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Nicholas Nickleby
Librarian's Note: this is an alternate cover edition - ISBN 1853262641
Following the success of "Pickwick Papers" and "Oliver Twist", "Nicholas Nickleby" was hailed as a comic triumph and firmly established Dickens as a 'literary gentleman'. It has a full supporting cast of delectable characters that range from the iniquitous Wackford Squeers and his family, to the delightful Mrs Nickleby, taking in the eccentric Crummles and his travelling players, the Mantalinis, the Kenwigs and many more. Combining these with typically Dickensian elements of burlesque and farce, the novel is eminently suited to dramatic adaptation. So great was the impact as it left Dickens' pen that many pirated versions appeared in print before the original was even finished. Often neglected by critics, "Nicholas Nickleby" has never ceased to delight readers and is widely regarded as one of the greatest comic masterpieces of nineteenth-centure literature.
Following the success of "Pickwick Papers" and "Oliver Twist", "Nicholas Nickleby" was hailed as a comic triumph and firmly established Dickens as a 'literary gentleman'. It has a full supporting cast of delectable characters that range from the iniquitous Wackford Squeers and his family, to the delightful Mrs Nickleby, taking in the eccentric Crummles and his travelling players, the Mantalinis, the Kenwigs and many more. Combining these with typically Dickensian elements of burlesque and farce, the novel is eminently suited to dramatic adaptation. So great was the impact as it left Dickens' pen that many pirated versions appeared in print before the original was even finished. Often neglected by critics, "Nicholas Nickleby" has never ceased to delight readers and is widely regarded as one of the greatest comic masterpieces of nineteenth-centure literature.
776 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1839
About the author
Charles Dickens
15.7k books29k followersCharles John Huffam Dickens (1812-1870) was a writer and social critic who created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity.
Dickens left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors' prison. Despite his lack of formal education, he edited a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles, lectured and performed extensively, was an indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned vigorously for children's rights, education, and other social reforms.
Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age. His 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, remains popular and continues to inspire adaptations in every artistic genre. Oliver Twist and Great Expectations are also frequently adapted, and, like many of his novels, evoke images of early Victorian London. His 1859 novel, A Tale of Two Cities, set in London and Paris, is his best-known work of historical fiction. Dickens's creative genius has been praised by fellow writers—from Leo Tolstoy to George Orwell and G. K. Chesterton—for its realism, comedy, prose style, unique characterisations, and social criticism. On the other hand, Oscar Wilde, Henry James, and Virginia Woolf complained of a lack of psychological depth, loose writing, and a vein of saccharine sentimentalism. The term Dickensian is used to describe something that is reminiscent of Dickens and his writings, such as poor social conditions or comically repulsive characters.
On 8 June 1870, Dickens suffered another stroke at his home after a full day's work on Edwin Drood. He never regained consciousness, and the next day he died at Gad's Hill Place. Contrary to his wish to be buried at Rochester Cathedral "in an inexpensive, unostentatious, and strictly private manner," he was laid to rest in the Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey. A printed epitaph circulated at the time of the funeral reads: "To the Memory of Charles Dickens (England's most popular author) who died at his residence, Higham, near Rochester, Kent, 9 June 1870, aged 58 years. He was a sympathiser with the poor, the suffering, and the oppressed; and by his death, one of England's greatest writers is lost to the world." His last words were: "On the ground", in response to his sister-in-law Georgina's request that he lie down.
(from Wikipedia)
Dickens left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors' prison. Despite his lack of formal education, he edited a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles, lectured and performed extensively, was an indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned vigorously for children's rights, education, and other social reforms.
Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age. His 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, remains popular and continues to inspire adaptations in every artistic genre. Oliver Twist and Great Expectations are also frequently adapted, and, like many of his novels, evoke images of early Victorian London. His 1859 novel, A Tale of Two Cities, set in London and Paris, is his best-known work of historical fiction. Dickens's creative genius has been praised by fellow writers—from Leo Tolstoy to George Orwell and G. K. Chesterton—for its realism, comedy, prose style, unique characterisations, and social criticism. On the other hand, Oscar Wilde, Henry James, and Virginia Woolf complained of a lack of psychological depth, loose writing, and a vein of saccharine sentimentalism. The term Dickensian is used to describe something that is reminiscent of Dickens and his writings, such as poor social conditions or comically repulsive characters.
On 8 June 1870, Dickens suffered another stroke at his home after a full day's work on Edwin Drood. He never regained consciousness, and the next day he died at Gad's Hill Place. Contrary to his wish to be buried at Rochester Cathedral "in an inexpensive, unostentatious, and strictly private manner," he was laid to rest in the Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey. A printed epitaph circulated at the time of the funeral reads: "To the Memory of Charles Dickens (England's most popular author) who died at his residence, Higham, near Rochester, Kent, 9 June 1870, aged 58 years. He was a sympathiser with the poor, the suffering, and the oppressed; and by his death, one of England's greatest writers is lost to the world." His last words were: "On the ground", in response to his sister-in-law Georgina's request that he lie down.
(from Wikipedia)
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June 22, 2024
Peter Ackroyd, in his ground-breaking biography of Charles Dickens, says that Nicholas Nickleby is "perhaps the funniest novel in the English language". The complete title of the novel is perhaps a bit of a mouthful,
"The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, containing a Faithful Account of the Fortunes, Misfortunes, Uprisings, Downfallings and Complete Career of the Nickleby Family".
It was published, as his previous novels had been, in monthly installments, between 1838 and 1839, and the last part was again a double issue. Whilst Dickens was writing this he was between 26 and 27 years of age, and also putting the final touches to his enormously successful "Oliver Twist".
Some of the plot elements, and Dickens's social criticisms, are very much in the vein of "Oliver Twist". Yet in many ways the novel is more similar to his first installment novel, "The Pickwick Papers". It has a comic rather than a tragic feel, and is certainly more lightweight and humorous than "Oliver Twist". It could be classed as ironic social satire, pointing up social injustices, while full of Dickens's taste for absurdity.
The picaresque style of "The Pickwick Papers" recalls very much the earlier 18th century fashion for vignettes, such as those written by Henry Fielding. Although Nicholas Nickleby is held together by a continuing saga, it is still very episodic; subject to shifts in focus, and with such a wealth of characters and subplots that the main thrust of the novel occasionally seems to be lost. However, this episodic feel was still a very popular style of the time. When it was published the book was an immediate success, further establishing Dickens's reputation. Indeed, an engraving of one of the most famous portraits of Dickens, is used as the frontispiece, and is called "the Nickleby Portrait". Charles Dickens sat for this portrait in June 1839, partway through the serialisation of the novel. It was by the artist Daniel Maclise, and had been commissioned by Dickens's publishers, Chapman and Hall.
Nicholas Nickleby is typical of many early English novels, being focused on one person's life, and as such is more of a fictional biography than being especially plot-driven. Unlike his preceding novel, "Oliver Twist", the title character of this is already a young man with family responsibilities at the start of the novel. His future is very uncertain, due to the death of his father, who had made some poor investments. The readers sees that the major conflict in this novel is going to be the struggle of a small family to make their way in the world after suffering a tragic loss. To some extent, this is autobiographical. The Nickleby family are genteel but impoverished. Dickens's own personal struggles and experiences as a young man were similar, since his father had also forfeited his gentility because of financial incompetence.
In Nicholas Nickleby we are introduced to the protagonist's uncle, Ralph Nickleby, very near the beginning. As soon as Ralph comes on the scene we realise this will add spice to the situation. For what a miserable old skinflint he is,
"there was something in his very wrinkles, and in his cold restless eye, which seemed to tell of cunning that would announce itself in spite of him."
Ralph takes against Nicholas right from the start, apparently purely based on envy, because Nicholas is young, bright and open. At this point we realise he is destined to be Nicholas's antagonist. And the warning bells begin to ring when we are told that Ralph Nickleby is unscrupulous in his financial dealings, because Nicholas has turned to his uncle for assistance, hoping for support for his mother and sister after the death of his father.
Very quickly then, we identify Ralph as "the villain of the piece". And Dickens gives full rein to his talent for inventing over-the-top characters, who stay in the mind far longer than the details of the story itself. Who can forget the grotesque headmaster Wackford Squeers, with his,
"one eye when the popular prejudice is in favour of two."
Or Mrs Nickleby with her rapid barrage of discursions which would put Mrs. Bennet of Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" to shame? Or the kindly, generous benefactors, the Cheeryble brothers, Charles and Ned, who have built a thriving business on treating others with respect and compassion. They address each other as "my dear fellow" and not only look and act alike but also dress alike and wear white hats. As well as the main characters there are a myriad of minor eccentric characters in this novel, all of whom are a delight. Blink and you may miss them! The Crummles's family of actors, with their daughter Ninette, the starry "Infant Phenomenon", who at the age of ten had,
"been precisely the same age - not perhaps to the full extent of the memory of the oldest inhabitant, but certainly for five good years. But she had been kept up late every night, and put upon an unlimited allowance of gin-and-water from infancy, to prevent her growing tall, and perhaps this system of training had produced in the infant phenomenon these additional phenomena."
The other actors, unsurprisingly, were none too keen on her privileged position. The leading man Mr Folair termed her the "Infernal Phenomenon"! Then there is Mrs. Mantalini, the astute business-woman who owns a dressmaking and millinery shop, for whom Nicholas's sister Kate is sent to work as a seamstress, and her husband, a foppish fellow with extravagent tastes, given to histrionics and repeated attempts to kill himself. There is the fun-loving but ultimately self-seeking Kenwigs family, the revolting, lusting, scheming old man Arthur Gride, denounced as a wretch and a villain, and the dastardly nobleman whom we all want to boo, Sir Mulberry Hawk.
The names too are typical Dickens whimsy, chosen with an eye to amuse and appeal. "Dotheboys Hall, the vile school where the boys were well and truly "done to", with Wackford Squeers as its headmaster, overkeen on whacking his pupils. Miss Knag - the spiteful forewoman of the dressmakers and milliners. There is Lord Frederick Verisoft - soft of brain - "weak and silly", his friend the Honourable Mr Snobb, and Sir Mulberry Hawk - "the most knowing card in the pack" - who treats everyone, including his "friends", as his prey. The Cheeryble brothers; now who can read their name without smiling? Mrs Wititterly who seems to witter a lot and has "an air of sweet insipidity". There is such a superfluity of names, some in characters who shine brightly for a paragraph or two, and then disappear without trace. There is Mr Crowl, who "utters a low querulous growl", and perhaps the best of the lot, Sir Tumley Snuffim, who is perhaps not such a good doctor if his patients "snuff it"!
All the episodes with these larger than life characters seem tailor-made for the stage. Many of the speeches seem to cry out for an actor's ringing declamation on stage in a 19th century melodrama. Nicholas's way of talking is very stilted, and sadly, this stiff formal kind of language sometimes does alienate the modern reader, such as this, a simple acquiescence,
"It's not in my nature... to resist any entreaty, unless it is to do something positively wrong; and, beyond a feeling of pride, I know nothing which should prevent my doing this. I know nobody here, and nobody knows me. So be it then. I yield."
Dickens does indulge his love of all things theatrical in this novel, with a large part of the action being devoted to scenes in Portsmouth, where Nickleby aka "Mr Johnson" both writes and performs in the acting troupes, much as Dickens himself did. Perhaps this was deliberately so, because he dedicates it to his friend, the distinguished actor and theatre director William Macready. You can see Dickens's love of the theatre in almost every scene here.
But this makes the tragic scenes so much more powerful, because of the contrasting comic scenes. And who, out of the general reading population of the time, would really have stayed with a piece of tragic literature about their contemporaries - including the poorest of them all - had it not been made so hugely entertaining? It's a real rarity for the time, for an author to focus on the lives of such poor people. Noggs and Smike are fully developed characters, but few of Dickens's contemporaries - Thackeray for instance - would bother with them. Dickens is quite deliberately appealing to the common people. He has "the common touch" and Trollope's disparaging nickname for him of "Mr Popular Sentiment" is perhaps not given without a certain amount of malicious envy.
The characters here are very much larger than life characters, but the main characters we are following are more sensitively drawn. Madeline Bray is an heroic, brave character, beautiful and self-sacrificing, going through agonies of mind as she stays loyal to her father depite his despicable deeds. The reader is positively willing for her to have a good end. The character of Smike, the ex-Dotheboys Hall boy, is portrayed in such an affecting way, without resort to sentiment, that Dickens manages to tug at our heart-strings whenever he comes into the action. Then there are those others such as Newman Noggs, whom we know has fallen into the service and clutches of Ralph Nickleby through his own weakness for drink. Yet throughout we are willing him to somehow escape, recognising that here is a man of worth and principle. He is virtually a guardian angel to Nicholas, because of his benevolence and integrity. Dickens makes it abundantly clear to his readers just who are the goodies, and who are the baddies. This is at root an entertainment of a novel, although one very much designed to expose a scandal of the time.
For just as "Oliver Twist" was intended to alert the largest possible audience to the scandal of the workhouses in the light of the recent changes to the Poor Law, Nicholas Nickleby was deliberately written to expose the ugly truth about Yorkshire boarding schools. In the preface to the novel Dickens calls Yorkshire schoolmasters,
"Traders in the avarice, indifference, or imbecility of parents, and the helplessness of children; ignorant, sordid, brutal men, to whom few considerate persons would have entrusted the board and lodging of a horse or a dog"
Then in his second preface, to the 1848 Cheap Edition, he notes that such schools as Dotheboys were common in Yorkshire at the time of writing but had begun to disappear,
"This story was begun, within a few months after the publication of the completed "Pickwick Papers." There were, then, a good many cheap Yorkshire schools in existence. There are very few now."
Such then was the power of a Dickens novel to influence popular opinion. When a great author of such stature and persuasive ability aimed his satirical voice at one social problem after another, both society and Parliament itself rapidly moved to change things. His fiction influenced both public perception and social reform, and this is one of the reasons he is truly a great author.
