John Bowen
The Maypole (frontispiece), illustration by Hablot Knight Browne
An Unsociable Stranger, illustration by Hablot Knight Browne
A Rough Parting, Illustration by Hablot Knight Browne
Succouring the Wounded, illustration by Hablot Knight Browne
It’s a Poor Heart that Never Rejoices, illustration by Hablot Knight Browne
Mr. Tappertit’s Jealousy, illustration by Hablot Knight Browne
While reading the first 12 chapters of Barnaby Rudge, I noticed that the character Barnaby Rudge wasn’t as condescended as the rest of the characters in the novel even though he’s the character who has the most characteristics to criticize. Therefore, does Barnaby’s intelligence or idiocy play a significant role in the novel Barnaby Rudge?
Hi Eduardo,
You’re absolutely right. Barnaby’s mental state really matters to the book and Dickens tells us very different things about it – sometimes Barnaby seems to have a special gift or imagination, at others he seems frightening and dangerous. That question is right at the heart of the novel.
Mr. Bowen I enjoyed your insight on the opening conversation with the older men, I also felt that they had boring and ordinary lives in order to add the introduction of a murder and to emphasize the excitement that this created and to show how their lives would be changed. I was wondering if the rest of the chapters (after 5) would continue to have some form of foreshadowing through Barnaby himself or if he and his dreams are to act like prophecies?
Hi Jesselin
That’s a really good question. There is a lot of foreshadowing in the book and not just through Barnaby . Dickens uses two techniques in particular – enigma (when something has happened but we don’t know what it means) and suspense when we’re waiting for something to happen but don’t know what it will be. Because it’s published in instalments, he’ll sometimes use cliffhangers at the end of episode to get you to read on. You’re right to be interested in dreams and prophecy too – There’s more as the novel goes on!
Good evening Mr. Bowen,
Thank You for taking time to make this video for us. I strongly agree with the point you made about the beginning scenes that included, “a boring place”, with “boring people”, having a “boring conversation.” I felt like it was kind of hard to get through those pages because it lacked any interesting aspects. A question that I have is, why does Dickens choose to include two love stories in the novel? Do the love stories take away from the gothic mysterious vibe of the novel or does it enhance it?
Hi Alayda,
I think the relation between the gothic stuff and the 2 romances takes you right to the heart of the novel. In a way, they’re at war with each other – the young lovers are looking forward to the future and happiness; the Gothic is about the power of the past and death. I think Dickens has two romances , both with bad fathers, who block them, to give the positive optimistic forces more power, and to encourage you as a reader to compare them.
Hello Mr. Bowen. I like your take of the Warren residence and the dark connotations it carries. What intrigues me the most are the locations, particularly the Warren, along with the Maypole. I observed that one of your book’s appendixes had a map London (which I started to skim through so I can better visualize the story’s terrain) and the fact that the beginning settings were not even on the map really struck me. I also noticed that these two very important settings are a ways off from London (which I gather was why they aren’t on the map in the first place). In fact, a good chunk of the scenes in the beginning chapters all take place in the outskirts of London. Why did Charles Dickens choose to have these settings take place away from London in which the actual Gordon riots occur?
Hi Jerico,
You’re absolutely right about the importance of place to the novel. And you’re right that it’s odd to begin where he does. I think the move is like a vortex, so that as a reader gradually you get more and more pulled into the centre of London and the violence of the riots . So you begin somewhere sleepy and provincial and then get caught up in all the urban fury
While I was reading the first twelve chapters, I noticed that Barnaby is perceptive. Does Barnaby Rudge have a special, intuitive sense that others don’t?
Hi Emily,
Well noticed. He does – he has insight and kinds of imagination that other characters don’t seem to have , and a close relation to nature. But at least once he is also described as frightening and dangerous. What do you think about his relationship with Grip? They seem inseparable….
Thanks Mr.Bowen for making this video for us. It really helped me understand the first five chapter more. I strongly agree that the characters in the novel are very oppressed and live harsh and boring lives. I also agree that the novel contains young people who are suppressed and restrained from feeling and doing what they wish, which would lead them to “burst out”. A question that I have is why did Charles Dickens chose to include the fathers of several young men but not for Barnaby? Would having a father take away from who Barnaby is?
Hi Sabrina,
Excellent question. But do we know for certain that Barnaby doesn’t have a father? Old Rudge, Barnaby’s father, was steward at the Warren and disappeared on the night of the murder of Reuben Haredale. His body was found but it was unrecognisable except for the clothes, so that means he might still be alive . More mystery…
And who is the mysterious stranger who has sucha strong hold on Barnabys mother???
I appreciate your time in making this video Mr. Bowen. I agree with what you said “Barnaby is a mysterious character” because somehow he strangely is. You mentioned that the novel goes back to our grandparents or greatgrandparents to make us understand the world were in. Will we every really understand how important the lives of the people were in regards to public and/or social history during the times of revolutions or riots in the novel?
Hi Axel,
Well it’s an absolutely central question to understanding the novel, but it’s slightly hard for me to answer at this stage without revealing lots that happens later in the novel. Most of the historical and political stuff happens in the second half and I think we do see there the importance of big historical events to people’s lives, and vice versa. Almost all the main characters are tangled up in the riots in one way or another – Barnaby, Sim, Gabriel, all the Haredales, Dolly Varden et al. And we can already see how important being a Catholic, part of a persecuted minority, is to the Haredales’ lives.
Mr. Bowen,
Thank you for creating this helpful video. I agree that the book is like a “historical novel and gothic novel.” I think that the way Dickens bring up the mysterious stranger makes the reading experience suspenseful and exciting. But Why does Dickens make the stranger significant to the novel?
Hi Crystal,
Great question and another one that is hard to answer without giving all the plot away . But I think we’re already being encouraged to believe that the stranger seems to know something important about the Haredale murder and has great significance to Barnaby’s and his mother’s lives. So it’s both a way of drivng us forward to find out what happens next, and to recover something lost in the past. He’s also a figure of a kind of toxic violent masculinity.
