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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1,218 |
Charles Dickens was born 200 years ago on 7 February 1812. This prolific author's works have stood the test of time. Celebrations of Dickens' bicentenary include readings of Dickens' work worldwide and Prince Charles laying a wreath on Dickens' grave at Westminster Abbey. Charles Dickens
Asha Sahni
Dreams Editor
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 1,583 |
I'm a bit over-Dickensed at the moment as he was born in Portsmouth , the city where I live and work. So with his bicentennial he's being milked for every syllable he ever wrote. You can't turn a corner in Old Portsmouth without running into re-enactors, TV crews, and local radio presenters. Especially as today as you can imagine!
Ian - Pagan Editor
"We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves."
"With realization of one's own potential and self-confidence in one's ability, one can build a better world. "
Dalai Lama
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Joined: May 2010
Posts: 11,966 Likes: 30
BellaOnline Editor Renaissance Human
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BellaOnline Editor Renaissance Human
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 11,966 Likes: 30 |
Liked your article, Asha. Dickens was a much more complex man than his reputation suggests, having left the wife who was mother to the ten children and publicly villified her. But a great writer. I imagine his early tribulations contributed to this. Have you seen the Google doodle? I posted it on the Literature forum earlier. 
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Gecko
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Gecko
Joined: Sep 2006
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Sure we all remember "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,...", but it continues wonderfully:
"it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only."
A Tale of Two Cities
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 1,327 |
Super article Asha.
Dicken's books are amongst my favourites, although they were 'force fed' at school that still did not kill the urge to continue reading them, which probably goes for a lot of us from those days when reading could sometimes be made into a chore.
He was a a complex character though, certainly not what one would call a 'nice' man, but as you say Mona this probably sharpened his observational skills, because he could certainly draw vivid pictures in the mind of just how awful some things were in those days.
Little Dorrit was one of my favourites for some reason, and really enjoyed the TV version a few years ago. It was dubbed into German but Matthew Macfadyen made an excellent Arthur Clennam..........in fact his portrayal started a rush for Dickens books apparently.
Saw the Google Doodle when you first posted it Mona, think it has to be one of the best they have done, just great, am going to keep it.
Francine A. McKenna - German Culture Editor German Culture Site - German Culture Facebook Avatar: HOHENZOLLERNBRÃœCKE Cologne with CATHEDRAL and LUDWIG MUSEUM. The Bridge a symbol of how Germany was rebuilt after WWII, it was left in ruins, the Cathedral with roots in the 13th century represents the country's history, Museum of Modern Art the present day.
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1,218 |
Ian I'd forgotten you lived in Portsmouth. Bet it was manic... And I have to confess to having taken part in a fair number of Dickens readings in my earlier years (appropriately costumed, of course) myself...
Asha Sahni
Dreams Editor
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Joined: May 2010
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1,218 |
Mona that it a great doodle and glad you liked the article. Dickens was indeed a complex character, yet often contradictions in character give birth to genius. I was reading about Sylvia Plath the other day - on the one hand a lover and explorer of all the sensations of life, on the other a woman who committed suicide at thirty...
Asha Sahni
Dreams Editor
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Joined: May 2010
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
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BellaOnline Editor Chipmunk
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 1,218 |
Frank thank you for that wonderful quote. Dickens' ability to create word pictures is stunning. I am always struck by what an incredible output he had - several of his books are hundreds of pages long.
Asha Sahni
Dreams Editor
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