We know that prior to Nicholas Nickleby, Dickens had seen advertisements in the London papers for cheap boarding schools in Yorkshire. It was stressed that there were "no holidays" from these schools. Dickens's antennae must have gone up, as he knew they were a convenient place to dispose of unwanted or illegitimate children. During the writing of "Oliver Twist" Dickens and his friend, Hablot Browne (who was to illustrate the book) had travelled in secret to Yorkshire to investigate these schools in January 1838. There they met William Shaw, the headmaster of Bowes Academy. The neglect and maltreatment at this notorious school was responsible for the blindness of several boys, and some actually died as a consequence. There is no doubt that Dickens intended the headmaster Wackford Squeers to be a portrayal of William Shaw, and that Dotheboys Hall was Bowes Academy. It became so infamous that "Bowes Academy", eventually (by 1903) became known as "Dotheboys Hall"!
Many of the other characters were also based on real life people. The character of Miss La Crevy, who befriended the Nickleby family, was based on the actual person, Rosa Emma Drummond, who painted a miniature engraved portrait of Dickens on ivory. Dickens had commissioned this, so that he could give it to his fiancee, Catherine Hogarth as an engagement present. Like Miss Drummond, Miss La Creevy, was a good-natured, middle-aged miniature painter, described by Dickens as a "mincing young lady of fifty".
Vincent Crummles and his daughter "The Infant Phenomenon" were based on the actor-manager T. D. Davenport and his nine year old prodigy of a daughter, Jean. "Infant phenomena" were a regular feature of many theatrical shows during the early decades of the nineteenth century. Davenport and his daughter appeared on the Portsmouth stage in March 1837.
Dickens's own mother, Elizabeth Dickens, was the model for Mrs. Nickleby. Luckily for Charles she didn't recognise herself in the character. In fact she asked someone if they, "really believed there ever was such a woman"!
And most surprising and notable of all is that the Cheeryble brothers were based on real life characters too! They are based on two benefactors who were brothers, Daniel and William Grant. They came from Scotland, but settled in Ramsbottom in Greater Manchester (although during Dickens's time, this will have been thought of as part of the county of Lancashire.) Some of the fine houses they built are still there. For instance, St. Andrew's Church from 1832 is also known as Grant's Church. It was originally consecrated as a Scottish Presbyterian Chapel, with a donation of £5,000 by William Grant. The Grant brothers regularly gave money to promising new enterprises and for education, supporting schools, libraries and the charitable institutions, and when homes and farmlands on Speyside were swept away by floods in 1829, gave £100 to swell "The Flood Fund". Dickens was keen to make sure everyone knew of these remarkable pair. This is from his preface, in May, 1848,
"It may be right to say that there are 2 characters in this book which are drawn from life. Those who take an interest in this tale will be glad to learn that the Brothers Cheeryble do live; that their liberal charity, their singleness of heart, noble nature and unbounded benevolence are no creatures of the author’s brain, but are prompting every day some munificent and generous deed in that town of which they are the pride and honour."
He was writing at breakneck speed again. "Oliver Twist" had overlapped "The Pickwick Papers" by 10 months, and when he started "Nicholas Nickleby", "Oliver Twist" was still a long way from being completed. So perhaps the persuasive writing he was so keen on, the social conscience he displayed in his writing in the early part of this novel, feels very familiar, because it was written on the same days as the latter half of Oliver Twist. He was also, of course, doing his editing work too. Dickens seemed to delight in working under pressure at high speed!
What the reader takes away from this novel is mainly a memory of the dramatic, eccentric and unique characters, although probably only a fraction of the total proliferation stay with us. We may remember the plot too. Yet credit should also be given to Dickens's masterly powers of description, which are also very apparent in Nicholas Nickleby. Often Dickens will exaggerate for effect, or use personification, or even the pathetic fallacy, where he is keen to convey a mood. He is adept at attributing human qualities and emotions to inanimate objects.
Here's a wonderful description of Arthur Gride,
"a little old man, of about seventy or seventy-five years of age, of a very lean figure, much bent and slightly twisted. He wore... such scanty trousers as displayed his shrunken spindle-shanks in their full ugliness...His nose and chin were sharp and prominent, his jaws had fallen inwards from loss of teeth, his face was shrivelled and yellow, save where the cheeks were streaked with the colour of a dry winter apple; and where his beard had been, there lingered yet a few grey tufts which seemed, like the ragged eyebrows, to denote the badness of the soil from which they sprung. The whole air and attitude of the form was one of stealthy cat-like obsequiousness; the whole expression of the face was concentrated in a wrinkled leer, compounded of cunning, lecherousness, slyness, and avarice."
And here is his house,
"an old house, dismal dark and dusty, which seemed to have withered, like himself, and to have grown yellow and shrivelled in hoarding him from the light of day, as he had in hoarding his money... Meagre old chairs and tables, of spare and bony make, and hard and cold as misers' hearts, were ranged, in grim array, against the gloomy walls; attenuated presses, grown lank and lantern-jawed in guarding the treasures they enclosed, and tottering, as though from constant fear and dread of thieves, shrunk up in dark corners, whence they cast no shadows on the ground, and seemed to hide and cower from observation."
Arthur Gride's house, thus seems to take on the aspect of a living creature itself, as though the essence of its inhabitant had oozed into the very fibres of the house and its contents. Of course it is exaggerated and whimsical rather than realistic, but it is brilliantly described.
Here's another example, where a different house is described. It feels less organic, but holds more of a portent. Kate Nickleby has this to say of the house Ralph acquires for them,
"This house depresses and chills one and seems as if some blight had fallen on it. If I were superstitious, I should be almost inclined to believe that some dreadful crime had been perpetrated within these old walls, and that the place had never prospered since. How frowning and how dark it looks!"
So this house seems to foreshadow the sinister plans that Ralph has for Kate. Both of these to me show Dickens's supreme craft as a writer.
Nicholas Nickleby is partly a "bildungsroman" - a story about the coming of age of the main character - and partly a social commentary on injustice. The maltreatment of children in the educational system features highly throughout, with Dickens using all the tricks of the trade to persuade his readers; pathos, comedy, satire, and powerful storytelling. He also employs coincidences, which we all love in life, and melodrama, which heightened the entertainment value at the time it was written. As well as focusing on the private Yorkshire poor schools, savagely condemning those responsible for the system that treated children so cruelly, it also indicts those who use fraudulent financial tactics and other dishonest business practices. There is certainly a memorable plot, and it could be thought of as "Three Weddings and a Funeral" - but there are two funerals here, and they are poles apart. They are both highly dramatic and tragic, because they are ultimately both avoidable.
So is it the funniest novel in the English language? Well it all depends on your taste. It is possibly the funniest novel ever written by Dickens himself. Yet it is also extremely poignant, sad, chilling, bitter and (it has to be said) overblown and melodramatic. It is by turns absurd, comic, tragic and moving. It is quintessentially Charles Dickens. If you love Dickens, you'll love this one - don't miss it!
"The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, containing a Faithful Account of the Fortunes, Misfortunes, Uprisings, Downfallings and Complete Career of the Nickleby Family".
It was published, as his previous novels had been, in monthly installments, between 1838 and 1839, and the last part was again a double issue. Whilst Dickens was writing this he was between 26 and 27 years of age, and also putting the final touches to his enormously successful "Oliver Twist".
Some of the plot elements, and Dickens's social criticisms, are very much in the vein of "Oliver Twist". Yet in many ways the novel is more similar to his first installment novel, "The Pickwick Papers". It has a comic rather than a tragic feel, and is certainly more lightweight and humorous than "Oliver Twist". It could be classed as ironic social satire, pointing up social injustices, while full of Dickens's taste for absurdity.
The picaresque style of "The Pickwick Papers" recalls very much the earlier 18th century fashion for vignettes, such as those written by Henry Fielding. Although Nicholas Nickleby is held together by a continuing saga, it is still very episodic; subject to shifts in focus, and with such a wealth of characters and subplots that the main thrust of the novel occasionally seems to be lost. However, this episodic feel was still a very popular style of the time. When it was published the book was an immediate success, further establishing Dickens's reputation. Indeed, an engraving of one of the most famous portraits of Dickens, is used as the frontispiece, and is called "the Nickleby Portrait". Charles Dickens sat for this portrait in June 1839, partway through the serialisation of the novel. It was by the artist Daniel Maclise, and had been commissioned by Dickens's publishers, Chapman and Hall.
Nicholas Nickleby is typical of many early English novels, being focused on one person's life, and as such is more of a fictional biography than being especially plot-driven. Unlike his preceding novel, "Oliver Twist", the title character of this is already a young man with family responsibilities at the start of the novel. His future is very uncertain, due to the death of his father, who had made some poor investments. The readers sees that the major conflict in this novel is going to be the struggle of a small family to make their way in the world after suffering a tragic loss. To some extent, this is autobiographical. The Nickleby family are genteel but impoverished. Dickens's own personal struggles and experiences as a young man were similar, since his father had also forfeited his gentility because of financial incompetence.
In Nicholas Nickleby we are introduced to the protagonist's uncle, Ralph Nickleby, very near the beginning. As soon as Ralph comes on the scene we realise this will add spice to the situation. For what a miserable old skinflint he is,
"there was something in his very wrinkles, and in his cold restless eye, which seemed to tell of cunning that would announce itself in spite of him."
Ralph takes against Nicholas right from the start, apparently purely based on envy, because Nicholas is young, bright and open. At this point we realise he is destined to be Nicholas's antagonist. And the warning bells begin to ring when we are told that Ralph Nickleby is unscrupulous in his financial dealings, because Nicholas has turned to his uncle for assistance, hoping for support for his mother and sister after the death of his father.
Very quickly then, we identify Ralph as "the villain of the piece". And Dickens gives full rein to his talent for inventing over-the-top characters, who stay in the mind far longer than the details of the story itself. Who can forget the grotesque headmaster Wackford Squeers, with his,
"one eye when the popular prejudice is in favour of two."
Or Mrs Nickleby with her rapid barrage of discursions which would put Mrs. Bennet of Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" to shame? Or the kindly, generous benefactors, the Cheeryble brothers, Charles and Ned, who have built a thriving business on treating others with respect and compassion. They address each other as "my dear fellow" and not only look and act alike but also dress alike and wear white hats. As well as the main characters there are a myriad of minor eccentric characters in this novel, all of whom are a delight. Blink and you may miss them! The Crummles's family of actors, with their daughter Ninette, the starry "Infant Phenomenon", who at the age of ten had,
"been precisely the same age - not perhaps to the full extent of the memory of the oldest inhabitant, but certainly for five good years. But she had been kept up late every night, and put upon an unlimited allowance of gin-and-water from infancy, to prevent her growing tall, and perhaps this system of training had produced in the infant phenomenon these additional phenomena."
The other actors, unsurprisingly, were none too keen on her privileged position. The leading man Mr Folair termed her the "Infernal Phenomenon"! Then there is Mrs. Mantalini, the astute business-woman who owns a dressmaking and millinery shop, for whom Nicholas's sister Kate is sent to work as a seamstress, and her husband, a foppish fellow with extravagent tastes, given to histrionics and repeated attempts to kill himself. There is the fun-loving but ultimately self-seeking Kenwigs family, the revolting, lusting, scheming old man Arthur Gride, denounced as a wretch and a villain, and the dastardly nobleman whom we all want to boo, Sir Mulberry Hawk.
The names too are typical Dickens whimsy, chosen with an eye to amuse and appeal. "Dotheboys Hall, the vile school where the boys were well and truly "done to", with Wackford Squeers as its headmaster, overkeen on whacking his pupils. Miss Knag - the spiteful forewoman of the dressmakers and milliners. There is Lord Frederick Verisoft - soft of brain - "weak and silly", his friend the Honourable Mr Snobb, and Sir Mulberry Hawk - "the most knowing card in the pack" - who treats everyone, including his "friends", as his prey. The Cheeryble brothers; now who can read their name without smiling? Mrs Wititterly who seems to witter a lot and has "an air of sweet insipidity". There is such a superfluity of names, some in characters who shine brightly for a paragraph or two, and then disappear without trace. There is Mr Crowl, who "utters a low querulous growl", and perhaps the best of the lot, Sir Tumley Snuffim, who is perhaps not such a good doctor if his patients "snuff it"!
All the episodes with these larger than life characters seem tailor-made for the stage. Many of the speeches seem to cry out for an actor's ringing declamation on stage in a 19th century melodrama. Nicholas's way of talking is very stilted, and sadly, this stiff formal kind of language sometimes does alienate the modern reader, such as this, a simple acquiescence,
"It's not in my nature... to resist any entreaty, unless it is to do something positively wrong; and, beyond a feeling of pride, I know nothing which should prevent my doing this. I know nobody here, and nobody knows me. So be it then. I yield."
Dickens does indulge his love of all things theatrical in this novel, with a large part of the action being devoted to scenes in Portsmouth, where Nickleby aka "Mr Johnson" both writes and performs in the acting troupes, much as Dickens himself did. Perhaps this was deliberately so, because he dedicates it to his friend, the distinguished actor and theatre director William Macready. You can see Dickens's love of the theatre in almost every scene here.
But this makes the tragic scenes so much more powerful, because of the contrasting comic scenes. And who, out of the general reading population of the time, would really have stayed with a piece of tragic literature about their contemporaries - including the poorest of them all - had it not been made so hugely entertaining? It's a real rarity for the time, for an author to focus on the lives of such poor people. Noggs and Smike are fully developed characters, but few of Dickens's contemporaries - Thackeray for instance - would bother with them. Dickens is quite deliberately appealing to the common people. He has "the common touch" and Trollope's disparaging nickname for him of "Mr Popular Sentiment" is perhaps not given without a certain amount of malicious envy.
