The Readers Review: Literature from 1714 to 1910 discussion

CHAPTER XXIII
CHAPTER XXIV
CHAPTER XXV
CHAPTER XXVI
CHAPTER XXVII
CHAPTER XXVIII
CHAPTER XXIX
CHAPTER XXX
CHAPTER XXXI
CHAPTER XXXII
CHAPTER XXXIII

Am I the only one having a hard time keeping up with the schedule?

Deborah wrote: "Am I the only one having a hard time keeping up with the schedule?"

Deborah, I have read ahead a little in order to keep the schedule, but I am having a hard time finding the time to gather all my thoughts and post them.

I have now also started with Bleak House which does not make this easier. :-(

I have started Bleak House too. I find that I'm spending hours almost daily and still can't keep up.

Deborah wrote: "I have started Bleak House too. I find that I'm spending hours almost daily and still can't keep up."

... and I am working at least 50-60 h a week in the office :-( So it feels a little stressful, I must admit.

Just a first comment on this book that came into my mind while reading most of it. The rest I will post later.

This book reminded me a lot of Martin Chuzzlewit. The rich, sickly man with his keeper (in form of Mary Garth) and a lot of relatives trying to get a hold of him in order to inherit a huge portion of his riches (the vultures waiting for their prey). Then there is the young favorite (in this case Fred) who somehow got into disgrace and has to prove himself again, which does not quite work out.

Deborah wrote: "I have started Bleak House too. I find that I'm spending hours almost daily and still can't keep up."

Deborah, I am wondering whether others have the same issue as the participation in the discussion has not been very strong so far.

Heidi I was thinking the same thing re discussion. Not even sure who our discussion leader is as I thought I was just a participant in this one.

Deborah, I'm having the same problem as I'm trying to read Bleak House too. I'm keeping up with Middlemarch but finding it a bit confusing having the two books run parallel in my head.

Having said that, I enjoyed the introduction to the Garth family, and the relationships between the members of that family, who are so quick to support each other. However (notably in Mrs Garth's case) that doesn't prevent her from being fully aware of her husband's faults. I think this is a portrait of a fully working marriage between equal partners, to set against the other marriages in the book.

I agree. The Garths do present what seems to be a healthy marriage. This makes for a sense of hopefulness as I read about the younger characters trying to make their way and sort out with whom they will pair up. So far I've got Rosamund and Tertius, Mary and Fred, Cecelia and James Chettam, Dorothea and Casaubon and Will Ladislaw. Some seem better matches than others.

I'm with you guys in feeling like my reading schedule has become a second job. I often read several books at the same time, but I usually juggle them by choosing from different genres or time periods. I'm feeling overwhelmed by all the bonnets!

Sorry that I have not posted much. I have not been able to read beyond book 4 yet and have not been able to post anything lately. My parents are visiting at the moment and we are doing many things so I am not spending much time reading or being online at the moment.

Deborah and Renee, I feel so bad for not having continued our discussions. :-( I have not been able to read any line during the last 3 weeks (I was on a longer trip with my parents). Looking at the amount of posts the participation has not been very intense.
Unfortunately, I am also behind with Bleak House and am considering trying to catch up on that one first.
However, I will try to post my comments on book 3 and book 4 which I have already read this week and will then continue and post about the other half of the novel later even though this will be after our official reading period. Maybe we can still discuss the novel a little then.

Heidi-
Don't stress about it. I have "posted late" plenty of times when I couldn't keep up with the group. I'm reading Bleak House, as well, and have been juggling by reading ahead in one, then leaving it while I try to catch up with the other. Always a bit out of step, but both books are so good that it's worth it.

Always glad to hear from you anytime. :)

Well, posting comments after 5 weeks(without having made any notes) is more challenging than I had thought, esp. due to reading
Bleak House afterwards and focusing more on that one. However, here are some of my thoughts regarding these chapters:

Fred Vincy is a real protagoninst in this story. The on the hand glorified son, on the other hand the black sheep who is getting from one thing into another, maybe not willingly and being mean, but hurting other people. It was a very nice and rather too kind of Mr Garth to help him out monetarily when his parents would not. However, Fred really has to grow up and see the consequences of his doings. He should get responsible and try to earn a living in a decent way and give up his expensive habits.
Interesting is that when being in trouble he gets very sick. I cannot remember whether it was described where he had got it from. Even though the hygienical and medical conditions in those days were very different and the causes for diseases not always known, it often seems that illness comes conveniently at points of mental distress in Victorian novels and it's always hard to tell what the actual reason for it is. It felt to me like that especially in the case of Fred. What did you think?
This at least leads to a growing connection between Rosamund and Mr. Lydgate.

We have been discussing the reasons for the marriage between Dorothea and Mr. Casaubon. In these chapters we learn quite well that he married mainly out of social convention and for reasons of reproduction. What do you think is he disappointed about his situation? Dorothea can definitely be considered that way and seems to find her excitement only in connection with Ladislaw.
Here also a medical situation occurs. Is there a certain meaning behind that?

What did you think about Mary being put into the situation to destroy one of the 2 wills? Was it right of her to react the way she did? Or should she have considered the wishes of the dying man more? I was actually wondering myself how I would have reacted. It must have been a very stressing situation without any legal advisor. But these were the wishes of a dying man. Could he be considered as sane in this situation?

Sorry that it is not that much. I have not read your comments on the later threads yet as I do not want to have any spoilers; so please excuse any questions/ thoughts/ speculations that you might have already discussed later on.