Charles Dickens

Roger Rees

The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby

Da Nicholas Nicklebys far dør og efterlader sig en stor gæld, må Nicholas, hans søster Kate og deres mor drage til London for at opsøge farbroderen, den pengegriske Ralph Nickleby. Ralph opfatter familien som en flok nassere, der aldrig vil drive det til noget, og han får Nicholas sat i tjeneste hos kostskoleholderen Wackford Squeers fra Dotheboys Hall, Yorkshire, og Kate hos modehuset Mantalini. Forholdene på skolen i Yorkshire får dog til sidst Nicholas til at banke Squeers og flygte sammen med den forhutlede og noget indskrænkede Smike. Kampen mellem Nicholas og hans familie og Ralph kan hermed begynde. Nicholas Nickleby er Dickens' tredje roman og stadig i dag en af hans mest populære. Værket er bearbejdet og tilrettet moderne retskrivning. Charles John Huffam Dickens (1812-1870) var en engelsk forfatter. Han har skrevet flere succesromaner, heriblandt Oliver Twist (1837), Nicholas Nickleby (1839), Barnaby Rudge (1841), David Copperfield (1850), To byer (1859) og Store forventninger (1861).

Nicholas Nickleby

Isa s

I’m slowly but steadily falling in love with Charles Dickens’ work. Nicholas Nickleby is a wonderful story about how poverty and hardship can make you happier than a fortune. The book focuses on the Nickleby family, living in 19th century England. After the death of his father Nicholas, his sister and mother are appealing to Nicholas’ uncle Ralph Nickleby. Ralph is a made man without any recognizable conscience. In answer to this appeal Ralph sends Nicholas as assistant teacher to a boarding school under the direction of a man who is just as greedy and conscience-lacking as Ralph himself.
I’m not going deeper into the plot, because this is one of the rare books I read recently that actually made me want to read on to find out what would happen next. For once I was not sitting there thinking “oh, it’ll turn out OK in the end … they might be in a fix now, but of course he’ll save the day by some heroic deed”. Charles Dickens managed to write a vivid narrative that makes it easy for the reader to imagine themselves in 19th century England. He also draws great characters, and even though Ralph and his companions might sometimes seem slightly stereotypical, I actually experienced even them as round characters with more depth than the first impression might suggest.
My favourable impression of this book is strengthened by the audiobook, read by Simon Vance. He does a wonderful job of reading this book and giving every character his individual voice without overdoing it.

Ashling Brown

"The pain of parting is nothing to the joy of meeting again." 

Nicholas Nickleby was a story of the effects of grief, money, greed and poverty.

Like many Dickens novels, we are thrust into the life of poverty and taken on a journey, alongside theatrical and beautiful characters. With Nicholas Nickleby, the readers are brought into a world of grief and its effects on both Nicholas, Kate and Mrs Nickleby. Then, we follow them as they are hit with poverty and taken to the streets of London in seek of help and comfort from the only remaining family, Ralph Nickleby. 

I instantly loved the portrayal of these two differences. Ralph was rich; however, he was vicious and greedy. He was an awful character throughout the story, but I found it to be an insightful one. We read through his journey as his greed and jealousy grew; he becomes angrier to the point of driving himself crazy and eventually (view spoiler)[killing himself (hide spoiler)] I love how this portrayed the effects of money and how it can corrupt you. It shows us as the reader that you could have a lot of money yet still be so cruel, cold and unhappy. I found Ralph so incredibly interesting and full of depth. Although I despised him and the acts he played throughout the novel, I could see his importance. 

From the start, I fell in love with Nicholas! From the first few pages, you could see his kindness and warmth - he pointed out his Uncles cruelty and nature from the very beginning; however, he let it slide to keep his mother and sister happy (Although he came to regret that later on). Throughout the novel, we see his adventure and kindness grow; he becomes a strong and determined young man who shows no regret in anything that he does. He is truthful and honest, and towards the end of the novel, we see these things get repaid in the most beautiful ways. For me, I took Nicholas's story to heart. It showed that although you can have little money, your kindness and treatment of others can be all the more rewarding, and in the long run, give you true happiness that money could never genuinely buy.

I could go into detail more; however, we'd be here forever, so...

I will end by saying how Dickens novels always make me smile, laugh out loud and want to scream. I love the theatrical nature he uses when writing, but I also love that more severe topic that he entwines with humour. He has become a favourite author of mine, and I can't wait to read more of his works and discover new favourites within his works.

elizabeth

Hannah Swithinbank

Modith D.

Yuvraj Jha

Jennie Taoka

Tilde C

Noha Abdelaziz

Eva Funmilayo 

Anna Berg

Stephanie

Bethany

Summer Cashmore

Nancy Holder

Deborah Meades

Margarita Caraballo

Kathryn Reyes

'"I may grow rich!" repeated Nicholas, with a mournful smile, "ay, and I may grow old. But rich or poor, or old or young, we shall ever be the same to each other, and in that our comfort lies"' The work of a young novelist at the height of his powers, Nicholas Nickleby is one of the touchstones of the English comic novel. Around the central story of Nicholas Nickleby and the misfortunes of his family, Dickens created some of his most wonderful characters: the muddle-headed Mrs Nickleby, the gloriously theatrical Crummles, their protege Miss Petowker, the pretentious Mantalinis and the mindlessly cruel Squeers and his wife. Nicholas Nickleby's loose, haphazard progress harks back to the picaresque novels of the 18th century - particularly those of Smollett and Fielding. Yet the novel's exuberant atmosphere of romance, adventure and freedom is overshadowed by Dickens' awareness of social ills and financial and class insecurity. The Penguin English Library - 100 editions of the best fiction in English, from the eighteenth century and the very first novels to the beginning of the First World War.

Nicole

Moray Lyle McIntosh

Eugenia Andino

Olivia Konstanse

Mary A. E. S.

One of Dickens's most flamboyant and theatrical novels, Nicholas Nicklebyis the story of an impulsive young man who, forced to make his way in the world, encounters human life in all its variety- the tyrannical headmaster Wackford Squeers, the tragic orphan Smike, the ridiculous Mantalinis, the hilarious thespians Mr and Mrs Crummles and their daughter, 'the infant phenomenon'. Nicholas Nicklebyis fired by outrage at cruelty and injustice, but is above all a work filled with riotous, life-affirming comedy.

Maryam Hasan

Theodora Pantelich

The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby

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