What the Dickens? Bleak House
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- čas přidán 17. 02. 2016
- In which I talk about Charles Dickens’s Bleak House…
Bleak House was Dickens’s ninth novel, published in 1852-3; it is my fourth favourite Dickens novel.
Bleak House: / 31242.bleak_house
2005 TV adaptation: www.imdb.com/title/tt0442632/
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Your enthusiasm is so great and so contagious. Drum roll for the top three!
+Olivia Pope (Reading like a mad woman) Ha thank you :) I do love getting very excited about Dickens!
I ended up reading this book after watching a documentary on spontaneous combustion (because of Mr. Crooks' character...) and it has absolutely blown me away. I think it is nothing short of a masterpiece that hits all the marks of a good novel. I'm very happy to have been lead to the book, which has subsequently lead me to your channel.
It is such a great book.
There is no such thing as spontaneous combustion of humans BTW
Also I am happy to discover that there are many people who love Dickens and that they actually READ!
just like one comment says ' the only thing you can do after reading bleak house, is pick up another dickens novel and read it'
Same! So nice to find other fans of dickens
I hjat è 4eadin ng
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@@alexzhu4710 ossoos
Try taking a drink every time she says "Brilliant!" Just kidding, got to love her enthusiasm. I read a lot of Dickens in my youth, glad to get back now that I'm retired. I just finished Bleak House & loved it.
That is Brillant!
How could you not mention Jo? That scene where he goes to the grave of the opium addict - "'E wox werry good to me, 'e woz" - and sweeps around it because sweeping his grave was the only thing he could ever do for him, I've read that passage a dozen times and it still tears my heart out.
Jo broke my heart :(
Garry Andrews I know nufin' about nufin' 😷
weeping like a dog when i read jo passing-away
One of the most memorable of all of Dickens' characters. Will never forget him.
I found this while looking for the great BBC series of Bleak House that I watched on PBS in 2005. It was excellent. Bleak House is my favorite of Dickens. Absolutely love Dickens. Enjoy your discussion of the book. I'm a voracious reader and it's refreshing to find others with passion for reading and books. Take care
Thanks :) I certainly do love Bleak House.
Hello ! I am a french reader of Dickens since my childhood. I notice in my flat there is the same painting by Russ "Dickens Dream". My favourite novelist. For ever.
I enjoy your analysis of Dickens, it's helping my university course, thank you
I'm glad to hear it's useful!
this is the best encouragement i needed to get reading such a dense book. thank you for this, i needed it!!
Thanks - I hope you enjoy it! If you want a bit more encouragement, I'm hosting a readalong of it at the moment: czcams.com/video/XesbADhAuj0/video.html
Thank you for your cheerful, fact-filled and rather amazing introduction to Dicken's Classic BLEAK HOUSE. Well done, Katie!
I love to hear your input on all the books you love, it inspires me to read more than I would, so Thankyou!
I LOVED this video!! I've been saving up your What the Dickenses, so expect a barrage of comments over the next few hours, but I had to skip to this one because I love Bleak House, and this was perfection! I'm really looking forward to your top 3 now because from a scan through your videos, I can see that they are all books I have yet to read- very exciting!
+A Hermit's Progress Haha I enjoyed waking up to so many comments from you! I gather you had a minor Dickens binge yesterday evening :P I love Bleak House so much - and if you love Bleak House I have a feeling you'll also love my top three, as they have a lot in common in terms of plot structure and a mass of characters :)
@@katiejlumsden have you done Dickens's unfinished novel?
Just starting my Dickens’s journey. I absolutely LOVE listening to this video. The fact that your enthusiasm oozes out of the video is brilliant
Hope you enjoy your Dickens journey :)
Books and Things I am very much so! I found the program of Bleak House that you we’re talking about. I love it 🥰 thank you x
thank you again. honestly so infinitely helpful for my work and just what I was looking for!
Great, I'm glad it helped :)
Excellent review of this most wonderful novel. Thanks and kind regards!
I'm going to start this one, I guess I'll be taking lots of notes along with it. Thank you for this video!
