The Pickwick Papers was Dickens’ first book and I chose it
for this reason. Having never really tried to read Dickens before I thought I’d
start at the beginning. Also the fact that this is a comic book rather than a
not very nice story of poverty and abuse, I thought it was a good way to start
my introduction to Dickens’ work.
The book is sort of a character study of Mr Pickwick and his
friends. Mr Pickwick is a wealthy bachelor who decides to start his own club,
named after himself, to let him help young men out when they move to London. He
sees these men as his adopted children and does everything he can to help them.
Pickwick and his friends, Mr Winkle, Mr Tupman and Mr
Snodgrass, decide to go on the equivalent of a 19th Century road
trip. Along the way, Mr Pickwick acquires a manservant in the form of a young
man named Sam Weller. Weller is bright and street smart whereas Mr Pickwick is
not. Therefore Sam is required to get Mr Pickwick and friends out of one or two
scrapes that they find themselves in.
If the Pickwick papers were set now, it would not be in the
form of a book but in the form of bad American comedy films. It has all of the
clichés in it that we now take for granted. I don’t know how much these things
were cliché back then but it is amusing to read it now and try to think how
influential it seems on a lot of comedies we have now. Mr Pickwick and his
friends do many silly things including being drunk and falling asleep in a
wheelbarrow, unintentionally proposing to women, being tricked by conmen who
pretend to be high flyers in society and claiming they can do things but when
called upon to demonstrate their claims, it is obvious to all that they can’t.
I believe all the things mentioned above have been used in a bad comedy film at
some point.
The Pickwick Papers was originally released in serial form,
and having the plot device of a road trip helps. It is like having lots of
small stories put together. As the characters move from place to place or are
introduced to new characters, you can see how it would leave the readers
wanting to know what would happen to the gang next. Some of the characters they
meet recur and some don’t. You can see how readers would like some of the minor
characters and would be pleased when they make a reappearance.
Mr Pickwick’s friends are your general personality types. Mr
Winkle claims he is able to do various activities, such as shooting, when in
fact he can’t. He is also a fan of the ladies and is out to impress one in
particular who he meets on their travels. Mr Tupman doesn’t feature too heavily
in the book but he is also partial to the ladies but ends up attracting all the
old widows instead of the young, pretty girls. Mr Snodgrass is the poet of the
group and any of the entries of the Pickwick Papers written using his notes are
always flowery. As you can probably guess, he is also on the lookout for love.
Probably the most interesting character in the book is Sam
Weller. He takes it upon himself to look after this hapless bunch, even at the
expense of his freedom and love life. Sam is the glue that holds the book
together. He organises all their trips, he helps Pickwick make the right
choices without realising Sam has manipulated him and he match-makes for one of
Mr Pickwick’s friends. We also learn the most about Sam as we get to meet his
dad and step-mum and often visit the pub where they live and work. Sam juggles
looking after Mr Pickwick with looking after his dad.
Much to my surprise I did quite enjoy reading the Pickwick
Papers. It certainly didn’t make me think I would never read Dickens again. If
I did read more Dickens I think I’d stick to reading his books in the order
they were written in so would read Oliver Twist next. All of the main
characters in the book are likable people. Some of the minor characters who
aren’t so likable are made fun of by Dickens so you know it’s okay not to like
them. Some of Dickens opinions that come through are still relevant today such
as egotistical newspaper editors and odious lawyers. Nothing changes.
Overall rating 5 stars
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