Thursday 16 August 2012

Giving Dickens a Chance


I like reading classics but have always avoided Dickens.  I read A Christmas Carol as a child and thoroughly enjoyed it but have stayed away from what I perceive as his more 'adult' books; Bleak House, Little Dorrit and all the rest.  I've had this perception that Dickens is a stuffy writer and his books full of dull stuff about social morality rather than, you know, plot and story.  I pictured endless scenes about Victorian workhouses and the treatment of the poor and could not imagine myself enjoying it, so I simply stayed away.   

I tend not to like classic authors that focus too much on their surroundings.  I've read a few Thomas Hardy novels and the portrayal of rural communities is simply not for me; I imagined that Dickens would be like that, but grimier, as he was dealing with London.  I like my classics sweeping and epic, like Anna Karenina and Gone with the Wind, not necessarily dealing with the grubby reality of everyday life.  I had also picked up the notion that Dickens had awful female characters, which was another reason to ignore his books. 

Anyway, it got to the point where I felt I had to try a 'proper' Dickens book and actually judge the books themselves, rather than just my preconceptions of them.  I found a great deal for a set of books and put five of them on my classics club list to force myself to at least try them.  After much deliberation I decided early in the week to start Great Expectations first; it's not the longest of his books and I have vague recollections of my sister enjoying it in secondary school.

I've now read 186 pages and whilst Dickens is not going to suddenly become my favourite author, I'm pleased to say that so far, I was wrong about him.  There is a story, lots of it, and whilst the sentences can be meandering, they aren't difficult or stuffy to read.  There is much about social morality but it's not as heavy handed as I feared.  And sometimes, just sometimes, Dickens is actually funny.  He doesn't take himself too seriously and has a little joke with the reader.  I'm up to Pip finally moving to London at the behest of the mysterious benefactor and I'm enjoying the ride with a feeling Dickens has some surprises in store for me.

Lesson learned: always try something before judging!  I think most of us have a classic author we are 'scared' of, whether we need to be or not.  I'm still scared of Virginia Woolf and James Joyce, but that's a story for another day!  What classic author are you unreasonably prejudiced against/scared of?

43 comments:

  1. Hi, I'm your new regular reader!

    I have the same prejudice against Dickens as you once had, only with one difference - I read "Great Expectations" in April and still retain the same feelings. I can't bring myself to like him - well, I'm perfectly aware that I really should and therefore, the novel simply had to disappoint. And I still need time and many positive blog reviews read about Dickens to force myself to read him again. Even though three of his works are on my classics club list, too!

    Until the beginning of this month, I dreaded Joseph Conrad, although I knew I absolutely had to read "Heart of Darkness". But I read it eventually (God knows how, but I just looked at the book and had a feeling for it) and from page one I was captivated! It was simply striking.

    Like you, I'm still scared of James Joyce. But I heard he can be enjoyable - intimidating as well, though.

    Loving your blog!

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    1. Hi Martina, thanks for visiting :)

      Don't feel pressured that you have to like an author just because they are 'important', I'm sure Hardy is important but I've yet to meet a book of his that I can enjoy! I'm planning on A Tale of Two Cities as my next Dickens, might be a bit different as it's historical fiction?

      I have to admit I didn't enjoy Heart of Darkness, thought it was a bit heavy handed with the metaphors.

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  2. You are braver than me. I didn't put any Dickens on my classics list; however I may change that. My 7th graders have to read A Christmas Carol for their English class - maybe I'll do a read-a-long with them? That's how I finally ended up reading Rebecca - with my 7th graders.

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    1. A Christmas Carol is a lovely book. I taught it to my year 5's last year as part of our theme on the Victorians and they enjoyed it too, it's just a good story and not excessively wordy. I still have to read Rebecca, I know I'm going to love it but for some reason I just haven't picked it up yet.

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  3. Great post - it's amazing how we hold on to these misconceptions usually formed when we're young. For decades I'd convinced myself I don't like Dickens - then I read Our Mutual Friend in June and completely changed my mind.

    Virginia Woolf is another one - not for me, I've always thought but the Classics Club is challenging me to go beyond this sort of thinking and right now I'm reading Mrs Dalloway! Wow - nothing like I expected - nothing to be scared of at all. And I like it - a lot!

    Don't know about James Joyce, though!

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    1. Cat, I'm still not altogether convinced on Dickens but I am convinced enough to try some of his other books - maybe I should try Our Mutual Friend.

      I have Orlando on my classics club list, I like the sound of the plot but hope it isn't too experimental. Glad you are enjoying Mrs Dalloway :)

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  4. Dickens, definitely - I have him on my bookshelves in lovely old editions I beat a rude, shoving type at a book sale table for...and they look at me reproachfully... I did tell myself this year, but I haven't got there yet.

