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Read The Pickwick Papers (2000)

The Pickwick Papers (2000)

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Rating
3.79 of 5 Votes: 2
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ISBN
0140436111 (ISBN13: 9780140436112)
Language
English
Publisher
penguin classics

The Pickwick Papers (2000) - Plot & Excerpts

Have you read The Pickwick Papers? It does seem to be the one work by Charles Dickens which is sadly neglected by many readers. "The Pickwick Papers" was originally published in 19 monthly magazine instalments, from March 1836 to October 1837, this last being a double issue. They were then reissued in a volume as The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club in 1839 when Dickens was still only 25. They comprise humorous sketches, themselves interspersed with incidental tales, such as "The Goblins who stole a Sexton" told by minor characters. This is where the young Charles Dickens began to cut his teeth as a writer. Dickens at the time was relatively unknown and quite poor. He was 23, and had just written various sketches about London life for magazines. The publishers Chapman and Hall asked him to write pieces in a similar vein to accompany some plates by Robert Seymour, an established illustrator. These plates were of bumbling members of a sporting club getting themselves into various predicaments. Dickens's brief was to connect them by providing a comic story, and the two parts would then form a "picture novel" - a popular entertainment of the time. Dickens was quite excited by the idea, but straightaway started to alter the plan. In his own words, he"objected... that it would be infinitely better for the plates to arise naturally out of the text; and that I would like to take my own way, with a freer range of English scenes and people, and was afraid I should ultimately do so in any case, whatever course I might prescribe to myself at starting."One can only imagine how presumptuous this must have sounded! Seymour was 38 years old and had already illustrated the works of Shakespeare, Milton, Cervantes and Wordsworth. He was a talented artist who had been exhibited at the Royal Academy over a decade earlier when he was just 24. He was on his way to becoming the President of the Royal Academy, and thought to be one of the greatest artists since Hogarth. Despite all this, Dickens got his way, and led the episodes by the story. He evidently must have a been a charismatic and forceful character even at this young age! Now of course we know the true extent of the brilliance of the man. Ironically and tragically Seymour committed suicide before the second issue of "The Pickwick Papers" was published. He had a few drinks with Dickens, delivered his latest sketch of "The Dying Clown" to the publishers, then went home and shot himself. There is a fascinating back-story attached to this… but this is not the place to tell it. Robert Buss was then commissioned to illustrate the third instalment, but his work was not liked by Dickens and the remaining instalments were illustrated by Hablot Knight Browne who took the name "Phiz". This was to accompany the penname Dickens had already made his own, "Boz". Hablot Knight Browne went on to illustrate most of Dickens' novels. The main characters in "Pickwick" are Mr. Samuel Pickwick himself, "a gentleman of independent means; a retired man of business." He is accompanied by the "too susceptible" Mr. Tracy Tupman, also mature in years, but inclined to fall in love at the drop of a hat. The other two members of the travelling party are younger; "the sporting" Mr. Nathaniel Winkle and "the poetic" Mr. Augustus Snodgrass. Their aim is to travel throughout the English countryside researching "the quaint and curious phenomena of life". They are to report back at intervals on "authenticated accounts of their journeys and investigations; of their observations of character and manners; and of the whole of their adventures", to the club's headquarters in London. They stay at coaching inns, and their adventures as they travel by coach through London, Rochester, Ipswich, Bath, Bristol and Birmingham form the basis of this rollicking ride. Satire and farce continue to underpin the whole of the narrative, as the bumbling quartet become embroiled in ever more ludicrous situations. The confidence trickster Alfred Jingle appeared in the very first issue. He repeatedly landed the Pickwickians in trouble with his devious tricks, and whenever he pops up in the narrative the reader knows they are in for a particularly droll episode. In the fourth issue, (or chapter 10) the astute and wily cockney Sam Weller is introduced, to be taken on as Pickwick's servant. He provides a delightful counterpart to Pickwick's idealistic naivety.There about a dozen other important minor characters, and literally hundreds more comic cameos scattered throughout the book. This is no exaggeration, incidentally. The book has 57 chapters, and there are maybe 5-10 of these cameos in each; delightful thumbnail sketches of characters with exaggerated personality traits. It would indeed be a lengthy exercise to detail all these numerous comic characters and situations! The Pickwick Papers is by definition episodic; a linked sequence of events. If anything it is character-heavy and in danger of sinking under their weight. And given such a dodgy start to the enterprise, it is surprising that the whole can still be read and enjoyed by the modern reader. Each of the 19 issues contains either 2 or 3 chapters, and it must have been incredibly frustrating