If you are reading this, then you successfully followed the prompts and joined our class blog. In this space, we will try to resist the novel's invitation to think about everything at once. We will focus here on the individual characters who inhabit the world of Bleak House and the sometimes curious connections between them. Every week 1-2 students will be in charge of "posting" (that's what I'm doing now) about a particular character central to the installment(s) we are reading that week. You can write about any aspect of that character's representation that you wish; we just want to stay character-focused since it is as easy to lose touch with people in this novel as it is in a real city. Students who are not posting that week will have to comment on one of the posts.
As a trial run, this week I'd like for you to comment on this post by writing a sentence or two about what you are finding difficult about "getting into" Bleak House. If you are commenting after a few people have written, you can feel free to comment on their comments -- indeed, you can commiserate if you find the same thing difficult, or you can offer a solution to their troubles. It is perfectly acceptable in the blog world to talk specifically to one another (just be respectful). As we try to make connections between characters in the text, we will also try to make connections to one another here in the blogosphere.
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See, I'm commenting on my post. This is where your comment, once it is written and "posted," will show up. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteHaving already read books by Dickens it wasn't as hard to get into Bleak House as it was compared to Tale of Two Cities and Great Expectations. However, it is difficult to maintain a pace at first as Dicken's descriptions are generally drawn out. And with so many things going on at the same time, it's sometimes hard to pick out the important parts.
ReplyDeleteThere are also technical terms that requires more close considerations. And while the terms can be skipped over, understanding the terms gives the reader a better understanding of what Dickens deemed to be important.
Probably the difficult part is not getting lost between all the elaborate descriptions.
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ReplyDeleteLearning the background information before reading the first three chapters of Bleak House helped me better scrutinize the text. The text is pretty straightforward, but the occasional allusion and the inevitable footnote that follows are a bit distracting.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ilona, at times it's too wordy and it might get confusing.
ReplyDeleteI remember my first experiences with Dickens as being similar to what you all say above. The details are overwhelming. But what I would ask, since we are reading this relatively slowly, is when you come across a detail that seems frustratingly meaningless, ask why it is there. For example, in class we talked about the description of Tulkinghorn's tights v. pants. This significantly marks him out as a man of the past, a traditionalist, not a force for progressive change in the culture. Also remember Masoud's excellent comment that the repetition helps create a feeling (the fog is oppressive) rather than just providing a description (it's foggy). Good luck and good reading.
ReplyDeleteHmmm... what can ii say? Well, ii do not feel that it is to wordy or overdrawn. My first impression was that the story seems gloomy and weary. By just portraying an image of locations makes me "drag my feet," so to speak, it does not give me anything to look forward to because optimism is not exactly synonymic with what ii have read. So its not giving me anything to look forward to as environment and even worse in characters because the "Dickensian" narrator describes everyone as dry characters in an already rancid environment... LOOKING For MORE OUTGOING CHARACTERS AND TWIST AND TURNS WITH LESS MORBID CHARACTERS. I AGREE WITH The SLOW STATEMENT PROFESSOR not even relatively just SLOW!! (not that there is anything wrong with that, just reiterating a true statement)... ii guess i look for too much in a book.
ReplyDeleteso far the book is OK, i really do not like the Dickensian narrator, but i enjoy reading about Esther, Richard and Ada.
ReplyDeleteI actually like Bleak House (don't kill me). So far, my favorite character is the old mad woman. I get the feeling that she has a really important past, and I can't wait to find out what it is.
ReplyDeleteThank you Sara! I'm sure no violence will come to you for expressing yourself. Miss Flite (that is her name we eventually find out) is really interesting. We'll talk about her tomorrow, as well as her freaky landlord, Krook. If anyone out there is still reading the blog, you might ponder what is up with his "store," the Rag and Bottle shop. Why is everything bought and nothing sold?
ReplyDeleteI like Bleak House also. I enjoy reading Esther's first-person narrative. It is interesting to see her point-of-view compared to that of the Dickensian narrator.
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