    I first read Virginia Woolf at uni - A Room of One's Own. It was for Women's Studies and there was lots of discussion and essay writing wrapped up in the experience. However, it's in my bag at present for commuting reading - and as you said about Dickens, she is actually funny. There's a wry humour and sense of irony - not to mention the digs she pokes at various social mores. So, I sit on my bus laughing at Virginia Woolf - not really what I expected on re-reading.

    Joyce...hmmm. That's a mountain I have yet to climb!

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    1. Kaz, I have all 16 Dickens novels as I got a really good deal on them in good editions. I imagine I'll be 100 before I've read them all!

      I actually read half of A Room of One's Own round a friend's house but didn't have time to end it. It wasn't too bad but I remember finding it waffly. It's strange how books suit us more at different times of our lives.

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  5. Well, I wouldn't say Joyce, but Joyce's "Ulysses" and "Finnegan's Wake". Those really terrify me, especially as a foreign reader of English. His "Dubliners" , instead, are just so special short stories! You should read at least some of them.
    As for authors I'm afraid of ... can't find one, actually. I never get to the end of Kerouac's "On the Road" but I wasn't afraid, just bored! ;-)

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    1. Maria, Ulysses is the one that scares me, all the references you need to understand in order to be able to make sense of it. I don't like that he was that exclusive/snobby in those books, books should be accessible to as many people as possible. I would try Dubliners though.

      And I am enjoying the cliffhangers in Great Expectations although I don't think my experience of it is as positive as yours was.

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  6. Forgot to say: Great Expectations is one of my favourite Dickens! When I read it, I was stunned at Dickens's skill as a story-teller. A master, indeed. I couldn't stop when he closed his chapters with a cliffhanger. Very modern technique!

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  7. I don't think there is any classic author that I am neccessary afraid of trying to read a book of theirs. I did try to read Great Expectations but wasn't a fan, and I never finished it. Normally, I am one of those people that will force myself to finish reading a book even if I hate it. This maybe due to my hope that the book will get better as I get to the end, but the one I couldn't do that.

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    1. I tend to always finish books too and usually they do get better at the end. I am finding the middle section of Great Expectations slow, but I like it enough to continue.

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  8. I find with Dickens, and a lot of classics, you have to get yourself ready to spend a lot of time with them because they aren't quick reads. But they aren't impossible to understand and enjoy. I have read a few Dickens - I really enjoyed David Copperfield, but trudged through Great Expectations.
    I wouldn't say I'm intimidated by the Russians, but I haven't really read anything like Anna Karenina or Doctor Zhivago. They look so big on the shelf!

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    1. Lindsey, you are right about having to spend time with the classics. I am finding this with Dickens, it's taking me a long time to read compared to a modern book of the same length. I was thinking of David Copperfield but it's so long!

      I love Russian literature, it's my favourite. The books can be long but they are epic and over-dramatic and I love that. Anna K is very long but it's one of the 'easiest' classics I have read, I breezed through it in about a week and a half and it didn't feel strenuous. Love that book :)

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  9. Oh, we are so much alike. The only Dickens I've read is Christmas Carol. I've avoided everything else, but people always say "Not even Great Expectations?" Like that is the other one I should read. So, I'll be looking forward to more of what you think. I'm going to be hard to convince, though...

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    1. Annette, it's the fame of Great Expectations that made me try it, I was torn between that and Oliver Twist. At the moment I like it, but not as much as I've enjoyed other classic authors. So you might remain unconvinced ...

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  10. I was forced to read Great Expectations in school when I was 14 and was fairly certain I had met my literary nemesis. Then I read Bleak House in college and new I had been wrong! And you're right, Dickens really does tell stories and his books have a plot, not to mention some of the best characters ever.

    That being said, I'm still frightened by several writers. The Russians, in particular, have always intimidated me with their super long page counts and dreary subjects. Then there's James Joyce, as you say. I might one day read his shorter works, but will probably never read his longer novels. I know people who are Joyce scholars and still don't completely understand Ulysses - no thanks! But I recommend Woolf - she's difficult but nowhere near impossible.

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    1. 14 is surely too young for Great Expectations, I would have not appreciated the book at that age, even with an excellent teacher. I've heard so many good things about Bleak House and know I need to try a few of his books before I judge Dickens completely.

      I love the Russians! They can have long page counts but the books are epic and full of drama - I would recommend Anna Karenina.

      I will never read Ulysses, I don't like that Joyce deliberately made his book accessible to such a small minority of scholars.