for Dickens, that he could neither rewrite nor withdraw any part of them. This was however the regime and pressure that he had to work under for most of his life. Each chapter is headed by a description of the following events. Typically though, in what was to become a favourite style of Dickens, this is written so obliquely that the reader is not entirely sure what is actually going to happen even then.In addition to this workload, from February 1837 onwards, Dickens was also producing monthly episodes of "Oliver Twist" at the same time! Whenever the reader feels that the action is sagging a little, or that Dickens' writing is becoming a little overblown, it is as well to remember the constraints of producing work at such breakneck speed, without any possibility of editing. It would be most unfair to judge it by comparison with other novels of the time - or even Dickens' own future novels - as this is not how it was conceived. Chapman and Hall printed only 1000 copies of the first monthly instalment, but by the end of the serial 40,000 copies were being printed. As soon as the character of Sam Weller was introduced, sales began to pick up, and he became enormously popular with the reading public. So much so, that his image was popular outside the stories themselves, much as Pickwick himself is for present day readers. For which of us now is not familiar with an image of Pickwick, on everything from Christmas cards to tins of biscuits?Dickens is often criticised for his "inaccurate" rendering of the cockney accent, and Sam Weller's verancular and that of his father is probably the first time we see this. But read this exchange during a trial, "Do you spell it with a 'V' or a 'W'?" enquired the Judge. "That depends upon the taste and fancy of the speller my lord," replied Sam. "I never had occasion to spell it more than once or twice in my life, but I spells it with a 'V'."Or later, when Mr Weller senior is sorting out probate and dealing with the bank after a will. He is instructed to wait at "a part of the counter above which was a round black board with a large 'W' on it" - the initial letter of the deceased. He says, "There's somethin' wrong here. We's our letter - this won't do." On both these occasions the confusions between the two letters is used to increase the comic effect. I personally think Dickens knew exactly what he was doing. He was well enough acquainted with all walks of life in London not make a "mistake"! The Pickwick Papers in serial form were published at a very eventful period of Dickens' life. During the month issue 2 was published, not only did the illustrator Seymour commit suicide, as mentioned, but Dickens himself married Catherine Hogarth. For issue 11, his first son Charley was born, issue 12 came at the same time as the first instalment of "Oliver Twist" (again in serial form). For issue 13 the couple moved house to Doughty Street, and during April when issue 14 was out, Catherine's sister (with whom it is fairly sure Dickens was in love) died. With this whirlwind of a year Dickens had set a precedent for the way he would live his life. He was a writing phenomenon; a true workaholic. Between his writing and his performances on stage, he eventually worked himself to death.What's more, the basis for his work is all here in "The Pickwick Papers". The love of caricature and the grotesque, the drama and the humour, the sentimentality and the pathos. There is also the social conscience, the indignant portrayal of the absurdity and corruption not only of individuals, but of the machinery held in such esteem by civilised democratic societies. Dickens is never afraid to poke fun at anything, however august and "honourable" the person or the institution.Lawyers, politicians and even some churchmen are portrayed either as pompous figures of ridicule or unscrupulous charlatans. Medical men are "sawbones" who use "secondhand leeches", new "men of science" are gullible fools. The debtors' prison is jampacked with people who have ended up there through no fault of their own, and have no prospect of ever getting out. The beloved "Artful Dodger" of "Oliver Twist" is here in embryonic form, as Sam Weller. Dickens' passion for justice, for seeing everything in its true colours and laughing at it, is here already, and I love him for it. His talent is ripe and just waiting to be developed into some of the greatest novels in the English Language. All this, from an author in his early twenties. For those who think my star rating is generous, that this is one of his weaker "novels", I would say just look at some extracts. Read the episode about the "refractory mare." Or Pickwick's trial. Or the incident with the "lady in yellow curl papers." Or account of the Pickwickians slithering about on the ice. His style for writing farce is already perfect; it could not be improved. Yes, the structure is loose and "The Pickwick Papers" is overlong. The first part of this review explains why. But reading through "The Pickwick Papers" in its entirety provides us with a unique opportunity to follow a piece of history. It started as a minor piece by a relatively unknown young writer, yet in some ways it can be seen as the chronicle of his journey. By the end "The Pickwick Papers" was a huge success, both the work and its author taking Britain by storm. Dickens's life would never be the same again; he achieved celebrity status with this work. Agreed, it is a lesser work compared with the whole canon. But if you have already enjoyed reading any Dickens, then please do not miss out on the true gems in this remarkable collection.

