Projects: You are to chose one of the following projects (Schulten, and Scurletis) to do and turn in to me. Do your best work. I expect proper writing style, grammar, punctuation, etc. Do your own work! Sources must be properly cited in proper MLA format using Son of Citation Machine; no plagiarism.
1. The Workhouse
Read the two essays “Who Was Charles Dickens?” and “Down and Out in Victorian England”. In a five paragraph essay, answer the following questions: What was the philosophy behind workhouse relief for the poor? Why were families separated within the workhouse? Why were they fed meager rations? What was the attitude of most middle-class Victorians toward people in their society who lived in poverty? Then, consider current attitudes about poverty. Do we view the poor in our country in the same way we view the poor in less developed countries? Why or why not? Research current statistics about American poverty by visiting the U.S. Census Bureau’s Web site. Which statistics do you find most surprising and why? Working in pairs, record an audio, video, or podcast interview, with one student playing the part of the interviewer and one student playing the part of Dickens himself. How would Dickens compare and contrast poverty in Victorian England to the current state of U.S. poverty?2. Great Expectations Mini Series
A common misconception about Charles Dickens is that he was paid by the word. In fact, he was paid by the serial installment. Dickens was one of the first authors to popularize the serial; instead of turning out a massive novel affordable only to the upper classes, Dickens wrote his books in affordable serial installments that were available every month or week in popular periodicals such as Bentley’s Miscellany. Read Howard Cutler’s essay “Stay Tuned: The Rise of the Killer Serial” (read pages 21 -25) to learn more about how Dickens’ innovations in serial literature were related to Victorian literacy rates, the economy, and his popularity. Then, think about how you could transform one of Dickens’ complete novels back into a series, but this time as a miniseries for television. Where in this particular work are the “cliffhanging chapter stops” that Cutler describes? Which of these chapter endings would be most dramatic or visually exciting in a television or film format? Present a few of these moments in story board format to illustrate how a particular image or scene could leave viewers waiting in suspense for the next episode in the series.
A common misconception about Charles Dickens is that he was paid by the word. In fact, he was paid by the serial installment. Dickens was one of the first authors to popularize the serial; instead of turning out a massive novel affordable only to the upper classes, Dickens wrote his books in affordable serial installments that were available every month or week in popular periodicals such as Bentley’s Miscellany. Read Howard Cutler’s essay “Stay Tuned: The Rise of the Killer Serial” (read pages 21 -25) to learn more about how Dickens’ innovations in serial literature were related to Victorian literacy rates, the economy, and his popularity. Then, think about how you could transform one of Dickens’ complete novels back into a series, but this time as a miniseries for television. Where in this particular work are the “cliffhanging chapter stops” that Cutler describes? Which of these chapter endings would be most dramatic or visually exciting in a television or film format? Present a few of these moments in story board format to illustrate how a particular image or scene could leave viewers waiting in suspense for the next episode in the series.
3. Illustrating Characters
Dickens is perhaps more famous for his characters than for any other aspect of his work. According to Everyone in Dickens by George Newlin (Greenwood
Press, 1995), Dickens created 13,143 separate characters. Each, no matter how minor, is delineated by some idiosyncrasy of speech, dress, or manner.
To examine his craft more closely, do the following:
1. Choose a character from a Dickens novel and find 1–4 lines of description about him or her.
2. Write this description at the bottom of a blank sheet of paper.
3. Exchange papers with another student.
4. On the sheet you receive, sketch a drawing, cartoon, or caricature to illustrate the character described.
5. When everyone is finished, display all the drawings with the bottoms folded so that the writing doesn’t show. Have each writer guess which illustration matches the Dickens character he or she chose. How hard or easy is it to find the correct drawing? How did Dickens’ vivid description give you a mental picture of each character? (To compare your work and see how Dickens’ characters have been envisioned by various illustrators over the years, visit David Perdue’s Charles Dickens Page.) Finally, unfold the bottoms of the
pages and display the “cast of characters,” along with their descriptions.
Press, 1995), Dickens created 13,143 separate characters. Each, no matter how minor, is delineated by some idiosyncrasy of speech, dress, or manner.