Thank you Mr. Bowen for taking time in making this helpful video. This really allowed me understand the first 5 chapters more. When you talked about how the novel was full of young people and a story about fathers and sons, I agree completely and was really intrigued as you mentioned Joe and John Willet’s relationship. As we began to read in the marathon, we read how John Willet treated his 20 year old son Joe as a child which eventually made him want to leave, away from his father. This father-son relationship really caught my attention as it was constantly being talked about and clearly being explained. Due to this, Why do you think this relationship is incorporated into the novel, does it make a difference? Did Charles Dickens have a reasoning behind it?
Hi Ashley,
Yes it’s really important and it grows and grows in significance as the novel goes on. I think Dickens wants us to see parallels between all the different bad dads in the book, and between the oppressive and injustice political and social system which also doesn’t care properly for its ‘children’.
Thank you Mr. Bowen for making a video that gave information on the first five chapters of the book and details about the characterisitcs of certain characters. I definitely do agree that the book has lots of mystery in each chapter and unexpected moments that leave the reader interested. Barnaby Rudge a very poetic character with his own sense of style that is bold that stands out from others makes me question how the events going on around that time have impacted/influenced him and other characters present in the story.
Hi Chelsey,
That’s absolutely right about Barnaby. I think the main impact that we’ve seen so far of events onBarnaby is the strange mark like blood on him, and his fear of blood when he sees Edward Chetser injured. So he seems from his very birth to be marked out in some way, stained by some terrible event.
Hello Mr.Bowen, I really liked the summary that you gave of the first 5 chapters, it’s very interesting to see the relationship between father and son, because there is already chaos and fighting, within a family, at the beginning of the novel. I belive it’s a way to put the person incharge down, or to question their authority. Since, we know that there are riots later in the book, is the son and father relationship a way to represents the riots between the people in London and the questioning of authority or the need for change?
Hi Jessica,
Spot on. That’s exactly the connection Dickens wants us to make – between unjust authority and tyranny in families and unjust authority and tyranny in the wider political and social system. At the time the novel was set there were literally hundreds of crimes for which you could be executed – even for stealing food, for example – so it was a very unjust society and Dickens hated injustice.
Thank you so much, Mr. Bowen, for the video, it really helped me understand what is going on at the start of the novel. I really enjoyed the book so far due to the mysteries that occur especially from this stranger he immediately causes havoc in the beginning chapters. There is still one main question that I would like to get more information on, why does Dickens decide to incorporate an animal (Raven) instead of another character that could do the same and possibly more than the Raven.?What significance do animals have to novels as a whole and why incorporate them?
Hi Jose,
You’re right- it’s an unusual thing to do. Dickens himself had a pet Raven that he was very fond of and I think he was fascinated by how intelligent it seemed and what a good mimic of human speech it was, so he gives those characteristics to Grip. There’s something weird or uncanny about a bird that can talk and Dickens makes Grip seem to have magical powers which adds to the gothic quality of the book. It also gives Barnaby a friend that he seems to relate to better than to other human beings.
Thank You Mr.Bowen for taking the time to make this video. I agree with you with the fact that the Character Barnaby is poetic although people see him as dumb. When he was introduced Burnaby’s dialogue was a surprise for someone who people look down upon and is considered an idiot. To me he sees things that others can’t and is wiser than the other characters. If that’s the case then do the other characters represent people’s lack of wisdom and blindness of the situations or what is going around them?
Hi Yelinneth,
There are some pretty stupid people in the book – John Willett and the old men in the Maypole, for example,and sim Tappertit isn’t too clever either. So yes we’re supposed to think that Barnaby is wiser than they are. You’re also absolutely right to mention ‘blindness’, as it’s an important theme in the book. You’ll shortly meet Stagg who is blind and a important character, and there are lots of people blind in other ways too.
Good afternoon Mr. Bowen, I wanted to tremendously thank you for providing a bit more of insight within the first five chapters, it really helped me recap on what occurred within the vital introduction of the story. Within the video, you mention the reoccurring theme of mystery, which I greatly like because I too see this with the introduction of Barnaby, as well as the house by the Maypole known as the Warren. With mystery seeming to be an essence to the introduction, will there ever be some parts of the story that are left in complete mystery or to someones interpretation?
Hi Bryan,
That’s a really good question. Of course at the end of the book , lots if things are sorted out and resolved but I don’t think we ever finally sort out the mystery of a great work of literature. There’s always more to find out, or yo be puzzled by. Grip the Raven is still a mystery to me in lots of ways , even at the end of the book. Has he really got supernatural powers.?
Mr.Bowen, you mentioned how the novel was originally going to be named after the character Gabriel Varden (the locksmith) and that he will be an important character in the story. It was discussed in the class as well that Gabriel Varden could be a representation of an angel or a figure that is a protector. Since Varden has this protector role within the novel, will that be with Barnaby Rudge? Will Gabriel Varden be the character that helps readers to understand who Barnaby Rudge is and why,? Will Gabriel Varden protect Barnaby Rudge in future conflicts that occur and try to be a leader for him?
Hi Gisele,
That’s right. Gabriel is like the good father that Barnaby never had – we’ve already learned that Gabriel was in love with Branabys mother and he’s very caring towards her. But Barnaby and his mother run away so it’s then hard for Gabriel to help them. But later on in the riots, that’s exactly what he does.
Hello Mr. Bowen,
Thank you for this video. You mentioned that Dickens originally was going to title the novel after Gabriel Varden, the locksmith who represents the “good father” in the book. Instead, he titled it after Barnaby Rudge who lacks a fatherly figure and to a degree has a mental impairment. Being a historical novel, Barnaby Rudge endorses the notion that history repeats itself and demonstrates this through the characters and their human experience. The riots of back then present themselves down the timeline such as the LA Riots of 1992. Instead of using diplomacy to resolve conflict, people have rioted time and again. I wonder, did Dickens intend to critique humans’ fallibility through the riots?