I wish I had gotten around to reading Charles Dickens before my English teacher did, because I have spent most of my life erroneously believing that I loathed the author, only to force myself recently into reading through his work in chronological order and discovering that I LOVE Charles Dickens.Seriously, this book is terrible on a technical level, having a plot which wanders all over the place, characters doing a lot of mundane things like eating, going hunting, telling stories which have nothing to do with the plot, etc., but the characters and the writing style are so fun that you forget that the whole thing is just one big shaggy dog ramble. I wouldn't normally be tempted to give 5 stars to something like that, but Dickens made it work for me somehow.When I was young, I think to a certain extent I believed that Dickens was a horror writer. The ghosts from Christmas Carol terrified me when I was a small child, and later in English class, we read the scene from Great Expectations where Pip meets Miss Havisham, and the description of Miss Havisham left me with the impression that she was much like the Cryptkeeper from Tales From the Crypt in a wedding gown. Everything I was exposed to about Dickens when I was young left me with the impression that he was a wordy, depressing bore, or just too scary for me.It probably does not help that English teachers everywhere seem to be enamored of his later "serious books" (read: heavy, depressing tragedies). They are also guilty of burdening what work we do study with obtuse discussions of symbolism, Jungian psychology, and all the other usual methods that teachers use to foster an "appreciation" (read: strong hatred) of classic literature.But here's the thing: you need to make reading FUN if you want to win over new converts to the Church of Dickens or Shakespeare or anyone else, guys. His early novels may be silly fun, and sometimes read as though they were written by a Victorian J.K. Rowling, but that is actually a STRONG point in Dickens' favor! The early Harry Potter books were much the same way - silly, fluffy - but reading those first prepares the reader to accept the darker, more serious tone of the latter books, because we are already in love with the author and therefore care about what happens to the author's characters.I believe this is the crucial point as to why Dickens was so loved and sold wildly with his original Victorian audience, but later generations perceive him as depressing school drudgework, an author you HAVE to read, but really don't want to. He was introduced to the Victorians by books like Pickwick Papers and Sketches by Boz, not by Bleak House. (ugh, the name alone sounds like a chore to read)If you've ever stalled out with Dickens by starting with his later books, I encourage you to give him a try in chronological order of publication. I'm personally looking forward to the later books now, because I have become a Dickensian convert by the persuasive power of this book.

What do You think about The Pickwick Papers (2000)?