The characters here are very much larger than life characters, but the main characters we are following are more sensitively drawn. Madeline Bray is an heroic, brave character, beautiful and self-sacrificing, going through agonies of mind as she stays loyal to her father depite his despicable deeds. The reader is positively willing for her to have a good end. The character of Smike, the ex-Dotheboys Hall boy, is portrayed in such an affecting way, without resort to sentiment, that Dickens manages to tug at our heart-strings whenever he comes into the action. Then there are those others such as Newman Noggs, whom we know has fallen into the service and clutches of Ralph Nickleby through his own weakness for drink. Yet throughout we are willing him to somehow escape, recognising that here is a man of worth and principle. He is virtually a guardian angel to Nicholas, because of his benevolence and integrity. Dickens makes it abundantly clear to his readers just who are the goodies, and who are the baddies. This is at root an entertainment of a novel, although one very much designed to expose a scandal of the time.
For just as "Oliver Twist" was intended to alert the largest possible audience to the scandal of the workhouses in the light of the recent changes to the Poor Law, Nicholas Nickleby was deliberately written to expose the ugly truth about Yorkshire boarding schools. In the preface to the novel Dickens calls Yorkshire schoolmasters,
"Traders in the avarice, indifference, or imbecility of parents, and the helplessness of children; ignorant, sordid, brutal men, to whom few considerate persons would have entrusted the board and lodging of a horse or a dog"
Then in his second preface, to the 1848 Cheap Edition, he notes that such schools as Dotheboys were common in Yorkshire at the time of writing but had begun to disappear,
"This story was begun, within a few months after the publication of the completed "Pickwick Papers." There were, then, a good many cheap Yorkshire schools in existence. There are very few now."
Such then was the power of a Dickens novel to influence popular opinion. When a great author of such stature and persuasive ability aimed his satirical voice at one social problem after another, both society and Parliament itself rapidly moved to change things. His fiction influenced both public perception and social reform, and this is one of the reasons he is truly a great author.
We know that prior to Nicholas Nickleby, Dickens had seen advertisements in the London papers for cheap boarding schools in Yorkshire. It was stressed that there were "no holidays" from these schools. Dickens's antennae must have gone up, as he knew they were a convenient place to dispose of unwanted or illegitimate children. During the writing of "Oliver Twist" Dickens and his friend, Hablot Browne (who was to illustrate the book) had travelled in secret to Yorkshire to investigate these schools in January 1838. There they met William Shaw, the headmaster of Bowes Academy. The neglect and maltreatment at this notorious school was responsible for the blindness of several boys, and some actually died as a consequence. There is no doubt that Dickens intended the headmaster Wackford Squeers to be a portrayal of William Shaw, and that Dotheboys Hall was Bowes Academy. It became so infamous that "Bowes Academy", eventually (by 1903) became known as "Dotheboys Hall"!
Many of the other characters were also based on real life people. The character of Miss La Crevy, who befriended the Nickleby family, was based on the actual person, Rosa Emma Drummond, who painted a miniature engraved portrait of Dickens on ivory. Dickens had commissioned this, so that he could give it to his fiancee, Catherine Hogarth as an engagement present. Like Miss Drummond, Miss La Creevy, was a good-natured, middle-aged miniature painter, described by Dickens as a "mincing young lady of fifty".
Vincent Crummles and his daughter "The Infant Phenomenon" were based on the actor-manager T. D. Davenport and his nine year old prodigy of a daughter, Jean. "Infant phenomena" were a regular feature of many theatrical shows during the early decades of the nineteenth century. Davenport and his daughter appeared on the Portsmouth stage in March 1837.
Dickens's own mother, Elizabeth Dickens, was the model for Mrs. Nickleby. Luckily for Charles she didn't recognise herself in the character. In fact she asked someone if they, "really believed there ever was such a woman"!
And most surprising and notable of all is that the Cheeryble brothers were based on real life characters too! They are based on two benefactors who were brothers, Daniel and William Grant. They came from Scotland, but settled in Ramsbottom in Greater Manchester (although during Dickens's time, this will have been thought of as part of the county of Lancashire.) Some of the fine houses they built are still there. For instance, St. Andrew's Church from 1832 is also known as Grant's Church. It was originally consecrated as a Scottish Presbyterian Chapel, with a donation of £5,000 by William Grant. The Grant brothers regularly gave money to promising new enterprises and for education, supporting schools, libraries and the charitable institutions, and when homes and farmlands on Speyside were swept away by floods in 1829, gave £100 to swell "The Flood Fund". Dickens was keen to make sure everyone knew of these remarkable pair. This is from his preface, in May, 1848,
"It may be right to say that there are 2 characters in this book which are drawn from life. Those who take an interest in this tale will be glad to learn that the Brothers Cheeryble do live; that their liberal charity, their singleness of heart, noble nature and unbounded benevolence are no creatures of the author’s brain, but are prompting every day some munificent and generous deed in that town of which they are the pride and honour."
He was writing at breakneck speed again. "Oliver Twist" had overlapped "The Pickwick Papers" by 10 months, and when he started "Nicholas Nickleby", "Oliver Twist" was still a long way from being completed. So perhaps the persuasive writing he was so keen on, the social conscience he displayed in his writing in the early part of this novel, feels very familiar, because it was written on the same days as the latter half of Oliver Twist. He was also, of course, doing his editing work too. Dickens seemed to delight in working under pressure at high speed!
What the reader takes away from this novel is mainly a memory of the dramatic, eccentric and unique characters, although probably only a fraction of the total proliferation stay with us. We may remember the plot too. Yet credit should also be given to Dickens's masterly powers of description, which are also very apparent in Nicholas Nickleby. Often Dickens will exaggerate for effect, or use personification, or even the pathetic fallacy, where he is keen to convey a mood. He is adept at attributing human qualities and emotions to inanimate objects.
Here's a wonderful description of Arthur Gride,
"a little old man, of about seventy or seventy-five years of age, of a very lean figure, much bent and slightly twisted. He wore... such scanty trousers as displayed his shrunken spindle-shanks in their full ugliness...His nose and chin were sharp and prominent, his jaws had fallen inwards from loss of teeth, his face was shrivelled and yellow, save where the cheeks were streaked with the colour of a dry winter apple; and where his beard had been, there lingered yet a few grey tufts which seemed, like the ragged eyebrows, to denote the badness of the soil from which they sprung. The whole air and attitude of the form was one of stealthy cat-like obsequiousness; the whole expression of the face was concentrated in a wrinkled leer, compounded of cunning, lecherousness, slyness, and avarice."
And here is his house,
"an old house, dismal dark and dusty, which seemed to have withered, like himself, and to have grown yellow and shrivelled in hoarding him from the light of day, as he had in hoarding his money... Meagre old chairs and tables, of spare and bony make, and hard and cold as misers' hearts, were ranged, in grim array, against the gloomy walls; attenuated presses, grown lank and lantern-jawed in guarding the treasures they enclosed, and tottering, as though from constant fear and dread of thieves, shrunk up in dark corners, whence they cast no shadows on the ground, and seemed to hide and cower from observation."
Arthur Gride's house, thus seems to take on the aspect of a living creature itself, as though the essence of its inhabitant had oozed into the very fibres of the house and its contents. Of course it is exaggerated and whimsical rather than realistic, but it is brilliantly described.
Here's another example, where a different house is described. It feels less organic, but holds more of a portent. Kate Nickleby has this to say of the house Ralph acquires for them,
"This house depresses and chills one and seems as if some blight had fallen on it. If I were superstitious, I should be almost inclined to believe that some dreadful crime had been perpetrated within these old walls, and that the place had never prospered since. How frowning and how dark it looks!"
So this house seems to foreshadow the sinister plans that Ralph has for Kate. Both of these to me show Dickens's supreme craft as a writer.
Nicholas Nickleby is partly a "bildungsroman" - a story about the coming of age of the main character - and partly a social commentary on injustice. The maltreatment of children in the educational system features highly throughout, with Dickens using all the tricks of the trade to persuade his readers; pathos, comedy, satire, and powerful storytelling. He also employs coincidences, which we all love in life, and melodrama, which heightened the entertainment value at the time it was written. As well as focusing on the private Yorkshire poor schools, savagely condemning those responsible for the system that treated children so cruelly, it also indicts those who use fraudulent financial tactics and other dishonest business practices. There is certainly a memorable plot, and it could be thought of as "Three Weddings and a Funeral" - but there are two funerals here, and they are poles apart. They are both highly dramatic and tragic, because they are ultimately both avoidable.
So is it the funniest novel in the English language? Well it all depends on your taste. It is possibly the funniest novel ever written by Dickens himself. Yet it is also extremely poignant, sad, chilling, bitter and (it has to be said) overblown and melodramatic. It is by turns absurd, comic, tragic and moving. It is quintessentially Charles Dickens. If you love Dickens, you'll love this one - don't miss it!
October 4, 2021
The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, Charles Dickens
The novel centers on the life and adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, a young man who must support his mother and sister after his father dies. Nicholas Nickleby's father dies unexpectedly after losing all of his money in a poor investment.
Nicholas, his mother and his younger sister, Kate, are forced to give up their comfortable lifestyle in Devonshire and travel to London to seek the aid of their only relative, Nicholas's uncle, Ralph Nickleby. Ralph, a cold and ruthless businessman, has no desire to help his destitute relations and hates Nicholas, who reminds him of his dead brother, on sight.
He gets Nicholas a low-paying job as an assistant to Wackford Squeers, who runs the school Dotheboys Hall in Yorkshire. Nicholas is initially wary of Squeers (a very unpleasant man with one eye) because he is gruff and violent towards his young charges, but he tries to quell his suspicions.
As Nicholas boards the stagecoach for Greta Bridge, he is handed a letter by Ralph's clerk, Newman Noggs. A once-wealthy businessman, Noggs lost his fortune, became a drunk, and had no other recourse but to seek employment with Ralph, whom he loathes.
The letter expresses concern for him as an innocent young man, and offers assistance if Nicholas ever requires it. Once he arrives in Yorkshire, Nicholas comes to realise that Squeers is running a scam: he takes in unwanted children (most of whom are illegitimate, crippled or deformed) for a high fee, and starves and mistreats them while using the money sent by their parents, who only want to get them out of their way, to pad his own pockets.
Squeers and his monstrous wife whip and beat the children regularly, while spoiling their own son. Lessons are no better; they show how poorly educated Squeers himself is and he uses the lessons as excuses to send the boys off on chores.
While he is there, Nicholas befriends a simple boy named Smike, who is older than the other "students" and now acts as an unpaid servant. Nicholas attracts the attention of Fanny Squeers, his employer's plain and shrewish daughter, who deludes herself into thinking that Nicholas is in love with her.
She attempts to disclose her affections during a game of cards, but Nicholas doesn't catch her meaning. Instead he ends up flirting with her friend Tilda Price, to the consternation of both Fanny and Tilda's friendly but crude-mannered fiancé John Browdie. After being accosted by Fanny again, Nicholas bluntly tells her he does not return her affections and wishes to be free of the horrible atmosphere of Dotheboys Hall, earning her enmity. ...
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز پانزدهم ماه ژوئن سال 2010میلادی
عنوان: نیکلاس نیکلبی متن کوتاه شده؛ نویسنده: چارلز دیکنز؛ مترجم: محسن سلیمانی؛ تهران، انتشارات سوره، 1376، در 116ص، شابک ایکس-964471301؛ موضوع: داستانهای نویسندگان بریتانیا- سده 19م
نشر افق، 1388، در 137 ص؛ شابک 9789643695255؛
عنوان: نیکلاس نیکلبی؛ نویسنده: چارلز دیکنز؛ مترجم: بهرام آریان؛ مریم سلمانی زاده؛ تهران حامدین، 1380، در 139ص، شابک9649301011؛
نیکلاس جوان، و خانواده اش از یک زندگی با آرامش لذت میبرند، تا اینکه پدرش از دنیا میرود، و آنها را بی پول و تنها میگذارد؛ «نیکلاس» به همراه خواهر و مادرش، به «لندن» میروند، تا از عمویش «رالف»، درخواست یاری کنند؛ اما «رالف» قصد دارد خانواده را از هم جدا کرده، و از آنها سوء استفاده کند؛ «نیکلاس» به مدرسه ای که توسط مردی بیرحم اداره میشود، فرستاده میشود و...؛
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 26/09/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 11/07/1400هجری خورشیدی ا. شربیانی
The novel centers on the life and adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, a young man who must support his mother and sister after his father dies. Nicholas Nickleby's father dies unexpectedly after losing all of his money in a poor investment.
Nicholas, his mother and his younger sister, Kate, are forced to give up their comfortable lifestyle in Devonshire and travel to London to seek the aid of their only relative, Nicholas's uncle, Ralph Nickleby. Ralph, a cold and ruthless businessman, has no desire to help his destitute relations and hates Nicholas, who reminds him of his dead brother, on sight.
He gets Nicholas a low-paying job as an assistant to Wackford Squeers, who runs the school Dotheboys Hall in Yorkshire. Nicholas is initially wary of Squeers (a very unpleasant man with one eye) because he is gruff and violent towards his young charges, but he tries to quell his suspicions.
As Nicholas boards the stagecoach for Greta Bridge, he is handed a letter by Ralph's clerk, Newman Noggs. A once-wealthy businessman, Noggs lost his fortune, became a drunk, and had no other recourse but to seek employment with Ralph, whom he loathes.
The letter expresses concern for him as an innocent young man, and offers assistance if Nicholas ever requires it. Once he arrives in Yorkshire, Nicholas comes to realise that Squeers is running a scam: he takes in unwanted children (most of whom are illegitimate, crippled or deformed) for a high fee, and starves and mistreats them while using the money sent by their parents, who only want to get them out of their way, to pad his own pockets.
Squeers and his monstrous wife whip and beat the children regularly, while spoiling their own son. Lessons are no better; they show how poorly educated Squeers himself is and he uses the lessons as excuses to send the boys off on chores.