Hi Wendy,
That takes us into some absolutely central questions of the novel. I think Dickens was an optimist: he saw that history could repeat itself but he also believed people could overcome injustices and tyrannies. His novels almost always have happy endings because he believes that there’s a fundamental common sense goodness and bravery in ordinary people like Gabriel and Joe and Mrs Rudge. He feels mixed about the riots – he’s a radical and hates cruelty and tyranny and exploitation – but he also fears the rioting mob. Originally he was going to have the riots led by three people escape from a lunatic asylum!
Hello Mr. Bowen, it was wonderful to get your take and explanation of the first five chapters. I was really intrigued and satisfied that the first few chapters seem to keep away from the history and politics of the time, but instead develop the story and connections of the characters and context especially Joe Willet and the relationship with his father and his father’s conies and how they oppress the younger characters to keep to themselves, as to indicate they’re bravado and dominance. You explained that Joe seems to want to “burst out” and hopefully we’ll get to see Joe defy his father. Has Dickens used this character theme before, where a child resists a parent’s commands or oppression? If so, were most parents around this historical event known for oppressing children? How big of a role does the oppressive context have in the story leading to the riots and other issues between relationships?
Hi Jericho,
There’s an amazing story called The convict’s Return in The Pickwick Papers which has. a very bad father but quite a lot of Dickens’s main characters are orphans, like Oliver Twist and Little Nell, so they don’t have fathers. So the emphasis on bad dads is very distinctive to Rudge. The main father/ son relation in Pickwick, for example, is very friendly. It’s not so much that lots of fathers in the 1780s were tyrannical, I think, but Dickens wants to explore the reasons that people and societies ‘burst out’ and rebel – riots don’t come out of nowhere or for no reason but are fostered by domestic and public tyranny.
Thank you Mr. Bowen for taking the time to create this video. The video itself allowed me to step back and deeply take into consideration what I was reading and what the value of the book is. In which I concluded it was in fact great. I completely agree that the book itself is very mysterious and that the character Barnaby Rudge, alongside Grip, is incredibly unique. Your enthusiasm in explaining the first five chapters of the book encouraged me to continue on during the reading marathon. I have to ask though, does Barnaby Rudge’ tragic backstory have anything to do with the way Barnaby is portrayed? Such as collectively being appointed as a dual with Grip. What significance does it add to the book? I hope to hear your opinion of the book once again in the future!
Hi Jessica,
Yes – we’re supposed to think that the mysterious things that happened when his mother was pregnant with him have shaped the way ranaby is now. But Dickens makes us wait and wait and wait before revealing what the mysteries of the backstory actually are. So in a way we have to understand the whole novel – or a lot of it anyway – to understand why Barnaby and his mother are as they are. It’s like he’s haunted in some strange way by something that happened before he was born.
Also, I would like to add that the video helped a lot with my understanding of the book. While I was rewatching it, I had another question as to the opening. The opening scene may discourage readers by it being so ordinary. Is there a reason that Chalrles Dickens set the opening to lack any excitement?
Hi Emily,
Victorian readers might have found it more exciting than we did but you’re right – it’s not nearly as dramatic or fast paced as the opening of Oliver Twist, for example. I think he’s trying to set up a long complicated novel with a big mystery at the beginning and an air of menace , threat and violence. So there’s a surface calm but with lots of things bubbling just underneath and the uncertainty about what happened at the Warren…,
Hello Mr. Bowen,
First and foremost I would like to start off by thanking you for taking the time out of your day to make us this video. I am really glad you touched on the idea of oppression of the youth throughout the novel. I do agree that it is something that makes us anticipate a “burst” somewhere in the novel. But, after reading the first twelve chapters, I’m afraid that we might get a “burst” from the wrong young person in the novel. I’m afraid that “burst” will come from Simon Tappertit who I think isn’t oppressed but feels that he is. As a class, we spoke about unnecessary rebellion and conspiracies against authority. I think Tappertit fits this description perfectly but can see why Joe’s anticipated “burst” would be justifiable. Do you think that Dickens is trying to portray the Gordon Riots through these “bursts”, if so which “burst” would be the most similar to the one that came with the riots?
Thank You!
Hi Amanda,
Yes, you’re right about silly old Sim. Dickens liked to look at a problem in the round, so if in one bit of the novel he’s got a character who is genuinely oppressed, he’ll also create one like Sim who isn’t oppressed but feels that he is. As readers, were constantly being asked to look at a question or problem from a different perspective. And the great thing about the riots is that then lots of different things burst out – Sim is involved, but so is Barnaby and so is Hugh who works at the Maypole,and lots of other characters who we’re yet to meet. Dickens likes to keep things complicated so that in some ways we sympathise with authority figures like Gabriel and in others with the oppressed like Joe or Edward Chester.
Good evening Mr.Bowen, I really like the way you explained more in great details about the first few chapter that I have been reading in the reading marathon. What I really find interesting is when you talk about how Barnaby is a very a mysterious guy during these few pages and especially when he talks about Grip, who is a raven in the book and is supposedly a master to him and I find it very weird for a guy like Barnaby to say that. My question is that is it true that Grip, his pet raven has a part or connection towards the evil and will it get worse throughout the other chapters?
Hi Zuleyca,
You’re right to think Grip’s relationship to Barnaby is really important,a nd you’re right – it’s weird. I really don’t know what to do with Grip. He’s one of my favourite characters but he’s a disturbing mixture of sinister qualities but also quiite comic ones – after all, he’s only a bird. I think as the Nigel goes on, the real evil of the book lies in human beings, and their bigotry and injustice. I don’t think Dickens really thinks that FpGrip is ta fault.
Mr. Bowen, thank you for summarizing the first five chapters of Barnaby Rudge. In the video, you mentioned Joe’s relationship with his father. I found it shocking that Joe was trying to break out of his father’s oppressing commands. Usually, at a time like this, no one would dare do that to someone of authoritative power like John. I was curious if Joe ends up paying the consequence for standing up to his father?
Hi Johanna,
That’s well observed and yes, I’m afraid he does pay a price. But I think Dickens wants us to be sympathetic to his leaving home. – after all his father after he leaves advertises for him as if he’s a little boy, not a grown man. And John Willet will pay a worse price for his tyranny.