To examine his craft more closely, do the following:
1. Choose a character from a Dickens novel and find 1–4 lines of description about him or her.
2. Write this description at the bottom of a blank sheet of paper.
3. Exchange papers with another student.
4. On the sheet you receive, sketch a drawing, cartoon, or caricature to illustrate the character described.
5. When everyone is finished, display all the drawings with the bottoms folded so that the writing doesn’t show. Have each writer guess which illustration matches the Dickens character he or she chose. How hard or easy is it to find the correct drawing? How did Dickens’ vivid description give you a mental picture of each character? (To compare your work and see how Dickens’ characters have been envisioned by various illustrators over the years, visit David Perdue’s Charles Dickens Page.) Finally, unfold the bottoms of the
pages and display the “cast of characters,” along with their descriptions.
4. Create a Theme Park or Map
Dickens’ London is a place so vivid and central to the plot of most of his novels that it is almost a character itself. To consider the effect of setting on his characters, plots, and themes, and to understand the Victorian world in which they lived, complete one of these two exercises:
1. Create an annotated map of Dickens’ London with descriptive words and phrases from one or more of the novels annotating key spots. This can be done individually or collaboratively via Google Maps so that you can input comments and quotes directly onto your map.
2. Create a blueprint for a “Dickens Theme Park” in which all the rides and concessions are inspired by the people and places in Dickens’ novels. After you have finished, compare your work to actual versions. A traditional map of Dickens’ London can be found at both pbs.org/wnet/dickens/tour.html and fidnet.com/~dap1955/dickens/dickens_london_map.htmfidnet.com/~dap1955/dickens/dickens_london_map.html. An interactive version is available at bbc.co.uk/arts/multimedia/dickensbbc.co.uk/arts/multimedia/dickens. To see how theme park creators
envisioned “Dickens World” in England, visit dickensworld.co.uk.
1. Create an annotated map of Dickens’ London with descriptive words and phrases from one or more of the novels annotating key spots. This can be done individually or collaboratively via Google Maps so that you can input comments and quotes directly onto your map.
2. Create a blueprint for a “Dickens Theme Park” in which all the rides and concessions are inspired by the people and places in Dickens’ novels. After you have finished, compare your work to actual versions. A traditional map of Dickens’ London can be found at both pbs.org/wnet/dickens/tour.html and fidnet.com/~dap1955/dickens/dickens_london_map.htmfidnet.com/~dap1955/dickens/dickens_london_map.html. An interactive version is available at bbc.co.uk/arts/multimedia/dickensbbc.co.uk/arts/multimedia/dickens. To see how theme park creators
envisioned “Dickens World” in England, visit dickensworld.co.uk.
5. Street Life
According to Norrie Epstein in The Friendly Dickens, walking through the streets of London was part of Dickens’ creative process: “Before he could begin a novel he would take to the city’s streets and walk as fast as he could for hours.” These long walks and the writing that resulted from them helped establish Dickens’
reputation as a flâneur (a French word meaning a connoisseur of street life). Take to the streets of your own town or neighborhood with notebook and/or camera in hand and become a connoisseur of the street life you observe. Capture the details you notice—the characters you encounter, the businesses and buildings you see, and the social conditions around you. Share your street life observations with fellow classmates by presenting a narrated multimedia slide show or video through Flickr , Prezi , or through VoiceThread.
reputation as a flâneur (a French word meaning a connoisseur of street life). Take to the streets of your own town or neighborhood with notebook and/or camera in hand and become a connoisseur of the street life you observe. Capture the details you notice—the characters you encounter, the businesses and buildings you see, and the social conditions around you. Share your street life observations with fellow classmates by presenting a narrated multimedia slide show or video through Flickr , Prezi , or through VoiceThread.
Resources:
Schulten, K, and G Scurletis. "Masterpiece Classic: Teaching Dickens: A Masterpiece Guide." PBS.org. BH Educational Foundation., 2009. Web. 13 Nov 2011. <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/dickens/dickens_teachersguide.pdf>.