I hope you enjoy it :)
I loved this video so much. I haven't read this novel, but I watched that BBC production of Bleak House during my massive embroidery project in gradschool, and I adored it. Bleak House, and then Little Dorrit in quick succession. It was so great. Listening to you talk about this book is fascinating, thank you so much for sharing your thoughts on these books. You make me want to read them. I haven't watched your last three yet, but I'm looking forward to them tomorrow.
+BooksandQuestions Thank you :D I'm so glad you enjoyed the project - and yes, I love the BBC adaptation so much, it's really true to the spirit of the book :)
Bleak house is my favourite book, hands down. He packs so much in there!! Master of his craft.
It's a great book!
I see Mrs. Jellyby, not through the role of gender, failing as a 'Victorian Woman', but as Dickens commenting on charity as a whole, where it goes and doesn't go and why. It's a theme I still see pop up today among Brits particularly. I find Esther's self-deprecating narrative a little distracting at times but it definitely broadens the book. All in all I rank this work #2 among my favorite Dickens.
It's a really interesting book, and Mrs Jellyby, even if her portrayal can trouble me, is a fascinating character.
I just finished my first Dickens novel and it was bleak house. I loved it. So I am searching CZcams for discussion about it!
CZcams also has the 2005 series discussed in this video
Allan Woodcourt. He would court if he could.
And he did.
I just finished this book! It's my favourite Dickens so far - I have only read A Christmas Carol and Great Expectations. I was inspired to read it after hearing it caused some judicial reform (I am a Law Clerk and law student). I have absolutely raved about this book to anyone who will listen haha! I am so excited to read more of his work.
It's a wonderful Dickens book :)
U r a law student reading something else besides law?
I have been in a Dickens phase lately, and I LOVE what I have read so far!
Im just starting Bleak house! I love Dickens' writing style so much
He's great :)
I just finished Bleak House. I agree it is a masterpiece. I cried uncontrollably at times and then at the end. Thanks for your excellent analysis.
It really is an amazing novel!
I found your review to be "very very" entertaining and insightful!
Thanks!
Appreciate the discussion. This is one of the best Victorian novels I have read for the range of marital relationships/households presented; the Jarndyces harmonious existence, the Jellybys, with the husband who never speaks/acts, living in squalor, the Bagnets, where the husband lets his wife do all the thinking, their house as clean as a barracks, all the children trained, the Turveydrops, where the father is kept by his son, having worked his wife to death, etc. And then there is the childless couple, the Dedlocks, and the single man, Mr Baythorn (their situations linked). Even Mr George and Phil make a couple...
One strange point in the plot, though. No reason at all is given for why Woodcourt is wandering at Tom-All-Alone's in the early morning, beyond him being 'sleepless'. It seems contrived solely in order for him to locate Jo.
Thanks! It's such an interesting book. Yeah, I guess that is a bit contrived - I hadn't really thought of it before!
First Dickens novel I read. Took me two years, but I did really love it.
It is great!
Mrs. Jellyby is so interesting! I'm a political science student and more so interpreted her character to be a critique of white saviorism...though that may be crediting a little too much to Dickens considering his historical context lol. I love what you said about her maybe finding meaning and purpose in her otherwise tedious life and that her work is a way in which her passions and interests manifest in a time when her role as a wife and mother may have prevented her from pursuing her passions. One really could write a whole essay on that character, wow!
thank you for making this video
:)
I just love your videos ❤
Thanks very much!
"Fog everywhere"! After that opening it could be very difficult to not continue reading. Compare Dicken's description of "law" to Grisham's and you understand immediately the difference between good writing and great writing. Yes, it may be long, but it is, as you said many times, BRILLIANT!
"Charity begins at home" is what I believe Dickens was trying to get across with the Mrs Jellyby character.
it's so ironic that we still find so many mrs jellyby around us today.
This is my reading for Victober, interesting to hear your erudite views before I start.
I’ve just begun reading Bleak House. I thoroughly enjoy reading classic literature; however, I’ve never been able to get enthusiastic about reading Dickens. Please wish this Yankee a bit of luck!
Have you managed to get through the book so far?