Good Evening, Mr. Bowen, just wanted to take the time to thank you for creating this video for us, I highly appreciated it, especially because it helped me understand the novel even better. I loved the beginning of the novel because it sort of gave me a sense of mystery and suspense, since it does begin with two murders. Although a question that I held while reading the first few chapters was, Why do you think Dickens choose a raven and why not another animal? Does it have a significant meaning or was it just a random choice?
Hi Melina,
I think there are three or four reasons he chose a Raven. First, he had a pet Raven (3 in fact) himself and was fascinated by it. He talks about how intelligent and amusing it was in his preface to the novel. Secondly, Ravens can imitate human speech which makes them seem weird, uncanny or funny. And thirdly, Ravens are often trickster figures in myth and folklore and so they can act in disturbing or almost magical ways. And fourthly, he needs to have a friend for Barnaby who is also both inside and outside of human society. Good question!
Dear Mr Bowen,
I really appreciate the time you took to create this video for us to gain more insight on the novel. It was very helpful and it allowed me to understand the beginning of the novel at a more deeper level. I am very excited to continue reading the novel. I am also looking forward to see the novel not only follow Barnaby as well as the other stories, but also how Dickens will integrate them with a portrayal of the riots. A question I have is about the two fathers that oppress their child, was Dickens criticizing the fathers during the time that the novel take place and how they wanted their son’s to act or become?
Hi Ashley,
Yes, I think he’s criticising bad fathers but he also she’s what good fathers can be like in Gabriel Varden. So it’s not fatherhood or authority that is bad but tyrannical and oppressive use of paternal power. Gabriel who is very much a father is a hero. And then Dickens wants us to show the way that someone like sir John Chester is not just a bad father but politically dangerous too- so domestic and political tyranny are linked.
Hello Mr. Bowen. I enjoyed how you were able to show the excitement for the novel. I can feel the anticipation that the stranger will bring in the story. As you said that the pub is such a boring place but the stranger brings the chaos and the mystery into the story. This helps bring life into the story. Why does Dickens use the stranger to create chaos and mystery into the novel and how will the stranger affect the relationships among the characters? Thank you Mr. Bowen for your time.
HI Sergio,
A really good question but I don’t think I can tell you how the stranger will affect the relationships between the charcters wiithout telling you almost the whole story of the book, becuase by the end he has affected so many of them. I think Dickens brings him in because it’s a good way to begin a story – the stranger introduces a rent or tear into the fabric of normal everyday life that the characters then try to mend, He brings in violence and mystery together, and the story propels us to solve the mystery by reading on.
Hello, Mr. Bowen,
I agree and enjoyed hearing your explanation of the first few chapters. What I would like to focus on is how the introductions of the families and the relationships between the fathers and their sons develop and become significant to the rest of the plot. Therefore, my question is, does Barnaby not having his father present plus the leniency for his idiocy, make a difference in his freedom and choices as opposed to the other sons?
Hi Ashley,
That’s a very acute thought. Barnaby does have much more freedom than the other sons in the book, and is able to ramble freely with Grip, for example. No-one is telling him what to do. But that can be a danger as well as freedom. Later for example he gets involved in the riots in a way that someone more controlled by a father or society would not,a nd he gets into serious trouble. And then we are asked to think if he is responsible for his actions or does his mental state mean that he isn’t?
Good afternoon Mr.Bowen , I would really like to thank you so much for takimg the time to shoot this video for our Dicken’s marathon . I would like to say that not everyone takes the time to recognize what great accomplishments were are achieving and therfore we are honored to get to watch this video . This video explainimg the first 5 chapters really helped clear up some thoughts I had while reading the book . I would like to agree with you that Barnaby is in fact a very mysterious character but still has this poetic insight . While reading I did in fact notice that he is chracter in which you don’t know what will come next . One question I have is that Dickens’ intentions are of having this mysterious figure throughout the whole book ?
Hi Thania,
I think it’s because Dickens is always very interested in the people who get forgotten or ignored or pushed to the margins. Like Oliver Twist, Barnaby is someone whom people might treat badly or see as unimportant or just stupid, or someone to be exploited or laughed at. But Dickens wants to see value in people like Barnaby and to show what a mix of complicated, interesting, different qualities he has: as you say, he’s poetic and insightful but also foolish and sometimes even dangerous.
Hello Mr.Bowen, thank you very much for making this wonderful video that helped me clarify ideas I had. I had extremely similar thoughts to the things you were saying and I absolutely do believe the setting was bland and held in. I love the fact that you say what you think and give background information. My question to you if you don’t mind would be as you said most novels are about people but, this one has Grip the Raven, why do you think instead of going the route of a person playing that role they chose a Raven named Grip?
Hi Christopher,
I think Dickens needs to give Barnaby a buddy, someone who can freely travel around with him and that he can care for and talk to. So that’s why he gives him a pet. Dickens had one as a pet himself that he was very fond of and I think he was fascinated by how intelligent it seemed and what a good mimic of human speech it was, so he gives those characteristics to Grip. There’s something weird or uncanny about a bird that can talk and Dickens makes Grip seem to have magical powers which adds to the gothic quality of the book. Grip seems to me a great name too – because ravens grip things in their beak and because it sounds a bit sinister too. In a way the whole book is about how people get caught in different kinds of grips.
Good Evening, Mr. Bowen, thank you for taking the time to talk to us and to give us insight on the beginning of the novel. Your insight on the first five chapters of Barnaby Rudge has really helped me see the important aspects of the novel. I strongly agree with what you had to say about Barnaby himself being a mysterious character who can be seen as a little slow, but that he is very significant for the novel. I found it interesting that before the novel was named Barnaby Rudge, the book was actually going to be called Gabriel Varden (the locksmith). This leads me to the question of, What made Barnaby’s character so significant that made Charles Dickens changed the title of his novel? What are your insights as to why Barnaby is the title, and why he is such an important character?
