Charles Dickens, Bleak House instead of A Tale of Two Cities... “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” Who doesn’t remember being forced to read that epic first sentence in high school English class? A Tale of Two Cities is a classic novel that also gives a history lesson about the French Revolution and Victorian London, making it a popular choice for high school English teachers. But the book definitely has the tendency to lean towards melodrama and isn’t necessarily considered to be the writer’s finest work.What do you think? The over 1,000-page whopping doorstop of a novel Bleak House is thought to contain the most complex characters and overlapping plots in all of Dickens’ work, though its sheer length is obvious reason why it would be difficult to assign in school. The book was written as a satire of the English legal system based upon Dickens’ own experiences both working as a law clerk and attempting to enforce copyright on his books. Tying all the characters and storylines together is the court case Jarndyce vs. Jarndyce, which pertains to several apparently conflicting wills that the court can’t seem to get sorted out. The novel is narrated in part by the heroine Esther, a girl born out of the wedlock and thought by her mother to be dead, and an omniscient narrator. It’s perfectly acceptable to read this long novel in small pieces over time, as it was originally published in 20 separate installments between March 1852 and September 1853. Read more: wallstcheatsheet/entertainment/10-better-books-by-the-authors-you-read-in-school.html/
Posted on: Sat, 24 Jan 2015 12:19:02 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015