1. I had my first teacher meetings this week. Next week starts classes, though with shortened days. 2. In a rather melancholy mood for one reason or another. 3. Reading Dickens, I occasionally stumble across moments that show how masterfully understated he could be, when he took the trouble. Most of the time, when he … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Melancholy and Random Thoughts
Dickens
Maternal Loadstones: Mrs. Nickelby vs. Mrs. Bennet
I don't know that anyone can read both Nicholas Nickelby and Pride and Prejudice without comparing the maternal figures featured in each. In the cozy, but substantial niche of "embarrassingly foolish mothers," these two reign supreme as the most prominent and perhaps most troublesome. But the question remains; which one is worse? For my part, … Continue reading Maternal Loadstones: Mrs. Nickelby vs. Mrs. Bennet
Saturday Flotsam: More Moving, More Dickens, No More Newhart
1. Now that my furniture has arrived (mostly) safe and sound, my new apartment is feeling much homier. One of the 'fragile' boxes got squashed and I lost a few dishes, and one of my small bookshelves got destroyed, but other than that everything seems to have come through in proper working order and it's … Continue reading Saturday Flotsam: More Moving, More Dickens, No More Newhart
Some Further Thoughts on ‘Oliver Twist’
One doesn't really review Charles Dickens, any more than one 'reviews' a waterfall. Dickens has achieved a status beyond mere likes or dislikes, critique and praise. It is not a question of whether Dickens is any good, so much as it is a question of how he strikes you. As for Oliver Twist, I would … Continue reading Some Further Thoughts on ‘Oliver Twist’
Friday Flotsam: Moving Cross Country, History in the Making, and Dickens
1. Well, this was certainly a week. For those who are just joining us, last weekend I moved cross-country, from Michigan to Arizona to take up a teaching post. It was three days' driving, and a chance to see more of the country than I yet have. The route took us, among other things, right … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Moving Cross Country, History in the Making, and Dickens
Brief Thoughts on Pickwick
Recently I listened to The Pickwick Papers on my way to and from work/class. For those who don't know, this was Charles Dickens's first novel, which (if I recall correctly) he was assigned to after the original author backed out, and which was intended to accompany the illustrations of a then-famous satirist, who died almost immediately … Continue reading Brief Thoughts on Pickwick
Serpent's Den 