Hi Yvonne,
It’s a really important question. It’s partly I think because Dickens is always interested in the people who get forgotten or ignored or pushed to the margins. Like Oliver Twist, Barnaby is someone whom people might treat badly or see as unimportant or just stupid, or someone to be exploited or laughed at. But Dickens wants to see value in him and to show what a mix of complicated, interesting, different qualities he has. I think he makes Barnaby the central character because he is someone who is very vulnerable – he gets swept along by other people and pulled into things that he doesn’t understand. So that enables Dickens to take him right into the heart of the events of the book and the riots,and to explore how society cares for (or fails to care for) someone like Barnaby who is a child, poor, weak and foolish. .
Hello Mr, Bowen,
I enjoyed the way you described the novel to your own liking, the aspects you took into it, and how you felt about said aspects. I thank you so humbly for the work and effort you put in as well as the time with this chapter analysis alone. I was wondering, when you mentioned that the book would originally be named after Gabriel, the locksmith, what where the reasons for a change in title change? In other words, why instead of focusing on a “fatherly” figure owner of a store, and an important aspect of the novel, why focus on a challenged man who, on some levels, has mental deficiencies?
Hi Jason,
Like Yvonne, you’ve hit on a really central question or problem. So it’s partly because Dickens is always interested in the people who get forgotten or ignored or pushed to the margins. Like Oliver Twist, Barnaby is someone whom people might treat badly or see as unimportant or just stupid, or someone to be exploited or laughed at. But Dickens wants to see value in him and to show what a mix of complicated, interesting, different qualities he has. I think he makes Barnaby the central character because he is someone who is very vulnerable – he gets swept along by other people and pulled into things that he doesn’t understand. So that enables Dickens to take him right into the heart of the events of the book and the riots,and to explore how society cares for (or fails to care for) someone like Barnaby who is a child, poor, weak and foolish.
Gabriel might be a bit too good and sensible and wise to work as the protagonist of the book – Barnaby, by contrast, can get into all sorts of trouble and danger. He arouses our feelings of compassion more than Gabriel does.
Hello Mr. Bowen, I would like to thank you so very much for making this video and I would like to say that I do agree that Barnaby Rudge is a very interesting novel that has really captivated my attention. Mystery has always intrigued me and these first 5 chapters have plenty of mystery and questions that can catch a readers attention. What I truly do wonder is why Charles Dickes used a raven as such a prominent character in the novel. Could this be an omen of something to come. Despite this I did truly enjoy the moments he was shown as Grip is a very entertaining and funny character. Thank you so much for your help in editing this novel. I feel it will make our journey much easier.
Hi Joshua,
You’re right – it is an odd thing for Dickens to give such prominence to a raven. And you’re also right that it’s an omen of things to come. But I think Dickens is right to do it – animals are so important, both in themselves and for people – look how important a pet can be, for example, and how much people care for or spend tiem with their cats and dogs, Grip has other quaities too -he’s Barnaby’s buddy, someone who can freely travel around with him and that he can care for and talk to. There’s something weird or uncanny about a bird that can talk and Dickens makes Grip seem to have magical powers which adds to the gothic quality of the book.
Thanks Mr. Bowen for the reflection. Something that you briefly mentioned was the conflict between Joe Willet and his father. Since Charles Dickens started drafting this as he was coming of age (around his early 20’s), I find it interesting that he establishes conflict with the first preexisting relationship between a father and son as well as making the main characters (Barnaby and Hugh) fatherless. Even more fascinating is this motif of an “absent father figure” most likely came from Dicken’s father himself being imprisoned due to financial issues and in return was kept away from his son; so these characters serve as literary manifestations of the Dicken’s inner thoughts. The relationships in the novel is a mirror reflection of a maturing Charles Dickens. No wonder the novel is so mysterious and gloomy, the story has been created by teenage angst with a mix of daddy issues. The novel has a lot more serious concepts and mature content. I am actually curious. If you were to pick out a character in the novel and say, “I see a lot of myself inside [this character]”, who would you choose and why?
Hi Romell,
That’s a really insightful discussion of father figures in the book and you’re right that Dickens first thought of the book when he was a young man of 24. But most of the writing was done when he was 28 or 29, so ‘teenage angst’ might be a bit strong. But he seems certainly to be working through some of his own feelings about his father. He was a father himself, of course, by this point, with four children already (and lots more to come) so he was probably thinking of fatherhood from that angle too.
Who do I think I’m like in the book? Grip, I think. I like the idea of hopping around the place, saying mysterious things, and giving everybody the spooks.
Mr, Bowen, all I can say is that it astounds me how you have thoroughly impacted my literary knowledge and aspirations with just a 6 minute video. Your masterful explanations allowed me to rethink my entire perception of the story! Even though I had just read it a few minutes prior. Your profound understanding of the events of the story thus far and even the life of Charles Dickens himself have allowed me to make connections within the story that I would not have thought to make before. For example, your detailed explanations of Varden’s and Rudge’s character have planted the seed in my mind that the 2 complex characters might share some unspoken bond. Is there a possibility (especially considering that the novel might have been named after Varden at one point) that Varden and Rudge employ some motif of a protector and pupil? Thank you once again for all that you have done to help make our #BarnabyLab the best it could be! And I hope to one day have the opportunity to meet you, ideally after I read the novel myself, so that we may engage in intellectual banter regarding the characters, plot, and most of all Barnaby!
Hi Anthony
Thank you for such a warm and generous resonse. You’re absolutely right to ask about ‘unspoken bonds’. There are so many of them in the book, as you’ll see as you continue with the novel. The whole book is fascinated by the unspeakable (things that must but can’t be said) and how those secrets tie people together. You’ve probably already seen this with Barnaby’s mother and the stranger, and there are lots more of unspoken bonds, such as the rivalry beween Sir John Chester and Haredale. The fatherless children – Hugh and Barnaby- might turn out to have unspoken bonds of kinship too. Even the romances seem to rest on unspoken bonds – between Dolly and Joe, for example. Well spotted!
