Celebrate the anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens

in the paper last night.

At least Victorian flamboyance has not entirely been eschewed by modern angst.

‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times….’

that duality about life.

Yet I have in latter years rather eschewed the simplistic binary divisions of thought.

for the most affecting death scene!

for me by the film and the musical. Too ‘rollicking’ for my taste.

Oom-pah-pah indeed.

was a useful and rather enjoyable text to teach.

We had many interesting discussions about creativity, expression, industrialisation and utilitarianism.

very much.

Many lessons for life in its pages, much observation of human character and motivation.

The wedding cake spiders are a wonderful representation of bitter unhappiness and self indulgence. May I never be like that!

who thought intensely and deeply about colours, furniture, the arrangement of rooms.

I like the funny charcter even more now that I know that!

Someone who either beats those weaker than them (Pip) or gentler than them (Joe), or cringes when around those stronger or more brutal than them (Orlick).

Dickens certainloy captured foibles of character!

And I think I shall dip into some of his works in celebration!