I'm on my third (maybe fourth or fifth) reading of the Pickwick Papers, and having downloaded the 1985 BBC production, am sharing it with my wife for the first time. Having just reached Jingle's elopement with the spinster Rachel Wardle, she's already in love with rogue and Mr. Pickwick, and I can hardly wait for her introduction to Sam Weller in the next episode. The bad thing is that now she has my book, and like an impatient dog sitting at its master's feet begging for him (her) to hurry up and take it for a walk, I'm sitting here typing a review for the book instead of reading it. I suppose I'll have to go out in the cold to a bookstore tomorrow and buy her her own copy, sigh. Meanwhile I'll just sit and wait for my boots from the man downstairs. I want them now, but I'll have to wait until I get them.
—Greg B

A character in the TV miniseries adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell's Cranford recommended his favorite Dickens' novel, THE PICKWICK PAPERS, and says, "I defy you not to roar!"This is when I KNEW I must read it.It was his first popular novel.After reading five of his more serious works, I am ready to get a glimpse of his humorous side.********************************************************************************************************************There are men and women who have LIVED a thousand lives within one mortal probationary period, and they have the immense talent to write about their observations and feelings in such a way, that we can vicariously live through them.Dickens was such a man.Oh the freshness and genius that IS the young artist.I have yet to find anything which rivals the work of those who are involved in artistic pursuits, when a young master, or mistress, has yet to become influenced by commercialism, critics, or "preserving their reputation". This book is PURE Dickens. I felt as though the dialogue must have streamed into his mind from some mystic literary plane. In the beginning, I felt Dickens was attacking the wealthy, the frivolity and the easiness of their lives, their shallowness, and...stupidity, which is only tolerated due to their chance birth and favorable financial situation. Or that he was perfectly and mockingly depicting the lack of humanity of many lawyers, politicians, and financial "industry" experts. Okay...he was ( examples: the frog poem, the inscription on the stone "discovery", the financial investors betting on the time it would take a ruined man to commit suicide, the lawyers who sued Pickwick for a proposal he never made, but from which they received a tidy amount of money). But in the end, the main character, Pickwick, a wealthy gentleman, revealed himself to be a man of great integrity and compassion, and there were even a few lawyers who had integrity. If I were to tie in every topic Dickens has written about, in the previous 5 novels I have read, those of: the law in 19th century England, the callousness of aristocracy, the plight of the poor, the mess that is/was politics, hypocrisy of those who claim to be Christian, love and romance, hatred and death, debtor's prison, and the horrors children were subjected to in his day, I would have to say, with the exception of the topic of children, this novel, in one way or another covered them all. It was as though THE PICKWICK PAPERS was the "seed" which germinated into every following novel Dickens produced. Sadly, there is now a bit more negativity in my retrospective thoughts, regarding those novels, though they still remain dear to my Dickens-phile heart. I can now see the "forced story lines" to please publishers and the public. Dickens was most natural as an author while writing this piece. I felt, as I read, that it "flowed from his mind and pen". Delightful.*****************************************************************FAVORITE QUOTES:There are very few moments in a man's existence when he experiences so much ludicrous distress,or meets with so little charitable commiseration, as when he is in pursuit of his hat.Very few people but those who have tried it, know what a difficult process it is, to bow in green velvet smalls, and a tight jacket, and high-crowned hat: or in blue satin trunks and white silks: or knee-cords and top-boots that were never made for the wearer, and have been fixed upon him without the remotest reference to the comparative dimensions of himself and the suit.August has no such advantage. It comes when we remember nothing but clear skies, green fields, and sweet-smelling flowers--when the recollection of snow, and ice, and bleak winds, has faded from our minds as completely as they have disappeared from the earth--and yet what a pleasant time it is! Orchards and cornfields ring with the hum of labour; trees bend beneath the thick clusters of rich fruit which bow their branches to the ground; and the corn, piled in graceful sheaves, or waving in every light breath that sweeps above it, as if it wooed the sickle, tinges the landscape with a golden hue. A mellow softness appears to hang over the whole earth; the influence of the season seems to extend itself