Good Evening Mr. Bowen. I hope that you’re doing well. I want to start off by thanking you for thinking of us and taking the time out of your day to make such an informative video. I found this book to be full of unexpected twists and surprises. I strongly agree with and fully support your claim of the novel being a bit “Gothic”. Prior to you mentioning that, I had a bit of a feeling that Gothic vibes were in the book, though in some cases a bit subtle. Your sheer professionalism and ability to explain the topics of the book without spoiling it truly motivated me and allowed me to appreciate literature a bit more. After hearing your thoughts and feeling grateful for your well wishing I have decided to appreciate literature more and take it more seriously. I thank you for giving me a new passion and interest and I hope you accept this message of praise. I found it interesting that the book was supposed to be titled about Gabriel Varden. After hearing this it made me think of just how many shifts in motif Dickens had to go through to get the story how it is now. I once again thank you for opening my eyes to literature and for allowing me to become a more cultured person. However I still have a question about the book. I wonder what importance the raven or “Grip” has in the text, is he merely a reoccurring character, or is he vital in the story? Once again I thank you and I hope that you read this message with pleasure and joy.
Hi Edward,
I’m so glad you enjoyed the video. It was fun to make. What importance does Grip have ? It’s a good question. I think he’s important for the atmosphere and as Barnaby’s sidekick rather than in his own right. In a way he doesn’t really fit into the plot of the book – he doesn’t really have a role in a way that a human character might. But he tells us a lot about the characters of the book through the different ways that they react to him. and he makes any scene that he’s in a bit weird, a bit Gothic and a bit comical. There’s also a fantastic scene coming up with the country magistrate where Grip and Barnaby get into real danger, so he canaffect the plot too
Hello, Mr. Bowen
I love the immense detail used for the sudden ‘outbursts’ of Barnaby. We discussed in class how his sudden ‘outbursts’ are representations of Barnaby’s flourishing imagination. As well, I loved that you mentioned that the illustrations throughout the book are thought-provoking because I absolutely agree. Mr. Bowen, you mentioned how the illustrations are beautiful interpretations of the aspects of the characters and plot. However, how were Barnaby’s mental disabilities (in which are alluded throughout the first few chapters) and immense imagination showed throughout these illustrations? And what specific aspect(s) do you believe it captures upon Barnaby’s character?
Hi Joel,
That’s a great question and points us to one of the very best illustrations in the book, the one at the end of chapter 7 (on page 69 of the Penguin) of Barnaby’s ‘phantom-haunted’ dreams. It’s really weird and not like the other pictures in the book at all. It’s rather like the very strange paintings of the Dutch artist Hieronymous Bosch and seems to reflect the passage in chapter six where Barnaby says :
There have been great faces coming and going—close to my face, and then a mile away—low places to creep through, whether I would or no—high churches to fall down from—strange creatures crowded up together neck and heels, to sit upon the bed—that’s sleep, eh?’
‘Dreams, Barnaby, dreams,’ said the locksmith.
‘Dreams!’ he echoed softly, drawing closer to him. ‘Those are not dreams.’
‘What are,’ replied the locksmith, ‘if they are not?’
‘I dreamed,’ said Barnaby, passing his arm through Varden’s, and peering close into his face as he answered in a whisper, ‘I dreamed just now that something—it was in the shape of a man—followed me—came softly after me—wouldn’t let me be—but was always hiding and crouching, like a cat in dark corners, waiting till I should pass; when it crept out and came softly after me’
So Barnaby does seem to have a nightmarish imagination but also somehow to have understood about the way the mysterious stranger is pursuing him and his mother. So his dream is imaginative, nightmarish and insightful – and also weird.
Hello Mr. Bowen,
Thank you very much for your further expanding of the first five chapters. I noticed that you mentioned the Warren became a very dark place because of the murder and I completely agree with you. Do you think Dickens has a reason to making this a dark place? Will he use it as a way to approach a different story line?
Dear Elizabeth,
Yes, you’re absolutely right. The Warren is the place where the events of the story begin, in the murder of Reuben Haredale, and it will come back again later in the novel. One of its most important, climactic scenes will be there. It’s dark because of the murder but also because of the sad history of the Haredale family which has been persecuted because they are Catholics.Later on, it will be threatened by the rioters – so lots of plotlines and ideas of the book centre on the Warren and usually ones to do with varuous kinds of darkness, sadness, violence, persecution and death
Hello Mr. Bowen
Thank you for taking your time to create this video to help us understand more about the novel that we are learning about. Throughout the novel I understood more about chapters 1-5 and had a better understanding when you went over it. I also had a vivid image about the book when talking more deeply. However is the relationship among the characters important to one another? Does one another bring a closer connection To the reasoning behind?
Hi Gabriela,
Yes that’s absolutely right – the whole novel builds up more and more relationships between the characters. At the begining of course a lot of these are very mysterious. But as the book goes on, we find for example how the stranger is connected to Barnaby, to his mother, to the Haredales, Gabriel Varden etc etc. Dickens likes big revelations and entanglments like that – at one point we find out that three important characters had all been at school together, for example, and how this affected their lives. Hugh the servant at the Maypole finds who his father is, and it’s a great surprise. So we’re constantly revising our opinion of people and their relationships with one another as the book goes on and that helps us understand the patterns that Dickens wants to show.
The history on which the book is influenced by is really helpful in terms of understanding what has happened, what will happen, and what generally the main problems were, so thank you so much for providing us with that Mr. Bowen. You mentioned how the book was filled with examples of bad fathers like John Chester and Geofrrey Hardale, although he’s her uncle, he is a fatherly figure to her. This just made me think about how through these characters, we get to see the way Dickens feels about people with similar qualities as the characters from the book. A contribution to this is the introduction he provides for many of the characters of the book, for it sets up a different perspective of the character for the reader. This leads to my question: why doesn’t every character get a long introduction? Are short introduction, or no introductions, supposed to give a clue to their importance or traits?
Dear Virginia,
Excellent question. But I think Geoffrey Haredale turns out to be a good man and a good uncle to Emma even though he seems harsh to her after Sir John Chester has deceived him. The bad dads are Sir John, John Willet and one more that I can’t yet reveal.
Why doesn’t every character get a long introduction? I think it’s because novelists often want to show us things rather than telling us them. Often writers are advised to ‘show; don’t tell’, So if a character has a long description telling you all about them, it can stop the reader wanting to find out more and reading on. It’s what characters do, how they behave, meet challenges etc that really teaches us what they are like. Dickens is a very dramatic novelist and so he likes to show character in action more often than through description.