@@Cakewalkingbaby Thanks for asking. No, I haven't. I continued reading for a few days and it just isn't my cup of tea. I'm reading the uncensored version of Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle" at the moment. A colleague told me that Oliver Twist or Great Expectations might be a better place to start with Dickens, so I may start there.
Love your presentations, I've learned so much from them, thank you. One place I disagree, I do not like the newer BBC version of Bleak house at all. They describe it as an “imaginative adaptation” of the story. I highly recommend the original BBC production with the beautiful Diana Rigg as Lady Dedlock. All the diverse characters are very well portrayed in true BBC style!
Wow!! I must see how she reviews her favorite Dickens!!!
I love your enthusiasm. What do you about Bleak House as innovating the genre of the police procedural?
I'm not sure I know enough about the genre to be sure, but certainly Bucket is one of the earliest detectives in fiction.
I have to do a critical reading on the first few page of this book and i'm really stuck. Can anyone help me out in terms of lexical category, verbs (finite and non finite), tense, syntax and morphology. Pleeeeaase!!
Brilliant video and brilliant project! I just came across your channel and I feel I will adore your content!
I've only read A Christmas Carol and The Chimes by Dickens but I'm looking forward to dive into his novels. What would you recommend to start with?
+Raquel Senra Thank you - I'm so glad you're enjoying it! My recommendations for starting places would be David Copperfield, Great Expectations, Little Dorrit or Our Mutual Friend, whichever you think has the most interesting-sounding plot :)
I loved this video so much. When I finished reading bleak house, I was so sad because this great world has come to an end. Bleak house is my favorite of all, and I think it will always be my favorite novel !!
I hope also to read our mutual friend soon because it is your top 1.
Now my question to you is: who is your favorite character in bleak house ??
I highly recommend Our Mutual Friend :) Bleak House is very high up for me too though - I'm not sure who's my favourite character as I love so many. I think Mr Tulkinghorn is one of the best characters in Dickens, but I wouldn't exactly want to hang out with him. Mr Guppy is definitely a favourite, as is Mr Jarndyce, as are General George and Phill Squad. Lady Dedlock is brilliant too. In other words, I can't pick! Probably General George though. Who's your favourite?
+Books and Things thank you for your reply :) I think my favorite is the crossing sweeper boy "jo" for his death scene was very influential on me to the extent that made me cry. I also love mr. Guppy and the sleuth inspector bucket.
Yes, all three are brilliant! And that scene makes me sob so much.
Books and Things _General_ George? Wasn't it _Sergeant_ George? :D (I only watched the 2005 adaptation so I can't judge...)
is it me or does she look and sound like hermione granger?
I'm directing a few scenes from the play adaptation of Bleak House. The scene where Jo shows Lady Dedlock the graveyard, and the scene when Jo dies.
Sounds interesting!
This movie is now available tо watch here => twitter.com/6a121dd0c7301cac3/status/824454094110666752 Whaat the Dickens Bleeeeak Houseeeе
I’m listening to the book on CZcams, read by Mill Nicholson. The other day, when I heard the name Krooks, it suddenly dawned on me the possibility of J. K. Rowling being influenced by The Bleak House. Could Hermione’s cat be named after the innkeeper? Could the Inns’ Court be an inspiration for Diagon Alley? And is it just my superstition that Dumbledore and Riddle the dobblegganers of Jarndyce and the lawyer (I don’t recall the name, Talkin?) I’m curious what your expert’s opinion is.😀
Nice!!! All great authors were also great readers!!! Many like to give nods to the authors they have read!!! I guess you'll have to ask her!!! Happy reading!!!
My second favorite Dickens, as of right now. David Copperfield slightly edges it out, if you don't count A Christmas Carol (for a point of reference, the other Dickens I have read so far have been Great Expectations, Oliver Twist, Two Cities, Pickwick, and even Edwin Drood)
I do rather love Bleak House! David Copperfield doesn't quite beat Bleak House for me, but it's a near thing.
I come here in shock from the ending in the TV series Dickensian. It's my fault, I should have guessed. But I was very curious to know about how one of the strands in the Dickensian story continued - Esther. I think I'm going to enjoy finding out in Bleak House.