While he is there, Nicholas befriends a simple boy named Smike, who is older than the other "students" and now acts as an unpaid servant. Nicholas attracts the attention of Fanny Squeers, his employer's plain and shrewish daughter, who deludes herself into thinking that Nicholas is in love with her.
She attempts to disclose her affections during a game of cards, but Nicholas doesn't catch her meaning. Instead he ends up flirting with her friend Tilda Price, to the consternation of both Fanny and Tilda's friendly but crude-mannered fiancé John Browdie. After being accosted by Fanny again, Nicholas bluntly tells her he does not return her affections and wishes to be free of the horrible atmosphere of Dotheboys Hall, earning her enmity. ...
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز پانزدهم ماه ژوئن سال 2010میلادی
عنوان: نیکلاس نیکلبی متن کوتاه شده؛ نویسنده: چارلز دیکنز؛ مترجم: محسن سلیمانی؛ تهران، انتشارات سوره، 1376، در 116ص، شابک ایکس-964471301؛ موضوع: داستانهای نویسندگان بریتانیا- سده 19م
نشر افق، 1388، در 137 ص؛ شابک 9789643695255؛
عنوان: نیکلاس نیکلبی؛ نویسنده: چارلز دیکنز؛ مترجم: بهرام آریان؛ مریم سلمانی زاده؛ تهران حامدین، 1380، در 139ص، شابک9649301011؛
نیکلاس جوان، و خانواده اش از یک زندگی با آرامش لذت میبرند، تا اینکه پدرش از دنیا میرود، و آنها را بی پول و تنها میگذارد؛ «نیکلاس» به همراه خواهر و مادرش، به «لندن» میروند، تا از عمویش «رالف»، درخواست یاری کنند؛ اما «رالف» قصد دارد خانواده را از هم جدا کرده، و از آنها سوء استفاده کند؛ «نیکلاس» به مدرسه ای که توسط مردی بیرحم اداره میشود، فرستاده میشود و...؛
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 26/09/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 11/07/1400هجری خورشیدی ا. شربیانی
January 1, 2018
Reading Dickens is like taking a deep breath of air, feeling life in its most vivid form!
Being completely faithless and illoyal, I will now dump all previous Dickens novels and claim with brutal inconsistency that Nicholas Nickleby is my favourite!
Yes, I know! I have said it before, and I am likely to say it again, knowing human nature in its most Dickensian expressions. But Nicholas really is my “Now Time Favourite”.
I should like to state my case, as it would be very un-Dickensian of me not to indulge in a long explanation of my way of thinking on the subject, especially as it is a tricky situation, claiming a favourite child among so many. Dickens knows where that favouritism can lead in real life, having painted the effects of parenting in his most colourful characters.
Why?
First of all, it is a social satire. Well, well, well, that is not an argument - they all are!
Agree, but this one touches on the virtues and vices not only of the Victorian society it describes, but of human family relations and business endeavours in general. We will still find plenty of schoolmasters making a profit of parents’ neglect or gullibility, and those contemporary school masters will be infinitely better at marketing their fraud with pretty business phrases (of the educational genre) than the odious Mr Squeers. We will still find misers of Uncle Scrooge’s calibre, just like Ralph Nickleby, all the more realistic for not undergoing the magical Christmassy transformation of his later double. We will find posers and cruisers who live off their social status, filling their days with vanities and sexual assaults on women who are too poor and neglected to protect themselves against the shamelessness of complete entitlement. Mulberry - your downfall made me SMILE!
Dickens’ strong sense of social injustice is like therapy for my tortured heart, and I don’t mind at all that it is quite improbable that all the good, hardworking, caring characters have their reward in the end. Nobody knew better than Dickens that real life doesn’t play fair at any time. But he also knew what a relief it is to feel, for once, in literature, that AMOR VINCIT OMNIA!
“ - how much injustice, misery, and wrong, there was, and yet how the world rolled on, from year to year, alike careless and indifferent, and no man seeking to remedy or redress it - when he thought of all this, and selected from the mass the one slight case on which his thoughts were bent, he felt indeed, that there was little ground for hope, and little reason why it should not form an atom in the huge aggregate of distress and sorrow, and add one small and unimportant unit to swell the great amount.”
And yet, Dickens goes on to show that giving up is not an option, and that the atom of sorrow that one individual feels is worthy of the great author’s attention, and he gives harsh reality a fictional, poetical justice - that being all he can do! It is more than nothing, decidedly!
So, do I need any other arguments? The one I chose doesn’t seem to make Nicholas Nickleby stand out beside Bleak House, David Copperfield, Martin Chuzzlewit, Great Expectations and all the other “former all-time favourite Dickenses”.
So what was so refreshing this time around? The “bad” characters were what I expected, shown in their malice, sly greed and comical evil. The huge cast of funny supporting characters were equipped with the usual amount of burlesque humour, and they were ranging from circus actors to owners of small businesses, showing the diversity in which family vanities can express themselves, for good and for bad. Nothing unexpected there, just good old Dickensian performance.
The difference lies in the “good” main characters. The minor complaint I had regarding other Dickens novels was my lack of bonding with the “too good to be true” lead protagonists. I didn’t like David Copperfield himself that much, being just too gullible and naive, and I certainly didn’t warm to the overly sweet and self-sacrificing Esther in Bleak House. That silent suffering felt almost like Dostoevsky (and Dickens, with his sense of humour and sharp eye for satire can’t compete with the Russian master in the arena of suffering for the sake of honour - it just doesn’t match his joie de vivre). Nicholas and his sister Kate are of a different calibre, though. Hotheaded, rash, confident, they don’t suffer in silence, they SPEAK UP!
I loved that. Losing your temper and speaking truth to power is so much more rewarding in my world than silently suffering in your chamber, crying little unseen tears over your unfair fate, while leaving it to others to fix your mess. Nicholas and Kate, and their friends, are very independent, honest thinkers, and they deserve what they get because they are willing to fight for it, and to work honestly to achieve happiness.
Cheers to Nicholas and Kate! Keep kicking and screaming.
I won’t say anything more now, as I can feel the need to analyse each single character in depth, to the boredom and annoyance of anyone who proceeds to read this far. Read the book instead, it is worth each minute spent on it!
December Dickens 2017 - a blast!
Being completely faithless and illoyal, I will now dump all previous Dickens novels and claim with brutal inconsistency that Nicholas Nickleby is my favourite!
Yes, I know! I have said it before, and I am likely to say it again, knowing human nature in its most Dickensian expressions. But Nicholas really is my “Now Time Favourite”.
I should like to state my case, as it would be very un-Dickensian of me not to indulge in a long explanation of my way of thinking on the subject, especially as it is a tricky situation, claiming a favourite child among so many. Dickens knows where that favouritism can lead in real life, having painted the effects of parenting in his most colourful characters.
Why?
First of all, it is a social satire. Well, well, well, that is not an argument - they all are!
Agree, but this one touches on the virtues and vices not only of the Victorian society it describes, but of human family relations and business endeavours in general. We will still find plenty of schoolmasters making a profit of parents’ neglect or gullibility, and those contemporary school masters will be infinitely better at marketing their fraud with pretty business phrases (of the educational genre) than the odious Mr Squeers. We will still find misers of Uncle Scrooge’s calibre, just like Ralph Nickleby, all the more realistic for not undergoing the magical Christmassy transformation of his later double. We will find posers and cruisers who live off their social status, filling their days with vanities and sexual assaults on women who are too poor and neglected to protect themselves against the shamelessness of complete entitlement. Mulberry - your downfall made me SMILE!
Dickens’ strong sense of social injustice is like therapy for my tortured heart, and I don’t mind at all that it is quite improbable that all the good, hardworking, caring characters have their reward in the end. Nobody knew better than Dickens that real life doesn’t play fair at any time. But he also knew what a relief it is to feel, for once, in literature, that AMOR VINCIT OMNIA!
“ - how much injustice, misery, and wrong, there was, and yet how the world rolled on, from year to year, alike careless and indifferent, and no man seeking to remedy or redress it - when he thought of all this, and selected from the mass the one slight case on which his thoughts were bent, he felt indeed, that there was little ground for hope, and little reason why it should not form an atom in the huge aggregate of distress and sorrow, and add one small and unimportant unit to swell the great amount.”
And yet, Dickens goes on to show that giving up is not an option, and that the atom of sorrow that one individual feels is worthy of the great author’s attention, and he gives harsh reality a fictional, poetical justice - that being all he can do! It is more than nothing, decidedly!
So, do I need any other arguments? The one I chose doesn’t seem to make Nicholas Nickleby stand out beside Bleak House, David Copperfield, Martin Chuzzlewit, Great Expectations and all the other “former all-time favourite Dickenses”.
So what was so refreshing this time around? The “bad” characters were what I expected, shown in their malice, sly greed and comical evil. The huge cast of funny supporting characters were equipped with the usual amount of burlesque humour, and they were ranging from circus actors to owners of small businesses, showing the diversity in which family vanities can express themselves, for good and for bad. Nothing unexpected there, just good old Dickensian performance.
The difference lies in the “good” main characters. The minor complaint I had regarding other Dickens novels was my lack of bonding with the “too good to be true” lead protagonists. I didn’t like David Copperfield himself that much, being just too gullible and naive, and I certainly didn’t warm to the overly sweet and self-sacrificing Esther in Bleak House. That silent suffering felt almost like Dostoevsky (and Dickens, with his sense of humour and sharp eye for satire can’t compete with the Russian master in the arena of suffering for the sake of honour - it just doesn’t match his joie de vivre). Nicholas and his sister Kate are of a different calibre, though. Hotheaded, rash, confident, they don’t suffer in silence, they SPEAK UP!
I loved that. Losing your temper and speaking truth to power is so much more rewarding in my world than silently suffering in your chamber, crying little unseen tears over your unfair fate, while leaving it to others to fix your mess. Nicholas and Kate, and their friends, are very independent, honest thinkers, and they deserve what they get because they are willing to fight for it, and to work honestly to achieve happiness.
Cheers to Nicholas and Kate! Keep kicking and screaming.
I won’t say anything more now, as I can feel the need to analyse each single character in depth, to the boredom and annoyance of anyone who proceeds to read this far. Read the book instead, it is worth each minute spent on it!
December Dickens 2017 - a blast!
February 25, 2021
“In journeys, as in life, it is a great deal easier to go down hill than up.”
Charles Dickens, Nicholas Nickleby
Often sidelined by both critics and multimedia this work of utter genius is my all-time favourite Dickens. Full of darkly comedic antagonists, as well as a raft of fully realised supporting characters, this work feels like Dickens unleashed. I recommend this is read after reading some of the so called greats like Oliver Twist and Great Expectations, to see just what a genius piece of work this is!
That's right, I'm calling it - genius! = Five Star Read! 10 out of 12. My second favourite classic of all-time after The Count of Monte Cristo.
Charles Dickens, Nicholas Nickleby
Often sidelined by both critics and multimedia this work of utter genius is my all-time favourite Dickens. Full of darkly comedic antagonists, as well as a raft of fully realised supporting characters, this work feels like Dickens unleashed. I recommend this is read after reading some of the so called greats like Oliver Twist and Great Expectations, to see just what a genius piece of work this is!
That's right, I'm calling it - genius! = Five Star Read! 10 out of 12. My second favourite classic of all-time after The Count of Monte Cristo.
August 3, 2023
Why classify this novel in children's literature? I am not convinced that this is the category that corresponds. Getting into this novel took me a while because we did not understand the style immediately. Will there be several adventures utterly independent of each other? As the chapters read, since, in the end, they are chapters, we realize that there will be a continuous story and that all these little adventures lead to a final scene. Characters continually add, and remembering the good ones is not always easy (those who will return in the following pages). Still, after a few returns and some memory efforts, one settles well in the London of Mr. Pickwick and Pickwickians, and we enjoy their adventures. We laugh all the way and never get bored.
February 28, 2022
The third book of Charles Dickens, Nicholas Nickleby has some marked differences from the other Dickens books I've read. Except Oliver Twist, which I've read as a teen, I haven't read any early work by Dickens, a work written in his youth. So Nicholas Nickleby was a welcoming change and an opportunity to see a different side of Dickens.
The original title The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby pretty well sums up the story. Yes, it is about Nicholas, an honest, trusting, good-natured, and good-hearted youth who is thrown at the mercy of the world with his father's untimely death. With the care of his mother and sister weighing heavily upon him and with no sincere help from his usurer uncle, he struggles to find his way in the world and to raise himself from sheer poverty to respectability.
Nicholas is one interesting hero of Dickens, and quite different from any other Dickensian hero I've come across. He is strong-minded, courageous, and persevering. He is governed by a strong sense of duty and justice. His nature is such that fiercely arouse at injustice, cruelty, and wickedness. At such times, one can say the young hero is impetuous, quick-tempered, and even violent. These contrary character traits make Nicholas one of Dickens's chivalrous and colourful heroes.
Aside from Nicholas, we meet quite an interesting set of characters, both male and female. Of them, some are good, kind, and helpful; some are wicked and greedy; and some silly and vain. Dickens is very fond of using many different characters in his books, and in each of them, he never fails to present the readers with some memorable ones. And Nicholas Nickleby too makes a few contributions to that lot.
It was a prevalent idea that Dickens didn't create strong female characters in his early works and that they came only in his later mature ones. But Nicholas Nickleby effectually silences this misconception with Kate Nickleby, Nicholas's brave little sister, who is one strong female character that we'll hold dear.
Nicholas Nickleby shows a marked difference from his later works. This difference stems out more from his style of writing. It is youthful, exuberant, action-packed, and dramatic. It has the usual Dickensian satire but not the depth and gravity that graced his later work. Dickens was himself a youth when he wrote this, so a lot of youthful energy is poured into the story and the character of Nicholas. This style of Dickens which I'm not quite acquainted with was very pleasing. It made the reading light and easy despite his inherent verbosity.
This is another great creation of Charles Dickens. Reading it was a fascinating experience. The more I read Dickens, the more I understand why he is revered over the centuries. I never gave much thought to Dickens's position as the most outstanding Victorian author before. But I'm slowly on the way to form the same opinion myself.