Hello Mr. Bowen. I first of wanted to thank you for this video you made for us. It really helped clear up the first few chapters and made it easily understandable for us, I found it interesting how you were able to connect places in the book to real meaningful places for Charles Dickens himself such as the Warren. It shows how Dickens told his story through the stories of the fictional characters he wrote about. The one thing that is odd to me is grip being a central character in the book despite just being an animal . So my question is why is Grip such a important character or what is his purpose?
Hi Nomar,
A very good question – in one way, of course, Grip isn’t so important. If he wasn’t there, the novel wouldn’t be very different. But I’m very fond of him and I think he helps us understand and sympathise with Barnaby. And there’s something weird or uncanny about a non-human bird that can talk like a human and w learn a lot about the characters of the book through the different ways that they react to him. He makes any scene that he’s in simultaneoulsy a bit weird, a bit Gothic and a bit comical.
Hello, Mr. Bowen.
Thank you so much for your contribution to our production!
After reading the first few chapters, it is clear that Barnaby has an intellectual disability that makes others see him as an “idiot.” However, I feel that there is this great contrast in complexity between Barnaby and the rest of the characters. As you mentioned, Barnaby has this type of “poetic insight” that distinguishes his perspective from everyone else’s. What do you think was Dickens’ reason was for including a character like Barnaby with a mental impairment into the novel, rather than having someone without a disability?
Hi Jonathan,
you’re right – it’s avery unusual choice. I think it’s because Dickens is intererested in everybody and all sorts of different people, particularky those who get forgotten or ignored or pushed to the margins. Like Oliver Twist, Barnaby is someone whom people might treat badly or see as unimportant or just stupid, or someone to be exploited or laughed at. But Dickens wants to see value in him and to show what a mix of complicated, interesting, different qualities he has. I think he also makes Barnaby the central character because he is someone who is very vulnerable – he gets swept along by other people and pulled into things that he doesn’t understand. So that enables Dickens to take him right into the heart of the events of the book and the riots,and to explore how society cares for (or fails to care for) someone like him who is a child, poor, weak and foolish. And we’re encouragd to think that the mysterious things that happened when his mother was pregnant with him have shaped the way Barnaby is now. But Dickens makes us wait and wait and wait before revealing what the mysteries of the backstory actually are. So in a way we have to understand the whole novel – or a lot of it anyway – to understand why Barnaby is how he is.
Hey Mr. Bowen. I liked your perspective on Grip the raven. After reading the first couple dozen chapters I found myself inspecting the animal’s devilish caracteristics. Do you think Grip could have learned those phrases from, perhaps a confused Barnaby who has led himself to recite such devilish things, implying he may partake in satanic activities? Or that Grip might have had a previous owner/partner before Barnaby that might have done so? Or may even be a satan image since he constantly likes to intrude on scenes and cause havok? Thank you.
Hi Enrique,
What a very good question! I’d never thought before where Grip learned his phrases or whether he had a previous owner before Barnaby. I don’t think we ever learn for sure about his past but at one point it is said that he is more than 100 years old so he could have had long and interesting life before Barnaby came on the scene. But I think you’re right to think of it also as a ‘satan image’: he certainly has something diabolical about him. But he also barks like a dog of course and ‘flapped his wings against his sides as if he were bursting with laughter.’ so he’s real mix of contradictory qualities.
I love your insight on the what the father figures mean and as well as how mentally strong Barnaby is. I love the insight you provided with the background, like the context of the time period where the book was taking place and as well as how the book keeps traveling back in time without stopping and that is so interesting. A question that intrigues me is what do the father figures mean and why are they oppressive?
Hi Iris,
Excellent question. They’re not all oppressive, of course: Gabriel Varden is a good man and a good father. I think Dickens is criticising bad fathers not because fatherhood or authority is bad in itself but because tyrannical and oppressive use of paternal power is disastrous both for families and society in general. Dickens wants us to show the way that someone like sir John Chester is not just a bad father but politically dangerous too; domestic and political tyranny are linked.
Thank you for an informative summary on these first few chapters! I definitely agree that this book donsistes of historical and Gothic elements due to the many cliffhangers and mysteries Dickens leaves us with after every few chapters. That being said, I’d like to know: Do you think the topic Dickens writes about, in this case the Gordon RIots, affects what type of genre the book is or if the book is more relfective of what Dickens was experiencing during his time period? I ask this mainly because I believe there is some correlation between the riots’ violence and the violence portrayed in Reuben Haredale’s murder. On the other hand, I also know how writers use their words to express themselves so, as you mentioned, can the oppressive nature of the raltionship between Joe and John Willet represent something oppressive in Dicken’s life? Thank you again!
Hi Jung-Mi,
That’s a really interesting, complicated question. When Dickens was 17 in 1829, there was a reform of the anti-Catholic laws and a lot of anti-Catholic feeling in the country, so Dickens was responding to something that was also happening in his own time as well as in the past. And historical novels were very popular indeed when Dickens was writing, as were gothic stories. You’re absolutely right to see a connection between the riots and the murder of Reuben – you’ll see this more and more as the novel progresses. I don’t think Dickens’s father was like John Willett, although he was called John too. He was very annoying, always getting into debt and borrowing money, but I think Dickens himself at this point had the upper hand – and the money.
Hello, Mr. Bowen.
I would like to first and foremost thank you for not only contributing to our production but also helping us better understand Dickens first couple of chapters in Barnaby Rudge. I appreciate you explaining the importance of the talking raven, Grip. I do notice how Grip brings a type of evilness to him which closely ties to the “gothic” aspect of the novel. However, I am curious as to why out of all animals, Dickens choose a raven to represent or help represent the gothic and mysterious parts of the novel. Furthermore, I also wanted to know how Grip will play a big role in the later parts of the novel.
