Dickens and Thackeray: Punishment and ForgivenessAttitudes toward punishment and forgiveness in English society of the nineteenth century came, for the most part, out of Christianity. In actual experience the ideal was not often met, but in the literature of the time the model was important. For novelists attempting to tell exciting and dramatic stories, violent and criminal activities played an important role, and, according to convention, had to be corrected through poetic justice or human punishment. Both Dickens' and Thackeray's novels subscribed to the ideal, but dealt with the dilemma it presented in slightly different ways. At a time when a great deal of attention has been directed toward economic production and consumption as the bases for value, Reed's well-documented study reviving moral belief as a legitimate concern for the analysis of nineteenth-century English texts is particularly illuminating. |
From inside the book
Results 1-3 of 46
... face to face with our own secret failings . If Chancery's purpose is to ensure equity in human dealings 207 Chapter Thirteen: Bleak House.
... face to face , before the great eternal bar ' " ( 215 ) . But to rec- ommend no action until God judges all people is not an entirely satisfactory meth- od of dealing with injustice in this world . Though we must trust to providence ...
... face of temptation and unhappiness . For- tunately she can eventually turn to Sissy , who knows the value of such ... face to face , Reality will take a wolfish turn and make an end of you " ( 162–63 ) . Just as the excesses practiced by ...
Contents
Attitudes Toward Punishment and Forgiveness | 3 |
Some of the contents of this study appeared elsewhere in different form Mate | 28 |
Education | 30 |
Copyright | |
25 other sections not shown