The original title The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby pretty well sums up the story. Yes, it is about Nicholas, an honest, trusting, good-natured, and good-hearted youth who is thrown at the mercy of the world with his father's untimely death. With the care of his mother and sister weighing heavily upon him and with no sincere help from his usurer uncle, he struggles to find his way in the world and to raise himself from sheer poverty to respectability.
Nicholas is one interesting hero of Dickens, and quite different from any other Dickensian hero I've come across. He is strong-minded, courageous, and persevering. He is governed by a strong sense of duty and justice. His nature is such that fiercely arouse at injustice, cruelty, and wickedness. At such times, one can say the young hero is impetuous, quick-tempered, and even violent. These contrary character traits make Nicholas one of Dickens's chivalrous and colourful heroes.
Aside from Nicholas, we meet quite an interesting set of characters, both male and female. Of them, some are good, kind, and helpful; some are wicked and greedy; and some silly and vain. Dickens is very fond of using many different characters in his books, and in each of them, he never fails to present the readers with some memorable ones. And Nicholas Nickleby too makes a few contributions to that lot.
It was a prevalent idea that Dickens didn't create strong female characters in his early works and that they came only in his later mature ones. But Nicholas Nickleby effectually silences this misconception with Kate Nickleby, Nicholas's brave little sister, who is one strong female character that we'll hold dear.
Nicholas Nickleby shows a marked difference from his later works. This difference stems out more from his style of writing. It is youthful, exuberant, action-packed, and dramatic. It has the usual Dickensian satire but not the depth and gravity that graced his later work. Dickens was himself a youth when he wrote this, so a lot of youthful energy is poured into the story and the character of Nicholas. This style of Dickens which I'm not quite acquainted with was very pleasing. It made the reading light and easy despite his inherent verbosity.
This is another great creation of Charles Dickens. Reading it was a fascinating experience. The more I read Dickens, the more I understand why he is revered over the centuries. I never gave much thought to Dickens's position as the most outstanding Victorian author before. But I'm slowly on the way to form the same opinion myself.
February 8, 2021
Was there ever a novelist with a bigger heart than Charles Dickens?
This is the sixth Dickens book I’ve read (including the novella A Christmas Carol ). And, like most of his other works, it’s expansive, bursting with all manner of incident and life. Some of that life, mind you, goes ON AND ON. And a few scenes about social graces/manners might need explaining to a contemporary reader. But the overall effect, if you ignore the repetition, is absorbing and very satisfying.
Just as we binge-watch the latest Netflix or Hulu series, I can imagine Victorian readers binge-reading the installments of this novel as they were published in the late 1830s.
After his father dies, Nicholas, his sister Kate and their mother are left penniless and at the mercy of the father’s brother, Ralph, a miserly moneylender who’sclearly possibly an early model for Ebenezer Scrooge.
Ralph, who hated his brother, promptly separates the family and does the absolute minimum for his poor relations; he sends Nicholas off to work in Yorkshire as an assistant to the loathsome Wackford Squeers, who runs an abusive sham of a school for boys; he sends Kate and her mother to live in a slum, and arranges for Kate to work for a milliner, Madame Mantalini, and her no-good, hanger-on husband.
Soon Nicholas and Ralph have a huge falling out, and the family is cut off from any financial aid. How will they survive?
What follows is an episodic narrative that includes forays into the theatre world (no doubt drawing on Dickens’s own experiences as an actor), several businesses and shadowy corners of London lowlife. This being a Dickens novel, there are lots of coincidences, some broad caricatures and a heavy social conscience, especially around the plight of the poor and helpless.
Oddly enough, while Nicholas and Kate Nickleby are thinly drawn goody-goody characters, their chattering mother leaps off the page with her humorous conjectures and genteel pronouncements; Ralph and Squeers make fascinating contrasting villains.
Other memorable characters include Ralph’s clerk, Newman Noggs, who takes a shine to the Nicklebys; Lord Frederick Verisopht (say the surname aloud) and Sir Mulberry Hawk, two of Ralph’s slimy business associates; Miss La Creevy, a miniature portrait painter; all of the lively actors involved in the travelling theatre troupe run by Vincent Crummles; John Browdie, a simple but warm-hearted Yorkshireman who might bring to mind Great Expectations’ Joe Gargery.
And then there’s the pathetic, friendless, sad-sack Smike, whom Nicholas meets and befriends at Squeers’ school. He’s one of those idealized, sentimentalized characters found only in Dickens novels.
It’s a little unfair to judge an early Dickens novel (his third, written when he was in his 20s) against his later works, particularly masterpieces like David Copperfield and Great Expectations . These later books were more carefully structured, and I don’t recall sighing and wanting to get through any passages the way I did with this book. (There’s one story-within-a-story set in a tavern that practically stops the novel in its tracks.)
But even though I pretty much knew where the novel was going (I’d seen the two-part stage adaptation years ago), Dickens still made me laugh, cry and gasp at certain passages.
More than most major English novelists except perhaps D.H. Lawrence, Dickens was familiar with poverty and the lower classes, and that gave him lots of knowledge about the human condition, the vanity fair that makes up life, now and nearly 200 years ago.
This is the sixth Dickens book I’ve read (including the novella A Christmas Carol ). And, like most of his other works, it’s expansive, bursting with all manner of incident and life. Some of that life, mind you, goes ON AND ON. And a few scenes about social graces/manners might need explaining to a contemporary reader. But the overall effect, if you ignore the repetition, is absorbing and very satisfying.
Just as we binge-watch the latest Netflix or Hulu series, I can imagine Victorian readers binge-reading the installments of this novel as they were published in the late 1830s.
After his father dies, Nicholas, his sister Kate and their mother are left penniless and at the mercy of the father’s brother, Ralph, a miserly moneylender who’s
Ralph, who hated his brother, promptly separates the family and does the absolute minimum for his poor relations; he sends Nicholas off to work in Yorkshire as an assistant to the loathsome Wackford Squeers, who runs an abusive sham of a school for boys; he sends Kate and her mother to live in a slum, and arranges for Kate to work for a milliner, Madame Mantalini, and her no-good, hanger-on husband.
Soon Nicholas and Ralph have a huge falling out, and the family is cut off from any financial aid. How will they survive?
What follows is an episodic narrative that includes forays into the theatre world (no doubt drawing on Dickens’s own experiences as an actor), several businesses and shadowy corners of London lowlife. This being a Dickens novel, there are lots of coincidences, some broad caricatures and a heavy social conscience, especially around the plight of the poor and helpless.
Oddly enough, while Nicholas and Kate Nickleby are thinly drawn goody-goody characters, their chattering mother leaps off the page with her humorous conjectures and genteel pronouncements; Ralph and Squeers make fascinating contrasting villains.
Other memorable characters include Ralph’s clerk, Newman Noggs, who takes a shine to the Nicklebys; Lord Frederick Verisopht (say the surname aloud) and Sir Mulberry Hawk, two of Ralph’s slimy business associates; Miss La Creevy, a miniature portrait painter; all of the lively actors involved in the travelling theatre troupe run by Vincent Crummles; John Browdie, a simple but warm-hearted Yorkshireman who might bring to mind Great Expectations’ Joe Gargery.
And then there’s the pathetic, friendless, sad-sack Smike, whom Nicholas meets and befriends at Squeers’ school. He’s one of those idealized, sentimentalized characters found only in Dickens novels.
It’s a little unfair to judge an early Dickens novel (his third, written when he was in his 20s) against his later works, particularly masterpieces like David Copperfield and Great Expectations . These later books were more carefully structured, and I don’t recall sighing and wanting to get through any passages the way I did with this book. (There’s one story-within-a-story set in a tavern that practically stops the novel in its tracks.)
But even though I pretty much knew where the novel was going (I’d seen the two-part stage adaptation years ago), Dickens still made me laugh, cry and gasp at certain passages.
More than most major English novelists except perhaps D.H. Lawrence, Dickens was familiar with poverty and the lower classes, and that gave him lots of knowledge about the human condition, the vanity fair that makes up life, now and nearly 200 years ago.
April 14, 2024
Extremely funny novel with fantastic characters. There were sections that probably weren't needed (I'm looking at you Crummles Theatre Company) but really enjoyable
August 28, 2018
"No dark sarcasm in the classroom....
If you don't eat your meat, you can't have any pudding!"
Pink Floyd, "Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2"
I delight in Dickens' class humor/social satire and irony. Nicholas Nickleby was his third novel, right after Oliver Twist. This novel is lighter than Twist but nearly as influential in pressuring changes to English society in the mid-1800s. Here, Dickens' target was an abusive all-male boarding school in Yorkshire. In researching for this novel, Dickens made visits to this school and based his villainous schoolmaster Wackford Squeers on the Yorkshire master William Shaw, who was apparently one brutally cruel son of a bitch.
Other memorable character names include Newman Noggs, clerk to Nickleby's awful Uncle Ralph Nickelby, Miss Knag, Miss Wittiterly and Lord Frederick Verisopht, who is killed in a duel with another of British nobility.
This included the first romance written by Dickens, though it fell considerably short of the one he wrote for David Copperfield.
In sum, I enjoyed it, but found the story didn't flow as well as some of his later novels.
If you don't eat your meat, you can't have any pudding!"
Pink Floyd, "Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2"
I delight in Dickens' class humor/social satire and irony. Nicholas Nickleby was his third novel, right after Oliver Twist. This novel is lighter than Twist but nearly as influential in pressuring changes to English society in the mid-1800s. Here, Dickens' target was an abusive all-male boarding school in Yorkshire. In researching for this novel, Dickens made visits to this school and based his villainous schoolmaster Wackford Squeers on the Yorkshire master William Shaw, who was apparently one brutally cruel son of a bitch.
Other memorable character names include Newman Noggs, clerk to Nickleby's awful Uncle Ralph Nickelby, Miss Knag, Miss Wittiterly and Lord Frederick Verisopht, who is killed in a duel with another of British nobility.
This included the first romance written by Dickens, though it fell considerably short of the one he wrote for David Copperfield.
In sum, I enjoyed it, but found the story didn't flow as well as some of his later novels.
September 1, 2021
4.5 Stars ⭐️
I only got the book because I love and own the movie because my love is in it 😏. Of course, it made me mad and cry and be happy. The movie and book made me feel the same. Even though I have the beautiful paperback, I listened to the audio through the library to get through it quicker while doing other things. I loved the narration and will probably add it on audible
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
I only got the book because I love and own the movie because my love is in it 😏. Of course, it made me mad and cry and be happy. The movie and book made me feel the same. Even though I have the beautiful paperback, I listened to the audio through the library to get through it quicker while doing other things. I loved the narration and will probably add it on audible
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Read
December 29, 2023Happiness is a gift and the trick is not to expect it, but to delight in it when it comes.
Nicholas Nickleby ~~ Charles Dickens
Those of you who know me from Goodreads know that I kick off my December reads by tackling a full-length Charles Dickens novel. This year’s read was Nicholas Nickleby, Dickens’ third novel.
To say I loved Nicholas Nickleby would be an understatement. Nicholas Nickleby turned out to be one of my favorite books.
Nicholas, the protagonist, is the son of a gentleman who made a bad investment ~~ at the urging of his sweet but daft wife ~~ and then, as do all of the fathers of Dicken's protagonists, conveniently dies, thus leaving his family destitute. As this is Victorian England, their only recourse is to rely on the kindness of their uncle, Ralph Nickleby. Of course, Ralph Nickleby has all the mean-spirited selfishness of Scrooge. His being the villain of the story, there is no redemptive arc for him ~~ he despises his nephew ~~ our hero ~~ on sight.
Nicholas ~~ generally cheerful and good-hearted, a hot-headed young man ~~ goes about trying to make his own way in life. While on this journey, we join him while spending time in a cruel Yorkshire school, a traveling theatre troop, a very brief interview with a satirical political figure, and a showdown with his cruel uncle. He is aided and hindered along the way by a typically Dickensian cast of characters ~~ all of whom add color to Nicholas' world ~~ and to our enjoyment of this story.
Most of the chapters are episodic ~~ there are extended forays into many side plots. For me, one of the pleasures of reading Dickens is that the storytelling style is so different than contemporary literature. Dickens spends entire chapters on minor characters and adventures that don't really advance the plot much, but do add so much color and enjoyment for the reader. For me however, more Dickens is never a bad thing, and even the misadventures of Vincent Crummles and his traveling theatre troupe are entertaining.
This being Dickens' the women come in two types ~~ empty-headed and vain ~~ and if cast as villains, also vicious and ugly ~~ or pure-hearted angels too good for this world. The male characters are hardly less obvious archetypes ~~ being all comic or tear-jerking and dastardly or noble and virtuous, with very little in-between. Dickens captures human drama on a larger-than-life stage, gives his characters all alliterative or evocative names, and paints them with memorable quirks and personalities that make each one distinct ~~ one will never confuse Nicholas Nickleby with Oliver Twist or Pip or David Copperfield.
Nicholas Nickleby is obviously an early novel in Dickens' cannon ~~ it lacks the maturity of a David Copperfield. But it has all the hallmarks that make Dickens one of the greatest writers ever ~~ comic turns, tightly plotted, wordy and filled with social commentary. Nicholas Nickleby as I said earlier, stands as one of my favorite Charles Dickens novels. Highly recommended.
Nicholas Nickleby ~~ Charles Dickens
Those of you who know me from Goodreads know that I kick off my December reads by tackling a full-length Charles Dickens novel. This year’s read was Nicholas Nickleby, Dickens’ third novel.
To say I loved Nicholas Nickleby would be an understatement. Nicholas Nickleby turned out to be one of my favorite books.