What about Nemo and "the letters"?...love her intelligence, eloquence, and enthusiasm. I am going to read it.
I enjoyed your comments especially about Mrs Jellby, I didnt really pick that up about Dickens being critical about her neglecting the children. The whole Africa thing was quite hilarious, a dig at those do gooders I suppose who neglected to see the squalor and poverty on their doorstep
My daughter chose to read books on a legal theme for her summer reading project. I assigned her Bleak House and The Merchant of Venice as well as the Book of Deuteronomy and Baqarah from the Quran. That's right, I'm a tough parent, but I love her dearly.
Well, I hope she enjoys Bleak House and the others.
She will be greatly supported and I suspect she will have a feel for Dickensian London in the end.
As somebody reading through the Bible, Deuteronomy was a tough read.
@@dancegregorydance6933 Believe me, so is Baqarah. My wife memorized the entire thing in Arabic and it took her over a year.
Now I wanna read Bleakhouse so badly! To be honest I thought that the miniseries made it feel pretty dark so I felt less motivated but hearing you talk about it makes it sounds somewhat less dark. Do you think that maybe it's not quite the same mood as a miniseries made it feel? I didn't hear you mention Mr guppy or am I forgetting, does a mini series make him a bigger character than he was in the book? I really did enjoy him in the miniseries! I do love Esther so much, she has such a good heart. Very interesting about Mrs. Jellaby!
+Kate Howe Oh it is pretty dark. There are still some funny characters, but the miniseries to me captures the mood/atmosphere quite well. It's a dark book, but it is so, so good! My Guppy is probably a slightly bigger character in the book than in the miniseries. I really like him!
Hello Another good video
I just have one question for you…. Does this book contain “Brilliant” characters?
missionary work is not about gratifying your ego its about real sacrifice , being a mum has its sacrifices but it is also a privilege to be entrusted with precious lives, lives a mother can influence for generations who also influence others around them to do responsibly etc . Children also bring a lot of joy unless you ended up with too many and your relationship with your husband is bad / you have parents who didnt validated you or neglected you
hello, just wanted to know where you purchased the novel from? cannot seem to find the large copy anywhere...
thanks.
The edition I have with that cover is I believe now out of print.
I love your enthusiasm regarding this excellent novel but I must take exception with your criticism of Mrs. Jellyby. I point out that her contemporaries include men as well as women and think it’s too narrow a prism to see this as a gender issue.
Mrs. Jellyby fits into the novel's discussion of charity, with characters like the odiously sanctimonious Mr Chadband or parliament stuffy pretensions towards solving the Tom-All-Alones question.
I’d like to point out too that her daughter Caddy actually runs a successful dance school and isn’t, as you characterise her, someone only interested in being married.
That Mrs Jellyby ignores her responsibilities towards her children in favour of receiving the approbation of her contemporaries is in stark contrast to the benevolent actions of Mr Jarndyce or the homegrown charity shown by Esther to Joe. Dickens surely was commenting on this society whose questionable charity work seemed for their own elevation rather than to the alleviation of any suffering. Esther is the antithesis of Mrs. Jellyby showing genuine compassion without ever drawing attention to her good deeds.
I really do enjoy your videos and only differ on your opinion of Mrs Jellyby.
I'm actually rereading Bleak House at the moment, so it'll be interesting to see how my thoughts on Mrs Jellyby change and develop. I did my university dissertation on gender in Charles Dickens, which is when I last read Bleak House, so I'm sure you can understand why I approach her from the perspective of gender. I'll be looking out for her characterisation this reread.
Actually since your excellent video I have rereading it too. I may very well be wrong but I don’t remember having the sense of victorian chauvinism in connection with description of Mrs Jellyby. Although I fo remember a sense of wonder at spontaneous combustion. In the current fashion of wild esoteric theories it may well “ignite” the debate on that subject again. What a great book.
@@katiejlumsden One must also note that just as Skimpole was modeled on Leigh Hunt, Mrs Jellyby was a portrait of a specific individual of Dickens' acquaintance, not a type.
