Syllabus starting April 6
CHARLES DICKENS IS BEST KNOWN for his character development. We have met the stand-offish Mr. Jaggers the lawyer, and his employee Mr. Wemmick the clerk. We meet again the light-haired boy, whom we now know if Matthew Pocket. How does Dickens use these characters to develop his social criticism? For example, what are we to think of Mr. Jagger’s and the criminal class given Dickens’s depiction of the clientele that plea to him for legal assistance? How does Dickens sarcastically describe London and its surrounding neighborhoods?
MONDAY / BLUE (NO CLASS)
You are reading books 20 through 22 before class tomorrow.
Please make sure you have finished watching the 1860 episode of Victorian Slum House. Turn in these notes on Canvas.
TUESDAY / GREEN
Brief check in on zoom. Check the syllabus on Canvas for links. I will lecture on Dickens characterization, his social commentary on prisons and the court system, and quickly review “the pale, blonde boy’s” revelations about Mrs. H.
HW: Reading chapters 23 and 24 (168-181…approx 1/2 hour of reading using audio)
WEDNESDAY / BLUE (NO CLASS)
There will be no homework over the weekend, so plan your time accordingly.
You should have read up through and including chapter 29 by Monday. That is approximately 1.5 hours of reading (using the audio as measure). Most of you can likely do that more quickly…but do use the audio. I think hearing the inflection, starts, stops and emphasis can help quite a bit when reading Dickens.
THURSDAY / GREEN DAY
You will use the second part of “classtime” to continue reading chapters 25-29 by Monday. Students should check in by posting questions about these chapters on our “GE Questions” google sheet.
HW: Reading from the book. We will watch the second episode of Victorian Slum House next week.
FRIDAY: Second Grey Day
No class for Good Friday and other religious holidays.