Nicholas, the protagonist, is the son of a gentleman who made a bad investment ~~ at the urging of his sweet but daft wife ~~ and then, as do all of the fathers of Dicken's protagonists, conveniently dies, thus leaving his family destitute. As this is Victorian England, their only recourse is to rely on the kindness of their uncle, Ralph Nickleby. Of course, Ralph Nickleby has all the mean-spirited selfishness of Scrooge. His being the villain of the story, there is no redemptive arc for him ~~ he despises his nephew ~~ our hero ~~ on sight.
Nicholas ~~ generally cheerful and good-hearted, a hot-headed young man ~~ goes about trying to make his own way in life. While on this journey, we join him while spending time in a cruel Yorkshire school, a traveling theatre troop, a very brief interview with a satirical political figure, and a showdown with his cruel uncle. He is aided and hindered along the way by a typically Dickensian cast of characters ~~ all of whom add color to Nicholas' world ~~ and to our enjoyment of this story.
Most of the chapters are episodic ~~ there are extended forays into many side plots. For me, one of the pleasures of reading Dickens is that the storytelling style is so different than contemporary literature. Dickens spends entire chapters on minor characters and adventures that don't really advance the plot much, but do add so much color and enjoyment for the reader. For me however, more Dickens is never a bad thing, and even the misadventures of Vincent Crummles and his traveling theatre troupe are entertaining.
This being Dickens' the women come in two types ~~ empty-headed and vain ~~ and if cast as villains, also vicious and ugly ~~ or pure-hearted angels too good for this world. The male characters are hardly less obvious archetypes ~~ being all comic or tear-jerking and dastardly or noble and virtuous, with very little in-between. Dickens captures human drama on a larger-than-life stage, gives his characters all alliterative or evocative names, and paints them with memorable quirks and personalities that make each one distinct ~~ one will never confuse Nicholas Nickleby with Oliver Twist or Pip or David Copperfield.
Nicholas Nickleby is obviously an early novel in Dickens' cannon ~~ it lacks the maturity of a David Copperfield. But it has all the hallmarks that make Dickens one of the greatest writers ever ~~ comic turns, tightly plotted, wordy and filled with social commentary. Nicholas Nickleby as I said earlier, stands as one of my favorite Charles Dickens novels. Highly recommended.
January 26, 2023
Definitely a fun read, though not my favourite Dickens.
November 27, 2017
I’m really not sure why I like Dickens so much. He is predictable, there will be coincidences that could never happen in the real world, and in the end everyone will get their just deserts except for the poor, sad creature who is destined to see heaven ahead of his time. Ah, but he does it with so much style and panache. He creates characters you are seldom ambivalent about, dastardly villains you can feel no compassion for, and good people who restore your faith in humanity.
In Nicholas Nickleby, as in all his novels, Dickens has a full grasp of the class system of his time and the conditions of the poor. He never fails to illustrate that money brings its own unhappiness for some, and that true value is found in character and dignity, devotion and love. When a Dickens character is at the mercy of the world, you can bet he will see the worst and best sides of humanity rearing their heads.
Nicholas Nickleby has its share of Dickens humor as well. Mrs. Nickleby is a bit of a buffoon, who is saved from herself by the good sense of her children. I will admit that there are times when she is almost too much. There is Newman Noggs, who is sure to remain a favorite for me because he is good without any obligation to be so. He gives from a position in which there is very little to be given and made me chuckle more than once when snipping at the horrible Uncle Ralph. I dare say, most of us would hoard our coins and protect our position in Nogg’s situation, and yet he puts his neck and meager fortune on the line for friendship.
We should all like to think that somewhere in our world there are people like Charles and Ned Cheeryble. They live up to their names, for no two cheerier people could there be in this world and they certainly spread the cheer everywhere. They seem to be proof that goodness is its own reward.
Another thing I love about Dickens, his ability to touch upon the thin divide between our world and that of the departed. ”It is an exquisite and beautiful thing in our nature, that when the heart is touched and softened by some tranquil happiness or affectionate feeling, the memory of the dead comes over it most powerfully and irresistibly. I t would almost seem as though our better thoughts and sympathies were charms, in virtue of which the soul is enable to hold some vague and mysterious intercourse with the spirits of those whom we dearly loved in life.” I found this observation remarkably accurate.
I have discovered that reading Dickens slowly brings out the best in his writing. I languished over his descriptions of people and places and took my time over his hilarious conversations. If you pay close attention, you can see 1840s London through his eyes. The lessons of his time are the lesson of today, where so many seem to think money and possessions outweigh personal connections and love of humanity. It is good for the soul to read Dickens.
Up next, some Christmas stories and the annual reading of A Christmas Carol. Next year I am planning to fit in three more Dickens novels: Hard Times, Little Dorrit and Pickwick Papers. It is going slowly, but that is fine, since it means there will be Dickens’ yet to come for a long, long time.
In Nicholas Nickleby, as in all his novels, Dickens has a full grasp of the class system of his time and the conditions of the poor. He never fails to illustrate that money brings its own unhappiness for some, and that true value is found in character and dignity, devotion and love. When a Dickens character is at the mercy of the world, you can bet he will see the worst and best sides of humanity rearing their heads.
Nicholas Nickleby has its share of Dickens humor as well. Mrs. Nickleby is a bit of a buffoon, who is saved from herself by the good sense of her children. I will admit that there are times when she is almost too much. There is Newman Noggs, who is sure to remain a favorite for me because he is good without any obligation to be so. He gives from a position in which there is very little to be given and made me chuckle more than once when snipping at the horrible Uncle Ralph. I dare say, most of us would hoard our coins and protect our position in Nogg’s situation, and yet he puts his neck and meager fortune on the line for friendship.
We should all like to think that somewhere in our world there are people like Charles and Ned Cheeryble. They live up to their names, for no two cheerier people could there be in this world and they certainly spread the cheer everywhere. They seem to be proof that goodness is its own reward.
Another thing I love about Dickens, his ability to touch upon the thin divide between our world and that of the departed. ”It is an exquisite and beautiful thing in our nature, that when the heart is touched and softened by some tranquil happiness or affectionate feeling, the memory of the dead comes over it most powerfully and irresistibly. I t would almost seem as though our better thoughts and sympathies were charms, in virtue of which the soul is enable to hold some vague and mysterious intercourse with the spirits of those whom we dearly loved in life.” I found this observation remarkably accurate.
I have discovered that reading Dickens slowly brings out the best in his writing. I languished over his descriptions of people and places and took my time over his hilarious conversations. If you pay close attention, you can see 1840s London through his eyes. The lessons of his time are the lesson of today, where so many seem to think money and possessions outweigh personal connections and love of humanity. It is good for the soul to read Dickens.
Up next, some Christmas stories and the annual reading of A Christmas Carol. Next year I am planning to fit in three more Dickens novels: Hard Times, Little Dorrit and Pickwick Papers. It is going slowly, but that is fine, since it means there will be Dickens’ yet to come for a long, long time.
July 16, 2020
Rounded up from a 4.75. Dickens is one of my favourite authors. Although it often takes me longer to read his books, and I sometimes have to re-read certain passages to understand them properly. He writes win a beauty I’ve never seen paralleled.
This is one of my favourite Dickens novels. It made me laugh and cry, and the plot twist completely shocked me, I just did not see it coming. This book showed the good and evil in this world, expressed through amazingly vivid characters.
This book was difficult to read at times. But it was so beautiful, with such a compelling story to tell, that I have so much love for it.
This is one of my favourite Dickens novels. It made me laugh and cry, and the plot twist completely shocked me, I just did not see it coming. This book showed the good and evil in this world, expressed through amazingly vivid characters.
This book was difficult to read at times. But it was so beautiful, with such a compelling story to tell, that I have so much love for it.
August 24, 2022
Quintessential Dickens - satire, comedy, social commentary!
Fresh from his success on Oliver Twist as a political satirist of note, Dickens turns his sights toward the abuse of Yorkshire schools - a national disgrace - in which children were effectively abandoned for a fee. Neglect, physical abuse, malnourishment, cold, and ill health were endemic. This political attack becomes the setting for an expansive tale of the Nickleby family and their ongoing struggle against the evil of their uncle Ralph. The usual collection of sub-plots, comedy and Dickensian characters rounds out a lengthy but fulfilling read that nobody will be sorry they started.
Paul Weiss
Fresh from his success on Oliver Twist as a political satirist of note, Dickens turns his sights toward the abuse of Yorkshire schools - a national disgrace - in which children were effectively abandoned for a fee. Neglect, physical abuse, malnourishment, cold, and ill health were endemic. This political attack becomes the setting for an expansive tale of the Nickleby family and their ongoing struggle against the evil of their uncle Ralph. The usual collection of sub-plots, comedy and Dickensian characters rounds out a lengthy but fulfilling read that nobody will be sorry they started.
Paul Weiss
August 23, 2023
My favorite Dickens, very funny, but also satirically effective, suppressing brutal northern schools of residence. Peter Ackroyd says it may be the funniest English novel. Period. Dickens delights us in every detail, such as the miniaturist portrait painter Miss La Creevy, on capturing noses, "only to look out the window and wait for one": "Snubs and romans are plentiful enough, and there are flats of all sorts when there's a meeting at Exeter Hall; but perfect aquilines are scarce"(38). {But online, Roman and Aquiline are the same.]
Another famous critic has claimed that Dickens fills with violence, which I hadn't really thought until re-reading this novel. The carriage to Yorkshire carrying Squeers and Nicholas and the five new boys abandoned to their care overturns, but in snow, causing fewer injuries. As the passengers tell stories at a pub awaiting a new carriage, one includes the Genius of Suicide, who never drinks in moderation because "that causes cheerfulness"(63). Another story tells of the Five Sisters of York, who have a window in York Minster which we've visited a dozen times, but never looked for that window. (Loved the old canon court, with three chairs on a raised dias, now used as a vestry.)
Dickens helped close down abusive residential schools through his extensive account of "Public Schools" (in U.S., "private schools") like Mr Squeers' "Dotheboys" (which I pronouce "doth-boys," but may be "do the boys"). The scenes from the Northern Dotheby's Hall are both convincing in their detailed cruelty and devastating as satire. Dickens in his Preface remarks his amusement at several Yorkshire schoolmasters who claim they're the original of Squeers, so like him. CD remarks Squeers represents a class, not an individual: "where imposture, ignorance, and brutal cupidity are the stock in trade"(vii). In typical Dickensian irony, Nicholas is grateful at first for Uncle Ralph's finding him the teaching job.
London visitors may compare the Golden Square of the 1830's, with the Opera collonade (1732), and many foreign residents, especially musicians,"a region of song and smoke"(7). Ralph Nickleby's brother dies, but the cheap remnant convinces the widow she's victim of her husband's imprudence. Uncle Ralph finds nephew Nicholas a job with Squeers, whom he's assisted before. Nicholas is under the illusion he'll be teaching sons of aristocrats, while in fact Dotheboy's specializes in keeping kids all year, no vacations, so children whose step-fathers want them out of the way. As the coach approaches the town of the school, Squeers confides, "It's not a Hall. We call it that in London." Turns out, it's a one-story flat residence with no heat except in Squeers' residence.
Nicholas leaves grateful of uncle's kindness, but Ralph's assistant, Newman Noggs, stands astonished into silence that his boss even had a nephew (35). Too shocked to speak, Noggs writes a letter which Nicholas opens to find himself offered a place to live should he come back to London--needless to add, Noggs does not live at uncle Ralph's.
Dickens can be hilarious, here with the widow Mrs. Nickleby, mother of Nicholas and Kate, to whom she confides about young Frank Cheeryble, who's 'the most attentive man I have seen." To which Kate, embarrassed, says, coloring, "Surely you are not serious." To which Mrs. Nickleby, "I was never more serious. Surely his attention to me is most becoming, gratifying...You don't often meet with such behavior in young men..." Again, Kate, "Oh! Attention to YOU, Mama..."(640). Of course, Frank's object of attention is not the mother, as certified by a marriage at the end of the book. But Mrs Nickleby's always putting herself at the center of any event--wonderful satire on egoism.
Another hilarious marriage joke based on old Arthur Gride, whose plan to entrap the young Madeline Bray is broken up by Nicholas, also her suitor. When Gride returns home, "Rumours having gone abroad, that Arthur was to be married that morning, inquiries were made after the bride, who was held by the majority to be disguised in the person of Mr. Ralph Nickleby, which gave rise to much public indignation at the public appearance of the bride in boots and pantaloons..."(738).
Nicholas rescues the handicapped (or "retarded") Smike and they both leave after Nicholas is driven to beating the sadistic headmaster who starved the boys from greed and beat the boys for nothing. Huge John Browdie helps rescue Smike, and later on his own when the boy's recaptured by the sadistic Squeers, who arises to chase Smike--hours gone. Browdie tells Nicholas, "I ran him off his legs in a quarther of an hour, skimming along up to his knees in mud and wather, rowling into ditches, and bawling out like mad, wi' his one eye looking sharp for the lad..."(545). On this page John's laughter is a "contagion" communicated to Nicholas and one other.
The complex plot also satirizes the semi-professional theater of the day, in the Dover company of Crummles that includes the "infant phenomenon"--reminiscent of our own child actors, like Justin Biber, whom nobody satirizes now. Nicholas is hired as juvenile male lead and playwright-adapter of French plays to their minimal acting skills.
When the Lark soars, I recall seeing and hearing one on grassy cliffs east of Weymouth, Dorset (50). We are treated to Yorkshire dialect from Tilda's beaux, Browdie. "Old wooman awa', beean't she?...Let'un gang on" and "Cum whoam, tell 'e, cum whoam"(89, 95) And "I'm reeght glod to see thee"(704).
This is a lively, generous, complex-plotted book that will engage and amuse any reader with sufficient time not to feel rushed and burdened--i.e., most readers not reading for a college class. Other strands include the millenary business which Nicholas's sister Kate works in, and the machinations of the cruel "rich uncle," whose end is telling, as is his having fathered one Nicholas cares for better than he. Great irony at the end, Ralph Nickleby and Sir Mulberry Hawk getting their just deserts, as does, indeed, Dotheboys Hall school.