That illustration of Dickens behind you has long been a favorite picture of mine. It’s as though the worlds of his imagination are floating free of his mind. It’s beautiful.
Bleak House is my favorite Dickens of those I’ve read. It’s also my favorite book full-stop, as you can see in my original Booktube Top Tens Tag - which I’d love to see you do.
It is one of my favourite pictures too. I'll go over and watch your Booktube Top Tens Tag now :)
How would you describe the relationship between Nancy and Bill Sykes in Oliver Twist?
In what way?
I've never read the book, the sheer size puts me off tbh!
But i have watched the BBC adaptation of it with an ask star cast including Charles Dance and Gillian Anderson.
I definitely recommend it!
Have you seen it?
Do you think it's a good adaptation.
It must be difficult to adapt such a huge convoluted story!!
edit .. ah you mentioned it!! 👍
What do you think of Mr skimpole? He was so odd. And his daughters!
I'm not fond of him - an interesting character but one of my most hated ones in Dickens.
I think he is a narcissist for sure. I did not like him either. he was very confusing! also I subbed :)
I'm just beginning to read Bleak House. The thing I like about reading about Mrs Jellerby so far is that I'm a stay at home mom and in these days where I live in the USA the moms are expected to all have jobs outside the home and moms who stay at home to raise their kids fully are vilified. So it's nice for me to see how it once was.
1307 pages of worth reading😮😮😊😊❤
My favorite characters: Mr. Snagsby, George, Mrs. Bagnet, Inspector Bucket, and Esther! Unforgettable: Jo, Harold Skimpole, Guppy, Reverend Chadband
Re: Esther's 'saintliness', I've just started listening to the audiobook recording featuring Miriam Margolyes, and she mentions in the forward that a lot of critics say that her narrative is somewhat disingenuous, so I'm wondering if there's a sense of irony that we're meant to infer in her self-deprecating comments.
There are so many publications of Dickens's novels, how do I choose which one to read? Penguin classics? Norton? Wordsworth? I appreciate the guidance.
My personal favourites are the Penguin classics black spine editions.
@@katiejlumsden thank you!
Regarding the treatment of Mrs Jellyby, and with some deference to those in the comments remarking on her treatment being a critique on Victorian charity, I took her arc to be a Dickens' reflection on those who concern themselves with appearing to do something noble rather than being charitable for charity's sake.
tl;dr I reckon Chuck paints Mrs Jellyby as a clout chaser more than anything else.
I liked the way everyone was connected, from Jo the crossing sweeper to Sir Dedlock the aristocrat. My favourite characters were Mr Guppy and Jo. I thought the Jarndyce vs Jarndyce case was interesting, because it was based on several real cases, yet a criminal case could be completed from arrest to execution within a week. It was odd after Mrs Jellyby's West African project fell apart, she next got interested in women's suffrage, which Dickens thought equally ridiculous. I once read an article that said Esther was insufferable and sanctimonious, plus an unreliable narrator, but also a great bit of psychological observation, considering her horrible upbringing. My favourite chapter in the book was when she nearly dies of smallpox, which I thought was superb writing. I liked that DVD series, but I liked the 1985 series with Diana Rigg as Lady Dedlock more.
+Kevin Varney Agreed - I love the connections too! And I agree that that chapter is brilliant. I like the 1985 TV version too, but for me no one can beat Charles Dance as Tulkinghorn in the 2005 one!
+Books and Things I preferred Peter Vaughnan as Tulkinghorn. I had watched him in comedies, such as Citizen Smith, but I had no idea he was such a good actor.
My version is like an eighth the size of hers am I missing something 🤔
Pretty sure you must have an abridged version...
Very nice video - for me, though, Mrs. Jellyby was a commentary on the Empire, and the fact that it seemed far more concerned with events abroad than the needs of its people at home. Maybe I'm being too forgiving of Dickens there. Anyway, love this book and appreciate your passion for it a well.
I'm from India and I had to make a notebook to note down all the tricky words I am coming across. In the first chapter itself I've had to look up about twenty words. Not to mention that I need to read a paragraph twice to understand what is going on. Lol, I really want to read this novel.
