Bardell v. Pickwick

Fitzgerald, Percy, 1834-1925Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 189K words
Chapters: 19

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Bardell v. Pickwick by Charles Dickens and Percy FitzgeraldAuthor: Fitzgerald, Percy, 1834-1925,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Jul 6, 2008

Editor's review

This book centers on the famous case of Bardell v. Pickwick from Dickens's The Pickwick Papers, written by Percy Fitzgerald and presented in English as a free eBook from Project Gutenberg. It takes the lawsuit from the novel and discusses it on its own, letting readers see how Dickens uses an absurd legal action to satirize the red tape of legal procedure and the predicament of the parties involved. For readers familiar with the original, it is a focused rereading: both a review of the plot and an appreciation of the measure of the satire and the interest of the legal context. For those studying Dickens or English legal literature, it offers a small but concrete point of entry that can be read alongside the relevant chapters of the original. It is not long and works well as course supplementary material or a starting point for book-club discussion, but it should not be taken as a general survey of Dickens studies.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who have read The Pickwick Papers and want to discuss its litigation plot in depth
Readers interested in legal themes and the satirical tradition in English literature
Teachers and students preparing materials for book clubs or course discussions
English-language readers who want a short, topic-specific entry into Dickens's work

Not a good fit for

Readers who have not yet read The Pickwick Papers and lack plot background
Beginners expecting a systematic introduction to Dickens's life and complete works
Casual readers who want only light stories and no discussion of law and satire

Reading tips

Finish the chapters of The Pickwick Papers dealing with the Bardell lawsuit first, then read this book; the comparison will be clearer.
Jot down correspondences between the novel's plot and this book's discussion as you read, forming your own comparison notes.
Divide the work with book-club members: one outlines the case, another organizes the satirical techniques, then discuss together.
If English reading is difficult, read a Chinese translation of the relevant chapters of the original first, then return to this book's English discussion.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Can I read this book directly without having read The Pickwick Papers?

You can, but your understanding will suffer. This book discusses a lawsuit from the original and assumes readers know the basic plot and character relationships. It is better to read the relevant chapters of the original first, or at least understand the ins and outs of the Bardell lawsuit, before reading this book.

Was this book written by Dickens himself?

No. This book was written by Percy Fitzgerald and discusses the case of Bardell v. Pickwick from Dickens's The Pickwick Papers. The material shows its content is related to Dickens's work, but the author is credited as Fitzgerald; readers should distinguish the original from the critical text.

Is it suitable as a reference for English legal history?

It discusses a lawsuit in a novel and its literary satire; it is not a systematic work of legal history. For legal-history research it can serve only as literary material or an amusing piece of corroborating evidence; specific legal institutions and procedures still require professional legal-history literature.

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About the author

Fitzgerald, Percy, 1834-1925 Author

Percy Fitzgerald (1834–1925) was an English author whose biographical details are sparsely documented in public sources, and whose name is chiefly associated with Dickens studies. Six of his works are held here, most of them centred on The Pickwick Papers—Bardell v. Pickwick, Pickwickian Manners and Customs and Pickwickian Studies—which examine the novel's legal case, its customs and manners, and textual details, showing a careful interest in Dickens's characters and the life of their time. Another work, John Forster, concerns Dickens's biographer and friend. A Day's Tour and Picturesque London turn to travel writing and the city scene, in a realistic, anecdotal vein. His writing is notable for documentary research and the reconstruction of background, and will appeal to readers interested in Victorian literature and the history of London life.