Dickens ends the book with three marriages, the most unexpected being Miss La Creevy's and...I shall not add a spoiler. Near the end, he adds a connection to my first commercial book, "BirdTalk"2003, expanded in "Conversations with Birds: the Metaphysics of Bird and Human Communication"(Mach, 2023) English Blackbirds are inventive, diatonic vocalizers (p.96). Tim Linkinwater greets Nicholas's return, noting his caged Blackbird:
"Dick, the Blackbird. He hasn't been himself since you've been gone"(796). See my Facebook page "Birdtalk, Conversations with Birds" on 72 measures of a Dorset Blackbird's song notated (also 2023, p.96). See also online, habitabletree.com.
Another famous critic has claimed that Dickens fills with violence, which I hadn't really thought until re-reading this novel. The carriage to Yorkshire carrying Squeers and Nicholas and the five new boys abandoned to their care overturns, but in snow, causing fewer injuries. As the passengers tell stories at a pub awaiting a new carriage, one includes the Genius of Suicide, who never drinks in moderation because "that causes cheerfulness"(63). Another story tells of the Five Sisters of York, who have a window in York Minster which we've visited a dozen times, but never looked for that window. (Loved the old canon court, with three chairs on a raised dias, now used as a vestry.)
Dickens helped close down abusive residential schools through his extensive account of "Public Schools" (in U.S., "private schools") like Mr Squeers' "Dotheboys" (which I pronouce "doth-boys," but may be "do the boys"). The scenes from the Northern Dotheby's Hall are both convincing in their detailed cruelty and devastating as satire. Dickens in his Preface remarks his amusement at several Yorkshire schoolmasters who claim they're the original of Squeers, so like him. CD remarks Squeers represents a class, not an individual: "where imposture, ignorance, and brutal cupidity are the stock in trade"(vii). In typical Dickensian irony, Nicholas is grateful at first for Uncle Ralph's finding him the teaching job.
London visitors may compare the Golden Square of the 1830's, with the Opera collonade (1732), and many foreign residents, especially musicians,"a region of song and smoke"(7). Ralph Nickleby's brother dies, but the cheap remnant convinces the widow she's victim of her husband's imprudence. Uncle Ralph finds nephew Nicholas a job with Squeers, whom he's assisted before. Nicholas is under the illusion he'll be teaching sons of aristocrats, while in fact Dotheboy's specializes in keeping kids all year, no vacations, so children whose step-fathers want them out of the way. As the coach approaches the town of the school, Squeers confides, "It's not a Hall. We call it that in London." Turns out, it's a one-story flat residence with no heat except in Squeers' residence.
Nicholas leaves grateful of uncle's kindness, but Ralph's assistant, Newman Noggs, stands astonished into silence that his boss even had a nephew (35). Too shocked to speak, Noggs writes a letter which Nicholas opens to find himself offered a place to live should he come back to London--needless to add, Noggs does not live at uncle Ralph's.
Dickens can be hilarious, here with the widow Mrs. Nickleby, mother of Nicholas and Kate, to whom she confides about young Frank Cheeryble, who's 'the most attentive man I have seen." To which Kate, embarrassed, says, coloring, "Surely you are not serious." To which Mrs. Nickleby, "I was never more serious. Surely his attention to me is most becoming, gratifying...You don't often meet with such behavior in young men..." Again, Kate, "Oh! Attention to YOU, Mama..."(640). Of course, Frank's object of attention is not the mother, as certified by a marriage at the end of the book. But Mrs Nickleby's always putting herself at the center of any event--wonderful satire on egoism.
Another hilarious marriage joke based on old Arthur Gride, whose plan to entrap the young Madeline Bray is broken up by Nicholas, also her suitor. When Gride returns home, "Rumours having gone abroad, that Arthur was to be married that morning, inquiries were made after the bride, who was held by the majority to be disguised in the person of Mr. Ralph Nickleby, which gave rise to much public indignation at the public appearance of the bride in boots and pantaloons..."(738).
Nicholas rescues the handicapped (or "retarded") Smike and they both leave after Nicholas is driven to beating the sadistic headmaster who starved the boys from greed and beat the boys for nothing. Huge John Browdie helps rescue Smike, and later on his own when the boy's recaptured by the sadistic Squeers, who arises to chase Smike--hours gone. Browdie tells Nicholas, "I ran him off his legs in a quarther of an hour, skimming along up to his knees in mud and wather, rowling into ditches, and bawling out like mad, wi' his one eye looking sharp for the lad..."(545). On this page John's laughter is a "contagion" communicated to Nicholas and one other.
The complex plot also satirizes the semi-professional theater of the day, in the Dover company of Crummles that includes the "infant phenomenon"--reminiscent of our own child actors, like Justin Biber, whom nobody satirizes now. Nicholas is hired as juvenile male lead and playwright-adapter of French plays to their minimal acting skills.
When the Lark soars, I recall seeing and hearing one on grassy cliffs east of Weymouth, Dorset (50). We are treated to Yorkshire dialect from Tilda's beaux, Browdie. "Old wooman awa', beean't she?...Let'un gang on" and "Cum whoam, tell 'e, cum whoam"(89, 95) And "I'm reeght glod to see thee"(704).
This is a lively, generous, complex-plotted book that will engage and amuse any reader with sufficient time not to feel rushed and burdened--i.e., most readers not reading for a college class. Other strands include the millenary business which Nicholas's sister Kate works in, and the machinations of the cruel "rich uncle," whose end is telling, as is his having fathered one Nicholas cares for better than he. Great irony at the end, Ralph Nickleby and Sir Mulberry Hawk getting their just deserts, as does, indeed, Dotheboys Hall school.
Dickens ends the book with three marriages, the most unexpected being Miss La Creevy's and...I shall not add a spoiler. Near the end, he adds a connection to my first commercial book, "BirdTalk"2003, expanded in "Conversations with Birds: the Metaphysics of Bird and Human Communication"(Mach, 2023) English Blackbirds are inventive, diatonic vocalizers (p.96). Tim Linkinwater greets Nicholas's return, noting his caged Blackbird:
"Dick, the Blackbird. He hasn't been himself since you've been gone"(796). See my Facebook page "Birdtalk, Conversations with Birds" on 72 measures of a Dorset Blackbird's song notated (also 2023, p.96). See also online, habitabletree.com.
June 27, 2007
When the name of the cruel schoolmaster is Wackford Squeers you just know it's going to be good. Nicholas himself can sometimes be a bit prissy but this serves well as a foil for the many extreme characters that surround him (and he's a lot more feisty than the relatively milquetoast David Copperfield). This is classic Dickens at the height of his powers.
My generic comment about Charles Dickens:
First of all, although I am a partisan of Dickens' writing and have read and relished most his works, I concede to three flaws in his oeuvre that are not insignificant. First, while he seemed to develop an almost endless variety of male social types, his female characters are much less well developed. Second, although he portrayed the stark brutality of economic and class inequality with unparalleled clarity, his diagnosis of what needs to be done is flaccidly liberal, suggesting that the wealthy should simply be nicer and more generous to the poor(yet his writings did propitiate structural changes, e.g. to the Poor Laws, in his lifetime). Third, in tying up the loose threads of his extremely complex plots, he often pushes this reader past the boundary of the reasonable suspension of disbelief. Some readers also object to his sentimentalism or to his grotesque characters but I find these extremes create a dynamism in combination with his social criticism.
These caveats aside, I deeply enjoy reading Dickens for a number of reasons. He exhibits stratospheric gifts of imagination in portraying extremes of human character in extreme situations. His idiosyncratic characters each have an unmistakable and unforgettable voice. His highly crafted language is endlessly inventive and evocative. Finally, he created a parade of some of the funniest, evilest, and most pathetic characters one will ever encounter and although extreme, they also ring true to equivalent characters from any time.
My generic comment about Charles Dickens:
First of all, although I am a partisan of Dickens' writing and have read and relished most his works, I concede to three flaws in his oeuvre that are not insignificant. First, while he seemed to develop an almost endless variety of male social types, his female characters are much less well developed. Second, although he portrayed the stark brutality of economic and class inequality with unparalleled clarity, his diagnosis of what needs to be done is flaccidly liberal, suggesting that the wealthy should simply be nicer and more generous to the poor(yet his writings did propitiate structural changes, e.g. to the Poor Laws, in his lifetime). Third, in tying up the loose threads of his extremely complex plots, he often pushes this reader past the boundary of the reasonable suspension of disbelief. Some readers also object to his sentimentalism or to his grotesque characters but I find these extremes create a dynamism in combination with his social criticism.
These caveats aside, I deeply enjoy reading Dickens for a number of reasons. He exhibits stratospheric gifts of imagination in portraying extremes of human character in extreme situations. His idiosyncratic characters each have an unmistakable and unforgettable voice. His highly crafted language is endlessly inventive and evocative. Finally, he created a parade of some of the funniest, evilest, and most pathetic characters one will ever encounter and although extreme, they also ring true to equivalent characters from any time.
December 11, 2018
I'm glad that Classics Corner at Constant Reader elected to read NN for its April book as I've intended for a while to return to my goal of reading as many of Dickens' books as possible over time. And I was not disappointed with this book. While not as developed as later works, it introduces familiar themes, settings, character types, etc.
further review to come...
further review to come...
May 16, 2023
Nicholas Nickleby is the third novel by Charles Dickens, originally published as a serial from 1838 to 1839. This is actually considered by many to be Dickens' first masterpiece as it demonstrates the full scope of his promise as a novelist.
At the heart of this novel is the plight of Nicholas Nickleby when his father dies unexpectedly after losing all of his money in a poor investment forcing Nicholas and his mother and younger sister, Kate, to give up their comfortable lifestyle in Devonshire and travel to London to seek the aid of Nicholas Nickleby's uncle, Ralph Nickleby. However, Ralph Nickleby is a ruthless business man and has no desire to help his destitute family. In fact, he hates Nicholas at first sight as he reminds him of his deceased brother. He obtains a low-paying job for Nicholas in Yorkshire at a Dotheboys Hall in Yorkshire. His mother and sister are forced from their lodgings in the house of the kindly portrait painter, Miss LaCreevy, and into a cold and drafty house Ralph owns in the slum. Ralph Nickleby finds employment for Kate with a fashionable milliner, Madame Mantalini.
And so sets the stage for this engaging and sometimes humorous novel, sometimes with pathos and melodrama, but all culminating with riveting results. Of course, there is a cast of lively characters as the plot advances exploring the main themes and motifs in the novel. Again the theme throughout the novel focuses on the horrors of Yorkshire schools as well as the effects of money or the lack thereof. There is also the aspect of life translated to the theater in its many forms. As Nicholas Nickleby ponders as he contemplates his losses:
'
This was a beautiful tale told as only Charles Dickens can. I am looking forward to continuing my reading of Charles Dickens classics in the order written, reading the books that I have missed thus far.
At the heart of this novel is the plight of Nicholas Nickleby when his father dies unexpectedly after losing all of his money in a poor investment forcing Nicholas and his mother and younger sister, Kate, to give up their comfortable lifestyle in Devonshire and travel to London to seek the aid of Nicholas Nickleby's uncle, Ralph Nickleby. However, Ralph Nickleby is a ruthless business man and has no desire to help his destitute family. In fact, he hates Nicholas at first sight as he reminds him of his deceased brother. He obtains a low-paying job for Nicholas in Yorkshire at a Dotheboys Hall in Yorkshire. His mother and sister are forced from their lodgings in the house of the kindly portrait painter, Miss LaCreevy, and into a cold and drafty house Ralph owns in the slum. Ralph Nickleby finds employment for Kate with a fashionable milliner, Madame Mantalini.
And so sets the stage for this engaging and sometimes humorous novel, sometimes with pathos and melodrama, but all culminating with riveting results. Of course, there is a cast of lively characters as the plot advances exploring the main themes and motifs in the novel. Again the theme throughout the novel focuses on the horrors of Yorkshire schools as well as the effects of money or the lack thereof. There is also the aspect of life translated to the theater in its many forms. As Nicholas Nickleby ponders as he contemplates his losses:
". . . for gold conjures up a mist about a man, more destructive of all his old senses and lulling to his feelings than the fumes of charcoal. . ."
'
This was a beautiful tale told as only Charles Dickens can. I am looking forward to continuing my reading of Charles Dickens classics in the order written, reading the books that I have missed thus far.
March 2, 2020
2nd reading
I wouldn’t have chosen this Dickens to reread but for recently joining a local group (The Dickens Fellowship of New Orleans). The reread was certainly worth it and not only for the convivial fellowship of the monthly meetings. (How can you go wrong with cheese and cakes being offered, and tea and sometimes wine being poured?) Sure, there were the somewhat annoying coincidences, melodrama, blushing love interests and meaningless side-plots (and I don’t mean at the meetings), all true to the picaresque indicated by the novel’s name, a style characteristic of Dickens’ first few novels, as he took for inspiration one of his favorite authors; he even named one of his sons Henry Fielding. (My own almost meaningless side-note: I came across a reference to Morleena Kenwigs’ braids in Louisa May Alcott's Moods which I read during this time of rereading.)
But if not for the reread, I wouldn’t have again enjoyed the characters of Newman Noggs (my favorite of the multitude), the ‘gentleman in small-clothes’ (his two scenes so funny that I remembered them from my first read) and Mrs. Nickleby. Yes, even Mrs. Nickleby, who certainly has more personality than her two children. She's obtuse, self-centered and muddleheaded; but she can be sarcastic in the way of a mother whose children are always telling her how wrong she is:
If for nothing else, the novel is memorable for its being instrumental in the demise of the actual Yorkshire boarding schools (the last scene set in the fictional Dotheboys Hall, seemingly comic, depicts how inhumane treatment leads to more of the same). What power for a novel and its author who, at the time of its writing, was only twenty-five years old.