I hope you enjoy it nonetheless!
I am! If I don't enjoy a book, I just stop reading it. There's something about this book which keeps me going. Besides, my vocabulary is going to be enhanced for sure.
By the way have you reviewed 'The Rainbow' by D.H. Lawrence?
I haven't read that one yet, no. I've only read Lady Chatterly's Lover by him.
lol, who's counting the 'brilliant'!
❤️
Que pena não saber inglês,os comentários já me ajudariam bem.
It may not be my favorite, but this is Dicken's at the height of his art. It is probably the greatest novel ever written.
It certainly is one of his best.
I used to think so too, but now I think it's Les Miserables. But I definitely think Bleak House is the greatest Dickens novel ever written.
💜💜💜💜💜
I think you miss a major point in Dickens's first chapter here, namely, that the Voyage of the Beagle, Charles Darwin's first book hinting at evolution, and the true age of life on this planet, had just been published, indicating that Dickens was at the forefront of his own modern culture. It is NOT weird as you suggest, but timely, in tune with the news and scandals of the day. That first chapter is a true socio-cultural moment, but I think you missed the point. Nevertheless, I am so glad to have found this stream. You are wonderful in every respect.
Her happy nerd energy is inflaming my own, I love this lol.
Thanks :D
Take a shot every time she says brilliant
**Spoiler Alert** Another part that was problematic to me as a modern woman was Jarndyce allowing Esther to go on for months expecting to marry him, before he "gives" her to Allan Woodcourt. I guessed that he would sacrifice his own desire to marry Esther for her happiness in a life with Woodcourt. I wish he could just have had a conversation with her - "I can see you love Woodcourt and I release you from your promise." Another instance of Dickens being a Victorian man. Still, I give him credit for attempting to write from a woman's point of view.
Who killed Mr. Tulkinghorn?
I see this novel as a scathing and corrosive critique to the British legal system of his era.In fact, in some novels the barristers are portrayed in a somber or ridiculous way. What do you think?
Yes, it definitely is a critique of the legal system.
I. Love. Bleak. House.
Hi there, loved the video! I'm doing an essay on Bleak House centering around Victorian criminality, and would love to hear some of you thoughts, if you have the time! (not in a cheating way, but an inspired way!). I think Dicken is such an interesting writer, and it always fascinates me how so much can be learned, loved and hated in his characters. Who do you think is the naughtiest character, and why??
+Elizabeth Woolls Sounds like an interesting essay! Not exactly sure what you mean by naughtiest character though - as in actually evil or just badly behaved?
+Books and Things, more badly behaved (Or evil, but I would say any of the characters are truly evil) 😄
Hmm. I Bleak House I think Tulkinghorn is pretty darn evil, and Hardold Skimpole, and Mr Smallweed too, in their very different ways.
I'd add Mr. Vholes.
This is your 4th fav dickens book but you failed to list your top 3 in the same breath. What are they?
Oh, that's because this video was part of the series, and I was talking about them the next three days. My top three are: 3. Little Dorrit, 2. Dombey and Son, 1. Our Mutual Friend.
I know this is about the book, but I thought the 2005 BBC treatment was brilliant. I could watch it several times every year.
Agreed!
She's read the book a couple of times and you have to to really ger to know the plot in detail. It's as big as the Bible
You are very interesting. Love your enthusiasm but please slow down.
F O G E V E R Y W H E R E
About Mrs Jellyby: I don't think Dickens is criticising her for helping people abroad. He's criticising her for the fact that that what's Mrs Jellyby is doing all day to the detriment of her children. Mrs Jellyby isn't within a professional position, she's simply dictating letters of monetary reference abroad. Miss Jellyby feels miserable having to tend to her younger siblings all year long. Withal, Esther, who as you said takes pride as a working woman, speaks against Mrs Jellyby's conduct
It's a theme with Dickens in most of his novels. He values most love and kindness between individuals over dedication to causes. This might be a stretch, but see Madam Defarge as perhaps an extreme example of Mrs. Jellyby. Both care only for their specific causes. The contrast between Esther and Mrs. Jellyby reminds me of the battle between Miss Pross and Madam Defarge. Madam Defarge fights for her cause while Miss Pross fights because she loves Lucie and wants to save her. Love wins.