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  11. Funny you should mention Hardy because I had the same sort of prejudice against him. Sadly,reading Tess of the d'Urbervilles didn't endear him to me. I'm working up the nerve to tackle a James Joyce novel by reading his short stories first.

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    1. Ah no, Tess is on my classics club list, I was hoping it would be the book to turn me into a Hardy fan! Are you reading Dubliners?

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    2. I'm told Tess is one of his better books, I wouldn't know, its good in parts but just not to my taste. I'm done with Dubliners and I liked it, but Ulysses still seems pretty daunting.

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  12. I've read Great Expectations and Oliver Twist and I've afraid that I don't think your prejudices are far from the mark. I have Our Mutual Friend and A Christmas Carol on the TBR and I think that after that I'm done with Dickens. Actually, I'm only determined to read Our Mutual Friend because it's one of my favorite BBC costume-drama adaptations.

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    1. Alex, at the moment I am liking Great Expectations but not loads and still finding it hard work. I will reserve full judgement until I have completed the book. At least you've read a few of his titles before giving up!

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  13. I was the same with Dickens (actually still am to an extent, despite eventually enjoying Hard Times and Great Expectations), but also Zola and Proust terrify me. And Ulysses. Always Ulysses.

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    1. Proust, yes! He is scary. I don't find Zola scary but there are so many books that I wouldn't have a clue where to start....

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  14. I've avoided Dickens as well, and own several of his that I do want to try. Maybe I'll try soon and hopefully have a good experience like you:)

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    1. I hope you have a good experience when you try one of his books Diane. I'm still on the fence but a lot of my prejudices were wrong.

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  15. I think Woolf and Joyce are way more worthy of being scared by. Dickens is, yeah, wordy but pretty easy. And hilarious! Not so much in Great Expectations, which is one of my least favorites, but definitely in a lot of his other works. Bleak House is my absolute favorite.

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    1. I have to admit the wordiness is getting to me a bit. And why oh why is Pip obsessed with Estella when she is nothing but mean to him! I've heard a lot of people say Bleak House is their favourite Dickens, it's one I will try in the future.

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  16. I remember reading Great Expectations for the first time and just being blown away. I think it's one of the best books ever written in English. Dickens deserves to be given a chance, though I can understand your hesitation!

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    1. Marie, I can't say that I think it's one of the best books written in English so far, I wish I loved it as much as you do!

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  17. I think we tend to forget that Dickens was the popular entertainment of the time. He wasn't writing for literature's sake at all. I do sort of prefer BBC adaptations (bad me) but I wouldn't avoid the books now.

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  18. Glad your enjoying Great Expectations, I have a copy on my bed side bookcase just waiting for me to find time to start. The one book I have always put off reading is Ulysses, maybe I should tackle it in short bursts and from the comments it seems Ulysses is a book that daunts many of us.

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  19. I had the same feelings you did about Dickens until I read 'Great Expectations' back in February. I absolutely loved it! I hope to read more Dickens soon now that I am not afraid of him any longer.
    An author I am afraid of is William Faulkner - I just can't see myself enjoying his novels at all.

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  20. I have not read Great Expectations, but I am so glad I was brave enough to try Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities a couple of years ago. His sentences are quite long (would hate to read them aloud, would run out of breath) but once you get used to the writing style his stories are very entertaining. As you say, there is a wit in his prose that still translates well today.

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  21. I read Oliver Twist in high school for a book report and remember being surprised how much I actually enjoyed it. I do want to read something of Dickens again!

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    1. and I am not sure who I am scared of...I'm easily intimidated by classic literature in general :)

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  22. I loved David Copperfield but there were so many characters I had to keep a list!

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  23. Great Expectations is my favorite!

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  24. I do love Dickens, but I will admit that each novel requires about 100 pages for me to really hear his voice and be able to read it smoothly. Dickens can be angry in each book about social conditions, but he really never proposes any solutions to the workhouse or debtors' prison, or the school system, etc.

    I have "read" (in the sense that my eyes looked at every word) Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man, but I'm afraid of every other Joyce book. I had a bad English 101 experience with William Faulkner and have refused to read any more of his stuff. I love the Russians, but have no interest in the "non-Western" classics--India, China, Japan, etc.

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  25. I'm glad you're enjoying Dickens! David Copperfield is one of my favorites. I fear James Joyce and have never even tried Faulkner. I tackled Tolstoy this year and was glad I did! Not nearly as intimidating as I expected.

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  26. I haven't read much Dickens, but remember really enjoying Great Expectations as well - most memorably and most enjoyably Miss Havisham. So glad you are enjoying it. His books always look so daunting until you get started.

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