Becoming Dickens: The Invention of a Novelist

Becoming Dickens: The Invention of a Novelist - Paperback

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Becoming Dickens: The Invention of a Novelist
  • Becoming Dickens: The Invention of a Novelist
Becoming Dickens: The Invention of a Novelist - Paperback

Becoming Dickens: The Invention of a Novelist - Paperback

by Robert Douglas-Fairhurst
$40.32
$40.32

Book Overview

by Robert Douglas-Fairhurst (Author)

Becoming Dickens tells the story of how an ambitious young Londoner became England's greatest novelist. In following the twists and turns of Charles Dickens's early career, Robert Douglas-Fairhurst examines a remarkable double transformation: in reinventing himself Dickens reinvented the form of the novel. It was a high-stakes gamble, and Dickens never forgot how differently things could have turned out. Like the hero of Dombey and Son, he remained haunted by "what might have been, and what was not."

In his own lifetime, Dickens was without rivals. He styled himself simply "The Inimitable." But he was not always confident about his standing in the world. From his traumatized childhood to the suicide of his first collaborator and the sudden death of the woman who had a good claim to being the love of his life, Dickens faced powerful obstacles. Before settling on the profession of novelist, he tried his hand at the law and journalism, considered a career in acting, and even contemplated emigrating to the West Indies. Yet with The Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist, and a groundbreaking series of plays, sketches, and articles, he succeeded in turning every potential breakdown into a breakthrough.

Douglas-Fairhurst's provocative new biography, focused on the 1830s, portrays a restless and uncertain Dickens who could not decide on the career path he should take and would never feel secure in his considerable achievements.

Author Biography

Robert Douglas-Fairhurst is Fellow and Tutor in English, Magdalen College, Oxford.

Author's home: Oxford, UNITED KINGDOM

Number of Pages: 400
Dimensions: 0.8 x 9 x 5.8 IN
Publication Date: May 13, 2013
ISBN9780674072237
Author Robert Douglas-Fairhurst
PublisherBelknap Press
GenreBiography, Education, and History
FormatPaperback
PublishedMay 2013
LanguageENG- English
Pages400
Weight1.0 lb
Target AudienceAdults
Print SizeStandard Print

Related Subjects

Biography & Autobiography History Language Arts & Disciplines Nonfiction

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About Robert Douglas-Fairhurst

Robert Douglas-Fairhurst is Professor of English Literature at Oxford University and a Fellow of Magdalen College. His books include Becoming Dickens: The Invention of a Novelist (2011), which was awarded the Duff Cooper Prize, The Story of Alice: Lewis Carroll and the Secret History of Wonderland (2015), which was shortlisted for the Costa Prize, and The Turning Point: A Year that Changed Dickens and the World (2021). In 2015 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

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