English Literature Uni Students discussion

Like all of Dickens' work that I've studied so far, this one was a beast. Having read Bleak House in first year, I was not prepared for so much of a broader focus on life. It is clear why this one was chosen for this subject when I'm sure many other works by this author were proposed for this module.

The compelling depiction of youth and naivety captured me straight away and then I watched in near horror as that became steadily more and more projected onto adult women. My fascination for the text was not lessened by this as I'm sure it'll make for a good essay at some point but I must admit it caught me by surprise - and it certainly should not have.

The signs of this motif take root early with the affectionate carelessness of David's own mother, Clara, and the easily-dismissed class-aspirations of his childhood sweetheart, Emily. It is clear that his mother's choice of spouse is the catalyst for the inevitable dickensian collapse of the nuclear family and this lens which hyperfocuses on the responsibilities of women in situations beyond the full grasp of their control reoccurs later with Emily. In fact, the mistakes of women and the damage attributed to their folly is so key that the angelic purity of Agnes dims the effect of Dora before she even has a chance to enter the text.

This endless comparison between the women loops through the entire text and made it such a fascinating read through a feminist lens. There are of course many other key themes including class, poverty, and social elevation; systems of social control; narration and the separation between author, narrator, and character; Victorian romanticisation of childhood; and some divisive context concerning the representation of disabilities.

I really enjoyed this text, I gravitate towards Dickens' interconnected characterisation and narrative style. It is much more enjoyable to read than other texts I've read for this course (cough cough John Ruskin cough cough) but I would be interested to see how others feel and any other themes they noticed - or if you loved or hated it!

Thank you for reading!