How little the legal profession has changed since Dickens's time.
as an attorney, i strongly resemble that accusation!
Thank you for the lovely presentation,
your enthusiasm is great and contagious,
but would it be possible for you to speak a bit slower,
at times it is difficult to
follow, but nevertheless I enjoyed it very much
Thanks very much for your comment. I find it hard to talk slowly, but if you watch some of my newer videos, I am trying to speak slower now.
Hi, I am in total agreement that Bleak House is a brilliant book. The interconnecting storylines are perfectly done with their chronologies exactly fitting each other. Like a work of art. It is a masterpiece in my opinion. I agree that that TV adaption is brilliant and so close to the book's storyline. Which isnt always the case. I do disagree about Mrs Jellyby. In my opinion Dickens made it clear (to me at least) that her charity efforts were ineffective and futile and tokenistic. She did neglect her own children to the point of physical injury and psychological damage when she should have been a loving parent. Shr could have nurtured them and known the unique pleasure of having a loving relationship with her own children.Instead she chose to dictate letters to Caddy to fill her life. To me she was an idiot.
How did you feel about the mistreatment and inequality of women in the story? I think that most of my women friends would be very annoyed by it, although it is more a product of the milieu that Dickens' lived in and not his innovation. He is very good a taking up over forms of social injustice, such a poverty, illiteracy, class privilege, and the failings of the legal system. To bad he was not more cognizant of the social inequities towards women.
I think it's important to remember that he's a product of his time, as all Victorian authors were. However, have you read Dombey and Son? That is his book in which he most tackles gender issues and social inequalities against women, especially in terms of parents treating sons much more favourably than daughters; he looks at the dismissal of women as being worth less than men, and also at how the Victorian marriage market disadvantaged women. I highly recommend that one!
@@katiejlumsden Thank you for that suggestion and opinion. Dombey and Son sounds interesting. I have just finished "A Study In Scarlet Women" (by Sherry Thomas), a feminist take-off on Sherlock Holmes, which turns the Victorian gender issue upside-down. Although it is genre literature, which may not be quite your usual taste, I thought it was well written and you might find it entertaining.
i understand why mrs Gellabe might be a bit bored but how would you feel if you were one of those chlldren? they need her more than the african children, those kids can grow up to do great works before they get married but she has put them all off
the subtitle dont want AT ALL to understand that you are saying bleak house - it s either leek house, big house, Greek house. It had me dead💀💀
***Spoiler alert
Okay, I didn't like this book so much. I was born in Peru raised in the USA. I read classics for fun and I wonder what the average person would get out of the book. Does it really need so many words? So many subplots? I actually like Dickens. Tale of two cities is kind of my second favorite book. But isn't Bleak House a lesser version of Tale of two cities?
Imagine being in a room with Dickens, if he wanted to, he could talk to you forever. That's how this book feels to me. He creates a set of characters and extends it far beyond what is needed. And when he closed the book, it felt rush... like he didn't quite know what to do with it. It felt rush when he talked of Mr. Skimpole, and the death of Mr. C (lazy ending?), Esther's ending (when convenient just closes the book by she marrying someone from the first chapters)? Mr. Jarndyce's ending was actually kind of okay.
So you say you have studied this book. I wonder whether there was a point of so many tale telling... of the so many details given, did it all the tale telling needed in order for everything to make sense at the end? I don't really think so. It worked on Tales of two Cities. Not here. I kind of got lost on the words so many times but it didn't seem to matter.
Ok I can not hate on this book so much. In truth, there were good moments where I was glad I read the book regardless of its wordiness.
If I was a woman, I might be more outrageous of the book. Dickens seems to me like he is trying to give a lesson in ethics on how good women behave. And even though, i agree with some of the stuff such as being kind to others... the way in which he portrays Mrs. Jellyby as in comparison with Esther is a caricature and a mockery to women trying to play a bigger role on society. Sexist much?
