Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #32810 in Books
• Published on: 1994-06-01
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 832 pages

Synopsis
With an Introduction and Notes by Dr John Bowen, Department of English, University of Keele and illustrations by Hablot K. Browne (Phiz), "Martin Chuzzlewit" is Charles Dickens' comic masterpiece about which his biographer, Forster, noted that it marked a crucial phase in the author's development as he began to delve deeper into the 'springs of character'.Old Martin Chuzzlewit, tormented by the greed and selfishness of his family, effectively drives his grandson, young Martin, to undertake a voyage to America. It is a voyage which will have crucial consequences not only for young Martin, but also for his grandfather and his grandfather's servant, Mary Graham with whom young Martin is in love. The commercial swindle of the Anglo-Bengalee company and the fraudulent Eden Land Corporation have a topicality in our own time. This strong sub-plot shows evidence of Dickens' mastery of crime where characters such as the criminal Jonas Chuzzlewit, the old nurse Mrs Gamp, and the arch-hypocrite Seth Pecksniff are the equal to any in his other great novels. Generations of readers have also delighted in Dickens' wonderful description of the London boarding-house - 'Todgers'.

About the Author
Michael Slater is Professor of Victorian Literature at Birkbeck College in the University of London. He was editor of The Dickensian (1968-77) and President of the International Dickens Fellowship (1988-90). He has published many books and articles on Dickens.

Customer Reviews

Second only to Tale of Two Cities
Dickens is unquestionably one of the best writers in the history of English literature, combining compelling plots with laugh-out-loud humour and a savage satirical eye. Having read most of his books, I have to say Martin Chuzzlewit is one of the best - second only, in fact, to the awesome Tale of Two Cities.

This is despite the book having possibly the worst beginning of the lot - if you can get past the initial 8 pages, where not one character appears, you'll find several dozen well worth the wait. This includes the usual memorable characters - drunken Mrs Gamp and her imaginary friend; the older-than-his-years Mr Bailey; and Mark Tapley, who finds no credit in being happy unless he is surrounded by the most miserable of circumstances; not to mention Pecksniff, Charity and Mercy.

But what is most notable in the book is its picture of a self-mythologising America, a country where "they're so fond of Liberty that they buy her and sell her and carry her to market with 'em. They've such a passion for Liberty, that they can't help taking liberties with her," a country which holds itself up as an example to the rest of the world, and where any criticism of an individual American is held to be a criticism of its "institutions" and defended as such. It's a picture that has many echoes more than 150 years on, perhaps demonstrating how long the legend of 'America' has been in development.

The story is about greed, and the plot is comedy. The observation is sharp as ever, focusing on hypocrisy, selfishness, and including a fascinating portrait of guilt. It's one of the best books ever, hilarious at points, and wickedly true. Just read it.

Another fine wedge.
Martin Chuzzlewit Senior is tormented by greed and selfishness of his family - this forms the basis of the story. It was first published in monthly instalments (1843-4), so this perhaps goes a long way to explain the patchy nature of a long book. It seems to have been formulated from page to page or fashioned chapter to chapter in its writing rather than a subsequent unravelling of initial inspiration. A great wedge to admire but not one I was particularly taken by. I yawned a lot.

It can be rewarding, although I did find it a bit of a puzzle for much of the way. One can easily loose the plot as I did several times. If I was to recommend a book to a first time reader of Dickens it would not be this one for that reason. Oh yes its complicated, maybe this makes it simpler to condemn than praise. The tiresome bits are contrasted by lengthy passages of momentum which can render the reader fully absorbed in the plot.

A handful of characters are really well developed. You can love to hate Mr Pecksniff for he is the best of them as a freeloading hypocrite. Mr Pecksniff probably provides most of the comic absurdity which is so eloquently portrayed. There are many characters who are still being introduced in the final chapter. Such a wealth of characters in numbers had a tendency to dilute the storyline with sub plots and red herrings.

Worth a mention is the interesting excursion into the United States, though I found it annoying and disappointing. In the U.S. here, there is savage satire which did not do it for me, however one can see how it might have worked well at the time. Despite these criticisms, there is still plenty to appreciate contained in the rest of the pages with comedy and fascinating drama.

Dickens on top form.
Dickens included experiences of his recent first tour of America in this novel, poking generous fun at the pretensions of the "U-nited States", whilst making equal mischief with his English characters too.

It's already been said how rambling this novel can be, but in many ways Dickens wrote it as ideas came into his head with only a mild inkling as to how it would all end. And although his characters tend to be wholly righteous or wholly evil, this does at least allow for excellent comedy, for it is by emphasising the extreme aspects of character at the expense of a more well-rounded disposition that we can laugh at some aspects of ourselves.

A good read.