I wouldn’t have chosen this Dickens to reread but for recently joining a local group (The Dickens Fellowship of New Orleans). The reread was certainly worth it and not only for the convivial fellowship of the monthly meetings. (How can you go wrong with cheese and cakes being offered, and tea and sometimes wine being poured?) Sure, there were the somewhat annoying coincidences, melodrama, blushing love interests and meaningless side-plots (and I don’t mean at the meetings), all true to the picaresque indicated by the novel’s name, a style characteristic of Dickens’ first few novels, as he took for inspiration one of his favorite authors; he even named one of his sons Henry Fielding. (My own almost meaningless side-note: I came across a reference to Morleena Kenwigs’ braids in Louisa May Alcott's Moods which I read during this time of rereading.)
But if not for the reread, I wouldn’t have again enjoyed the characters of Newman Noggs (my favorite of the multitude), the ‘gentleman in small-clothes’ (his two scenes so funny that I remembered them from my first read) and Mrs. Nickleby. Yes, even Mrs. Nickleby, who certainly has more personality than her two children. She's obtuse, self-centered and muddleheaded; but she can be sarcastic in the way of a mother whose children are always telling her how wrong she is:
To this, Mrs Nickleby only replied that she durst say she was very stupid, indeed she had no doubt she was, for her own children almost as much as told her so, every day of her life; to be sure she was a little older than they, and perhaps some foolish people might think she ought reasonably to know best. However, no doubt she was wrong; of course she was; she always was, she couldn't be right, she couldn't be expected to be; so she had better not expose herself any more; and to all Kate's conciliations and concessions for an hour ensuing, the good lady gave no other replies than Oh, certainly, why did they ask her?, Her opinion was of no consequence, it didn't matter what she said…
If for nothing else, the novel is memorable for its being instrumental in the demise of the actual Yorkshire boarding schools (the last scene set in the fictional Dotheboys Hall, seemingly comic, depicts how inhumane treatment leads to more of the same). What power for a novel and its author who, at the time of its writing, was only twenty-five years old.
June 25, 2019
Well, fan my brow. I’ve been wandering around this world for years, telling anyone who will listen that my favourite Dickens novel is
David Copperfield
, with conviction which cannot be rivalled. I’m all a-flutter now Nickleby has come along and knocked Copperfield from the top spot.
What an absolute triumph this novel is. All of my favourite Dickens staples are firmly present - Victorian social customs, comedy, villains, tragedy, debtors, and drunks. There’s plenty of heartbreak and injustice, peppered with Dickens' own brand of humour to lighten the mood to the perfect degree.
There is a lot of plot; I repeat - there is a lot of plot. Dickens goes into tiny detail on setting, atmosphere, and behaviour, creating a beautifully vivid and engaging picture of Victorian London. It feels very deep, and heavy at times; this only added to my enjoyment, but I spent much longer on this book than I have on any other for a while, savouring, relishing, loving.
His technique in presenting the reader with social injustices is gorgeous. Laced with satire, we see our misers and villains gaining the upper hand at every turn; we are scandalised, devastated, incensed. But we remember it’s Dickens, and each and every dastardly character will have his day in the end. Real life doesn’t serve justice quite so perfectly, but anything else here would be an injury.
Despite this, Dickens characters here were nothing simple. Such a throng of a cast, each of them described to completeness, every flaw and scar exposed. Dickens often characterises his characters as entirely good or bad, placing them into their relevant camps as appropriate. Here, he recognises the range of emotion and temper in his characters, and we even see the squeaky-clean ones make poor decisions, and display emotion not usually attributed to the characters in the more angelic of the two camps.
It gave my joy, it broke my heart. The characters are masterpieces within themselves, the plot divine, everything else just gorgeous gorgeous. Nicholas Nickleby is an absolute wonder.
What an absolute triumph this novel is. All of my favourite Dickens staples are firmly present - Victorian social customs, comedy, villains, tragedy, debtors, and drunks. There’s plenty of heartbreak and injustice, peppered with Dickens' own brand of humour to lighten the mood to the perfect degree.
There is a lot of plot; I repeat - there is a lot of plot. Dickens goes into tiny detail on setting, atmosphere, and behaviour, creating a beautifully vivid and engaging picture of Victorian London. It feels very deep, and heavy at times; this only added to my enjoyment, but I spent much longer on this book than I have on any other for a while, savouring, relishing, loving.
His technique in presenting the reader with social injustices is gorgeous. Laced with satire, we see our misers and villains gaining the upper hand at every turn; we are scandalised, devastated, incensed. But we remember it’s Dickens, and each and every dastardly character will have his day in the end. Real life doesn’t serve justice quite so perfectly, but anything else here would be an injury.
Despite this, Dickens characters here were nothing simple. Such a throng of a cast, each of them described to completeness, every flaw and scar exposed. Dickens often characterises his characters as entirely good or bad, placing them into their relevant camps as appropriate. Here, he recognises the range of emotion and temper in his characters, and we even see the squeaky-clean ones make poor decisions, and display emotion not usually attributed to the characters in the more angelic of the two camps.
It gave my joy, it broke my heart. The characters are masterpieces within themselves, the plot divine, everything else just gorgeous gorgeous. Nicholas Nickleby is an absolute wonder.
August 26, 2018
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
What can I say? This is Dickens at his best and the master certainly doesn't need MY recommendation! Suffice it to say that Simon Vance's narration does justice to the material making this an excellent choice for any audiobook reader with an ear for the classics.
If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?
'Sex! Drugs! Rock 'n' Roll! None of them are in this film but watch it anyway!'
Any additional comments?
Apologies for the above 'joke'... I just can't help myself...
Taken from my original review on Audible.co.uk
Buddy read with Sunshine Seaspray
What can I say? This is Dickens at his best and the master certainly doesn't need MY recommendation! Suffice it to say that Simon Vance's narration does justice to the material making this an excellent choice for any audiobook reader with an ear for the classics.
If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?
'Sex! Drugs! Rock 'n' Roll! None of them are in this film but watch it anyway!'
Any additional comments?
Apologies for the above 'joke'... I just can't help myself...
Taken from my original review on Audible.co.uk
Buddy read with Sunshine Seaspray
June 3, 2012
I have a titular affinity with this novel since it incorporates many common misspellings of my surname: Nicols, Nichols, Nickles, Nicholas, Nicolls and (once) Amber Juliana Swami. Dickens’s third novel unites the comedic episodes of The Pickwick Papers with the melodramatic realism of Oliver Twist in a brilliant 832-page (OWC edition) adventure filled with more manipulative drama than Lot 45 on Hollywood Studios (known as the Robin Williams Crap Mound). Unlike the aforesaid former comic actor’s appalling attempts at emotional tittypinching (one for the DFW fans there), Dickens peoples his entertainments with unforgettable characters—from the terrifying Uncle Ralph, the hilarious charmer Mantalini, the excessively Geordie John Browdie, to the sadistic Wackford Squeers—this is another exemplar of peerless storytelling and a further excuse to fall prostrate before this impeccable master at once. Enough said. [A word on Oxford World’s Classics v. Penguin Classics. I was a devoted Penguin man for most of my life until OUP redesigned their books in 2008 with the exquisite designs seen here: a simple white strip with red and black text over the delightfully colourful cover images, beautiful! Penguin texts still boast better translations and notations, alas, so style over substance?]
March 8, 2021
This book was Peak Dickens. Noble Young Heroes, Swooning Maidens, Goodness Rewarded, Avarice Punished, a social injustice of the day exposed (in this case, corrupt boarding schools). There were jolly employers, wicked moneylenders, and people named things like Wackford Squeers, Smike, Ned Cheeryble, and Sir Mulberry Hawk!
I loved how active and impetuous Nicholas was. If I have one complaint about Dickens, it's that so often his "hero" is rather passive. Poor Oliver Twist just sort of endured life until the end of his story. Nicholas was out and about: finding work to support his family, but also righting wrongs he saw, adopting orphans, making friends, making enemies. I was constantly afraid he was going to get thrown in jail for killing someone. They would definitely have deserved it, but it would still be murder.
I just loved Newman Noggs (there's another very Dickens name!) and the Cheeryble brothers. I also loved Nicholas' time with the theater, and the dramatic Crummles family who populated it. O! To have seen the Infant Phenomenon Dance at the Height of her Glory!
Smike's storyline was very sad, and that's the thing that I love about Dickens. He can veer from the amusing to the ridiculous to the thrilling to the very tragic, and he does it all so well!
I loved how active and impetuous Nicholas was. If I have one complaint about Dickens, it's that so often his "hero" is rather passive. Poor Oliver Twist just sort of endured life until the end of his story. Nicholas was out and about: finding work to support his family, but also righting wrongs he saw, adopting orphans, making friends, making enemies. I was constantly afraid he was going to get thrown in jail for killing someone. They would definitely have deserved it, but it would still be murder.
I just loved Newman Noggs (there's another very Dickens name!) and the Cheeryble brothers. I also loved Nicholas' time with the theater, and the dramatic Crummles family who populated it. O! To have seen the Infant Phenomenon Dance at the Height of her Glory!
Smike's storyline was very sad, and that's the thing that I love about Dickens. He can veer from the amusing to the ridiculous to the thrilling to the very tragic, and he does it all so well!
August 6, 2016
One common criticism of The Pickwick Papers is that it has no plot. This novel is the antithesis of Pickwick, it has too much plot. At 1020 pages in length this is the largest book that I have ever read, and it really felt like it.
Dickens is the master of setting and characterisation. However, sometimes he can get so caught up in describing the mood and the presence of a location that half the chapter is gone before any dialogue is even uttered.
This novel contains, in my opinion, one of Dicken's most tragic characters, Smike. Smike will break your heart ad infinitum. There's lots of evil and mean characters in here that are very boo hiss which is just what we want and of course our hero Nicholas is flawless.
This is definitely a Dickens novel for Dickens readers. This wouldn't be a very good novel to begin with as it's... very Dickens .
Dickens is the master of setting and characterisation. However, sometimes he can get so caught up in describing the mood and the presence of a location that half the chapter is gone before any dialogue is even uttered.
This novel contains, in my opinion, one of Dicken's most tragic characters, Smike. Smike will break your heart ad infinitum. There's lots of evil and mean characters in here that are very boo hiss which is just what we want and of course our hero Nicholas is flawless.
This is definitely a Dickens novel for Dickens readers. This wouldn't be a very good novel to begin with as it's... very Dickens .
May 1, 2022
من معمولا کار های دیکنز رو دوست دارم اون غم و اندوه و لندن دودگرفتهایی که ترسیم میکنه رو اما با این کتاب ارتباط برقرار نکردم .
به نظرم به خاطر این بود که کتابی که ۸۰۰ صفحه است تبدیل شده به یه کتاب ۲۰۰ صفحه ایی و تمام داستان هایی که باید خیلی خوب بهش پرداخته میشد به صورت روزنامه وار تو فصل های ۵ ۶ صفحه ایی اومده .واسه همین شخصیت ها خوب درنیامده و به غیر شخصیت های منفی ما، شخصیت های مثبت رو خوب نمیشناسیم .
حتی چرخش های ناگهانی داستان که می تونست خیلی کتاب رو جذاب کنه به صورت خیلی خلاصه اومده و باعث میشه دیگه اون تاثیر رو نداشته باشه.
اگر تا الان کتاب رو نخوندین بهتون پیشنهاد میدم نسخه اصلی رو بخونید و نسخه خلاصه شده رو بذارین برای نوجوانان.
به نظرم به خاطر این بود که کتابی که ۸۰۰ صفحه است تبدیل شده به یه کتاب ۲۰۰ صفحه ایی و تمام داستان هایی که باید خیلی خوب بهش پرداخته میشد به صورت روزنامه وار تو فصل های ۵ ۶ صفحه ایی اومده .واسه همین شخصیت ها خوب درنیامده و به غیر شخصیت های منفی ما، شخصیت های مثبت رو خوب نمیشناسیم .
حتی چرخش های ناگهانی داستان که می تونست خیلی کتاب رو جذاب کنه به صورت خیلی خلاصه اومده و باعث میشه دیگه اون تاثیر رو نداشته باشه.
اگر تا الان کتاب رو نخوندین بهتون پیشنهاد میدم نسخه اصلی رو بخونید و نسخه خلاصه شده رو بذارین برای نوجوانان.
January 13, 2018
After his father dies, Nicholas Nickleby must go to work to support his mother and sister. The family is at the mercy of the "wicked uncle." Nicholas, at Ralph's arrangement, takes a position with Dothebys, a boarding school run by Mr. Squeers. Squeers and his equally corrupt wife regularly abuse the boys in their charge. After an incident, Nicholas leaves for London, being joined by Smike, one of the older boys. Newman Noggs, an employee of Ralph Nickleby,delivers a message to Nicholas. Life, love, and corruption continue to abound in the novel. Like most of Dickens' novels, social problems of the day are prominent. Enjoyable, but probably not Dickens' best work.
December 18, 2021
Another Dickens masterpiece! I loved the characters here and the story was compelling and lively. More later, but I am so happy to have taken my dive into Dickens this year and have pulled up so many treasures!
January 20, 2023
I don't know what to say about NN, just that I spent 16 days with it and I'm not the kind of person that enjoys spending too much time with one book. I'm doing the Dickens redalong and it was so funny reading the books and in the meantime the comments of the others that were reading it.
I don't want to spoiler, because with Dickens is better not to know too much. It's the story of Nicholas Nickleby and of his sister Kate, whose father dies leaving the family in debt. They come to London and hope to find help in their uncle Ralph, but he will soon become Nicholas' antagonist.
At first I thought to give it 4 stars, but the end was so moving that raised my rate to 5. Dickens is always great.
I don't want to spoiler, because with Dickens is better not to know too much. It's the story of Nicholas Nickleby and of his sister Kate, whose father dies leaving the family in debt. They come to London and hope to find help in their uncle Ralph, but he will soon become Nicholas' antagonist.
At first I thought to give it 4 stars, but the end was so moving that raised my rate to 5. Dickens is always great.
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