Finally Esther's "pet" was kind of annoying to read. How is it possible that after so much bad decisions made by Richard, she stills loves him? The idea of undying unconditional love is rather silly to me... I think this puts women down by saying they are ruled by emotion and little to no logic. Is this what Dickens think a good woman does? Love unconditionally?
Okay I might be bitter from experience but Mr. Guppy's final proposal, wasn't that portrayed as cruel? This is another thing I dislike about dickens. He has a favorite type of person. His unlikable characters are usually introverts with little social skill. His heroes even though making mistakes by the hundreds are loved just because they can talk the talk, because they are "sociable" and know what to say. He is such a Gryffindor lol
Okay, you might think I wrote a lot. That was a long book though... and there is really more to say.
P.S. Isn't a world where there are no cars, internet or cellphones beside the point if the human heart is not portrayed correctly? Did Dickens' portray the human heart accurately in this book? Or did he just filled us with words in a manipulating manner? Wasn't he preachy? Of what he preaches, is it really applicable to today's world? 5/10
This is really good and instructive but she speaks so quickly I'm exhausted.
I also had a problem with Dickens' characterization of Mademoiselle Hortense. I found it lacking any real depth and the character seemed to be a caricature of non-English women. By the way, were readers expected to cheer over Lady Deadlock's treatment of Mademoiselle Hortense? Despite the latter's flawed nature, I couldn't.
Mrs. Pardiggle is ripped by CD like Mrs. Jellyby is. A female do-gooder who doesn't treat her kids well. Mrs. P isn't neglectful though, she rules despotically over her sons.
I wish you had given some time here to the character of Mr. Bucket, & how he may have influenced W. Collins. IMO Bucket may be the most interesting character in all of BH.
Esther is an unreliable narrator, just like Harry Potter. How she keeps from mntning her views & feelings for a certain sawbones thru most of the book!
These days the trendy lensing that is used in looking at a novel is from a feminist perspective. I understand why this is. However, if one was looking at this novel from a Marxist perspective, largely different aspects of this novel would have been hilited or put down or praised as the case may be. The Marxists would stress how the capitalist system oppressed Jo & other rather poor characters who have dreadful lives in Victorian times. If one was looking at BH from how religion is depicted, a religious lens, one would see that CD puts it down in the character of Rev. Chaband, & doesn't stress the rites of passage very much, & doesn't talk about any religious characters who try to help the poor in the UK. Theories of analysis: it's all very interesting.
+TimeAndChance Agreed, Mrs Pardiggle is an interesting character. I focused on Mrs Jellyby in my dissertation which is why I spoke about her more here.
I agree that Mr Bucket is an interesting character, although to me he's never been the most fascinating in Bleak House in comparison with Mr Tulkinghorn or Lady Dedlock. I imagine the more of later-Victorian detective fiction I read (I've only read two Wilkie Collins so far, for example), the more intriguing Mr Bucket will be!
I think I normally end up looking at things from a feminist perspective just because gender happens to be one of my main academic interests and always was at university - but yes, looking at Bleak House from all different perspectives is interesting. It's one of those thoroughly deep and complex novels with so much in it, far more than I can do justice to in a 15-minute introduction!
Sounds like you'll be talking about BH again sometime. Sounds like a plan. As OMF is last & with only 2 others left it's the special place in your heart D&S vs the darker later novel & academics' choice LD? Which'll win out for 2ed place?
Bucket did a lot of his policing like Clement Attlee did as UK PM: the team player who listened to other people.
I'm pretty sure I'll be talking about every Dickens novel again in the future! And the video for 3rd place is now up so you can see! It was a pretty hard call but I explain tomorrow the central reason why they are second and third place as they are.
Your view of Jelly
Your view of Mrs Jelleby rings of hollow trite feminism
Dickens Mrs Jellyby seems to have triggered this SJWF .
The most interesting aspect of this book is the law . How the courts operates for profit as they do today but they keep this fact under their hats or should i say wigs . And how the lawyers protract cases . And how the coroners court was convened under a common law jurisdiction.
Dickens was a great writer but did rely a lot on remarkable coincidences .