Dickens and Thackeray : punishment and forgiveness / John R. Reed.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Reed, John Robert, 1938-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870--Political and social views.

Dickens, Charles.

Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870.

Thackeray, William Makepeace, 1811-1863.

Punishment in literature.

Thackeray, William Makepeace, 1811-1863--Political and social views.

Thackeray, William Makepeace.

Literature and society--England--History--19th century.

Literature and society.

Ethics.

Political and social views.

England.

History.

English fiction--19th century--History and criticism.

English fiction.

Thackeray, William Makepeace, 1811-1863--Ethics.

Dickens, Charles, 1812-1870--Ethics.

Forgiveness in literature.

Physical Description:

xvi, 504 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Athens : Ohio University Press, [1995]

Summary:

Attitudes toward punishment and forgiveness in English society of the nineteenth century came, for the most part, out of Christianity. In actual experience the ideal was not often met, but in the literature of the time the model was important. For novelists attempting to tell exciting and dramatic stories, violent and criminal activities played an important role, and, according to convention, had to be corrected through poetic justice or human punishment. Both Dickens' and Thackeray's novels subscribed to the ideal, but dealt with the dilemma it presented in slightly different ways. At a time when a great deal of attention has been directed toward economic production and consumption as the bases for value, Reed's well-documented study reviving moral belief as a legitimate concern for the analysis of nineteenth-century English texts is particularly illuminating.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 482-496) and index.

ISBN:

0821411179

OCLC:

31410120