each other after such a long time, Great Expectations is, all the way through, a complete classic. Yet, there is some debate on the most important part of the story - the ending. The ending that Dickens published in his book was actually different from the one he had first written. After hearing some advice from his friend Sir Edward Bulwer Lytton, Dickens decided to change the final part of his novel. A huge debate has been created as a result of the fixes Dickens made: which of the two endings that Dickens wrote was better - the original or the published one? After examining both Dickens’ original ending and published ending, it’s clear that Dickens’ original ending is the conclusion that overall fits Great Expectations better because of its good thematic expression and plausibility.

The picture book I created is titled Four Seasons, it refers to the loss of a family member and the deterioration of that person in their final year of life. Life itself is represented in the book that draws upon happy memories with family. Death is also represented as the second life, where a parent might have to explain to a young child what happens when somebody dies and where are they now?

In 1860, Charles Dickens wrote his thirteenth novel, Great Expectations. He would write for commercial purposes and Dickens chose to publish the novel periodically as it would be of higher value than if he were to publish a full novel. Dickens published Great Expectations from December 1860 until August 1861. The novel depicts the growth and development of an orphan nicknamed Pip, following him through childhood to coming of age.

In the movie Sometimes in April, we see the depiction of the tragedies in Rwanda that resulted from the conflicts between the Hutu and the Tutsi people. Prior to Belgium’s colonization of Rwanda, the Hutus and the Tutsis lived in what some people might consider peace because of their similar backgrounds, language, and religion. Once Belgium gained control, they began to put these groups of people against each other. The film captures the journey of two Hutu brothers. The story is told with a sequence of flashback. The two Hutu brothers are Honre and Augustine. Honre was a major radio commentator against the Tutsi people who was sent to jail because of the major affiliation he had with the anti-Hutu campaign in Rwanda. On the other hand his