HI Alan,
You’re right – it is an odd thing for Dickens to give such prominence to a raven. They were more common as pets in the nineteenth century: Dickens had one as a pet himself that he was very fond of and I think he was fascinated by how intelligent it seemed and what a good mimic of human speech it was, so he gives those characteristics to Grip. There’s something weird or uncanny about a bird that can talk and Dickens makes Grip seem to have magical powers which adds to the gothic quality of the book. Grip has other quaities too -he’s Barnaby’s buddy, someone who can freely travel around with him and that he can care for and talk to.
Good Afternoon, Mr. Bowen, I would like to begin by thanking you for taking the time out of your busy day to put together a very effective video for my classmates and I. Sometimes as we are introduced to new literature, the reader might become a little overwhelmed and not catch some details. Thanks to your video, I was able to understand it and look at it from a different but better perspective. One thing that you talked about that caught my attention was when you said: “revolutions and wars played an important role.” This caught my attention because with a revolution comes change and I am very intrigued by how the revolution will affect the rest of the novel. Do you believe this will this cause any major changes? Thank you once again for everything, Mr. Bowen.
HI Lisandro,
Yes – it will change everything! Nearly everybody in the novel gets caught up in one way or another in great political events – the riots above all, but Joe goes abroad to fight in the ‘the American wars’. So Dickens wants to show how political events reveal people’s characters and how they meet the challenges and problems that it throws up. By the end of the book, some pople have been executed, some imprisoned, some have killed people, some have been killed; three of the main women characters have been kidnapped; property has been looted, buildings attacked etc; Sim loses his legs . Almost nothing is the same.
Hello Mr.Bowen.
For starters, I’d like to thank you for taking your time and being part of this journey with us. I’d like to bring up how you mentioned the fact that in the opening scene there is a sense of oppression with the father not allowing his son to speak his mind. I agree with you that this is a sign of something much bigger. There will come a moment in which John Willet will be unable to hold back any longer and he’ll just let loose everything that he has been holding. I’d also like to ask how is Grip related to evil? In the book, the cries of Grip are shown to say that he is the devil and I’m wondering what more is there to it. Again, thank you for your help Mr.Bowen we very much appreciate it.
Hi Lucia,
You’re right to think that Joe will break out although he is reluctant to. Have you noticed the boiler in the Maypole Inn – it’s like a metaphor or image of the novel and lots of its relationships- something in which pressure builds up and up until it finally bursts. A lot of the novel is like that. Grip does seem to have an aura of evil about him – there’s something weird or uncanny about a bird that can talk. But he’s a mix of different things – his scenes and comments are simultaneously a bit weird, a bit Gothic and a bit comical.
Hi Mr. Bowen,
Thank you so much for your video! It gave me a better sense of the themes that will appear in the rest of the novel. I wanted to address what you said about the plot leading to “something bursting out”. I agree that the first five chapters have a mysterious tone that feels like something momentous is building up and ready to be unleashed. For example, Solomon Daisy’s story really brings that feeling out. Do you think the build up to the riots in the novel can be paralleled with what happened in history? Was that Dicken’s goal?
Dear Alejandra,
Yes I do. People in Dickens’s time were haunted by the French Revolution which had happened about 5o years before the novel was written and they worried that something similar might happen again. So Dickens was very interested in the ways that societies build up to suddden historical changes like wars, revolutions, riots etc and the way that people won’t tolerate oppression and exploitation for ever. So the whole novel is a long slow build up to a sudden enormous and chaotic bursting out.
Hello Mr. Bowen, I appreciate you speaking on behalf of the first 5 chapters of Barnaby Rudge because it has since helped me improve on the overall understanding of those chapters. I realize now that Barnaby is the center of this novel, but why make his name the entire main title “Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of Eighty”? Why not make the title simply “Barnaby Rudge”? Or “A Tale of the Riots of Eighty”?
Dear Cecilia,
It’s partly that Victorians often liked long titles. So Martin Chuzzlewit for example is actully called; ‘The life and adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit : his relatives, friends, and enemies. Comprising all his wills and ways: with an historical record of what he did and what he didn’t ; showing moreover who inherited the family plate, who came in for the silver spoons, and also for the wooden ladles: The whole forming a complete key to the house of Chuzzlewit’ Dickens’s titles do get shorter as he gets older, though – ‘Great Expectations’ is nice and short. I think with this novel he’s intertesd in two things – the big historical events (the riots) and particular individuals centring on Barnaby, so his title tries to reflect that,
Hello Mr. Bowen, I just firstly wanted to say thank you so much for taking the time and talking to us about the first five chapters of Barnaby Rudge. I found it so much more interesting seeing things from another point of view rather than just taking the chapter for what it is. I had noticed that it was true that the other characters surrounding Barnaby took him to be unwise and someone to not be too concerned about. It is even sometimes frustrating because of how Barnaby does really understand a situation in a way that nobody at the time was accepting of. Why do you believe that Dickens wrote and built up his characters to have this bit of ignorance within them ? Thank you again for this video !
Hi Juliana,
I think it’s so they can learn. Dickens wanted his novels to change people’s minds and one way he did that was to change his characters’ minds. So by taking someone like Barnaby he can show that we need to be more caring and aware of people like him, and recognise the insights that he has. Novels are all about change so he thought it was important that we see characters undergoing transformation, and learning from their experience.
Hey Mr. Bowen, thank you so much for clarifying the first 5 chapters for classmates and I. I really liked how clear and paced your video was. I was wondering what you were thinking as to why Charles Dickens used a raven as Barnaby’s pet? Out of all animals, why a raven? Anyways thanks again for helping me understand the first 5 chapters which were the hardest for me.
HI Alvaro,
You’re right – it is an odd thing for Dickens to give such prominence to a raven. They were more common as pets in the nineteenth century: Dickens had one as a pet himself that he was very fond of and I think he was fascinated by how intelligent it seemed and what a good mimic of human speech it was, so he gives those characteristics to Grip. There’s something weird or uncanny about a bird that can talk and Dickens makes Grip seem to have magical powers which adds to the gothic quality of the book. Grip has other quaities too -he’s Barnaby’s buddy, someone who can freely travel around with him and that he can care for and talk to.