to the very wagon, whose slow motion across the well-reaped field is perceptible only to the eye, but strikes with no harsh sound upon the ear. THIS REMINDED ME OF A LYRIC FROM THE SONG "JUST LIKE HEAVEN" (..found myself alone, alone - alone above a raging sea, that stole the only girl I loved, and drowned her deep inside of me...):He was sailing over a boundless expanse of sea, with a blood-red sky above, and the angry waters, lashed into fury beneath, boiling and eddying up, on every side. There was another vessel before them, toiling and labouring in the howling storm: her canvas fluttering in ribbons from the mast . . .He saw that men who worked hard, and earned their scanty bread with lives of labour, were cheerful and happy; and that to the most ignorant, the sweet face of Nature was a never-failing source of cheerfulness and joy. He saw those who had been delicately nurtured, and tenderly brought up, cheerful under privations, and superior to suffering, that would have crushed many of a rougher grain, because they bore within their own bosoms the materials of happiness, contentment, and peace. He saw that women, the tenderest and most fragile of all God's creatures, were the oftenest superior to sorrow, adversity, and distress; and he saw that it was because they bore, in their own hearts, an inexhaustible well-spring of affection and devotion. Above all, he saw that men like himself, who snarled at the mirth and cheerfulness of others, were the foulest weeds on the fair surface of the earth; and setting all the good of the world against the evil, he came to the conclusion that it was a very decent and respectable sort of world after all.If our observant lady readers can deduce any satisfactory inferences from these facts, we beg them by all means to do so.Breakings-up are capital things in our school-days, but in after life they are painful enough. Death, self-interest, and fortune's changes, are every day breaking up many a happy group, and scattering them far and wide; and the boys and girls never come back again.These sequestered nooks are the public offices of the legal profession, where writs are issued, judgments signed, declarations filed, and numerous other ingenious machines put in motion for the torture and torment of His Majesty's liege subjects, and the comfort and emolument of the practitioners of the law.The fact is, I was ruined by having money left me.But he had grown so like death in life, that they knew not when he died.'I shall never regret,...I shallnever regret having devoted the greater part of two years tomixing with different varieties and shades of human character,frivolous as my pursuit of novelty may have appeared to many.Nearly the whole of my previous life having been devoted tobusiness and the pursuit of wealth, numerous scenes of which Ihad no previous conception have dawned upon me--I hope tothe enlargement of my mind, and the improvement of myunderstanding. If I have done but little good, I trust I have doneless harm, and that none of my adventures will be other than asource of amusing and pleasant recollection to me in the declineof life. God bless you all!'There are dark shadowson the earth, but its lights are stronger in the contrast. Some men,like bats or owls, have better eyes for the darkness than for thelight. We, who have no such optical powers, are better pleasedto take our last parting look at the visionary companions of manysolitary hours, when the brief sunshine of the world is blazingfull upon them.
—Brenda Cregor

When I was in the seventh grade, I read The Pickwick Papers for a research paper. I had not at that time, and still, have not read anything else by Charles Dickens, but I am far more interested in changing that statistic than I was then. This is unlikely to surprise many people.I read The Pickwick Papers with a group who decided to read a certain number of chapters each week, based on the original serialization. This proved to be an excellent method. It allowed some of the original suspense back into the story. It added the sense of timing that I missed the first time. It also allowed me more time to think on the antics of Sam, Mr. Pickwick and his friends, Mr. Weller, etc. Overall, it greatly added to my enjoyment. The group plans to read through all of Dickens' works and I can't wait to start the next one!Original Review: This was the first Dickens novel I read in its entirety. I loved it, at least once I finished. 7th grade is probably not the idea age for this particular work.
—Denae

The funniest book ever written! I was on the floor, I mean really ROFLMAO. I laughed till I cried, till my diaphragm went into painful spasms. I couldn't see and I couldn't speak. Exquisite writing as usual with Dickens. Sentence composition beyond my wildest dreams. I did not know comedy could be that pleasurable to read. I reccommend this book to the utmost high for a rolling good time. Excuse me while I go laugh myself into silliness just recalling the scene with Pickwick getting jostled in the crowd.
—Carlie

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