Dickensians! discussion

illustrator Charles Green 1912

The Chimes by Charles Dickens is the second of our seasonal reads to take us over the end of the year. It was Charles Dickens's second book, after his perennially popular A Christmas Carol, which we read at this time last year.

We will read this during the month between the dates of 18th December 2021 and 17th January 2022.

**** PLEASE ALLOW PETRA, who is hosting this read, to comment first, Thanks!

**Update: Post 3 has links to the start of each Quarter discussion to allow easy access to specific discussion sections.

I am looking forward to this read. Charles Dickens writes such a good Holiday story.

The Chimes is written in four quarters. We will read and discuss one quarter each week. I think that should work nicely over the Holidays.

We'll start on the 18th, with the First Quarter.

Thanks, Jean, for starting this thread.

Below are some pre-amble/background to this story. Charles Dickens seems to have been quite excited about the writing of this story.
We can discuss (or not. LOL) on the 18th.

While I find John Forster to be a rather dry (although interesting) writer, he made this section of his The Life of Charles Dickens : Volume II very lively and energetic. I really enjoyed reading his recollections of the writing of The Chimes.

See you all on the 18th.

First edition of The Chimes:



First Quarter discussion starts here (Post 40)

Second Quarter discussion starts here (Post 226)

Third Quarter discussion starts here (Post 315)

Fourth Quarter discussion starts here (Post 415)

Dickens in Genoa:
Excerpts from A Tale of One City - Charles Dickens in Genoa:
(Goodreads won't allow me to link to the article)

Charles Dickens spent the best part of a year in Italy from 1844-5. The financial advantages of living abroad, his need to recuperate physically and mentally from the relentless production of novels and his interest in Italian affairs led Dickens to plan a trip to Italy for himself. On 2 July, 1844 he set off with his wife Kate, her sister Georgina and his five children.

It took a while for Dickens to appreciate the city’s charms and the vibrancy of its people, a fact somewhat hindered by his first residence, the Villa Bagnarello, in the suburb of Albaro, a house he referred to as the ‘pink jail’.

Despite his adaption to Italian ways, after ten weeks Dickens was still concerned about the suitability of the Albaro villa as a place to stay during the winter. Casting around for an appropriate alternative, he hit upon the Villa Pallavicino in Genoa itself. Sometimes called the Palazzo Peschiere after the fishponds in the garden.

Dickens had set himself two writing projects whilst in Italy: the first was a travelogue, the aforementioned Pictures from Italy ; the second, designed to improve his financial situation, was the creation of a novel in the same vein as A Christmas Carol. It came to be titled The Chimes, supposedly inspired by the incessant ringing of bells in Genoese religious institutions.

The Palazzo Peschiere, where The Chimes was written:

John Forster managed to convey Charles Dickens' enthusiasm and attachment to The Chimes in Volume 2 of The Life of Charles Dickens : Volume II.
Here are a few excerpts:

On finding the Title:
“The subject for his new Christmas story he had chosen, but he had not found a title for it, or the machinery to work it with; when, at the moment of what seemed to be his greatest trouble, both reliefs came.

Sitting down one morning resolute for work, his hand being out and everything inviting to idleness, such a peal of chimes arose from the city as he found to be “maddening”. All Genoa lay beneath him, and up from it, with some sudden set of the wind, came in one fell sound the clang and clash of all the steeples, pouring into his ears, again and again, in a tuneless, grating, discordant, jerking, hideous vibration that made his ideas “spin round and round till they lost themselves in a whirl of vexation and giddiness, and dropped down dead”.

He had never before so suffered, nor did he again; but this was his description to me next day, and his excuse for having failed in a promise to send me his title. Only two days later, however, came a letter in which not a syllable was written but “We have heard THE CHIMES at midnight, Master Shallow!” and I knew he had discovered what he wanted."

--------
2 excerpts from a letter by Charles Dickens to John Forster, October 8, 1844:

"It’s a great thing to have my title, and see my way how to work the bells. Let them clash upon me now from all the churches and convents in Genoa, I see nothing but the old London belfry I have set them in."

"“Something powerful, I think I can do (for the poor), but I want to be tender, too, and cheerful; as like the Carol in that respect as may be, and as unlike it as such a thing can be. The duration of the action will resemble it a little, but I trust to the novelty of the machinery to carry that off, and if my design be anything at all, it has a grip upon the very throat of the time.”

_____________

"In his next letter:
“I am in regular, ferocious excitement with The Chimes; get up at seven; have a cold bath before breakfast; and blaze away, wrathful and red-hot, until three o’clock or so; when I usually knock off (unless it rains) for the day…..I am fierce to finish in a spirit bearing some affinity to those of truth and mercy, and to shame the cruel and the canting. I have not forgotten my catechism. ‘Yes verily, and with God’s help, so I will!” "

OK Jean has been trying to get me to join this group for ages. She's finally twisted my arm :) The fact I had just purchased The Chimes and the group will be reading it next week was too much of a coincidence. Or maybe a little Christmas magic ;)

LOL Teresa - I was just this minute sending you an official group invite, and it said you were already a member! Welcome, and I'm sure we'll all enjoy having you along :)

Thanks Jean. I won't get to all the reads but will join in as much as I can. Been a long time since I read one of the novels.

That's brilliant - I'm so pleased. I'm really enjoying Petra's intro here too :) Can't wait until 18th!

I like the idea of doing it in quarters. Interesting. I need the distraction right now. I had to have my little dog put to sleep on Thursday and I'm broken hearted. He was a lovely old guy and my shadow. I miss him so much.
I'll do my best to join in with as much as I can.

Teresa, I had to say goodbye to my cat last year, so I know how you feel.
I really like The Chimes and look forward to rereading it with this group.

I'm so sorry, both. Lots of us know how you feel, and there are few times quite as bad.

Thank you both very much.

Petra - that's a beautiful photo of the "Palazzo Peschiere". We came across Charles Dickens's description of it when we were reading Pictures from Italy, and our member Milena went to Genoa and thought of us all, so took a picture and for us and posted some great information about her visit LINK HERE, as well as in the Pictures from Italy discussion thread :)

Milena intended to take pictures of many more places in that read for us, but Covid travel restrictions put a stop to it :(

Please let me know if you'd like me to link to each quarter in the first comment, although it might be nicer in your photo of the first edition, perhaps?

I’m so pleased that my story collection appears to have the complete Chimes. This has been such a worthwhile purchase (and inexpensive) on my kindle.

Hello! I was able to check this out in ebook version from my library and I'm looking forward to joining you all:) Thank you, Petra, for hosting this read and for the introductory material which is all very interesting! Oh Teresa, I'm so sorry about your little dog. I've been there myself and it's truly heartbreaking. Hang in there.

I've already read "The Cricket on the Hearth" this year (my first time), and have re-read "A Christmas Carol". Having a few weeks left in the year, I thought I'd finally read "The Chimes", as well. Like Teresa, I found it a delightful coincidence that this group would be reading at the same time. Looking forward to the discussion.

Mary Lou! Welcome - I'm delighted to see you'll be joining in this read too :) It seems to fit quite well for quite a few of us.

Petra's intro is well worth reading - and those who read Pictures from Italy and are working their way through The Life of Charles Dickens: The Illustrated Edition - will find it interesting to join in with The Chimes. As Petra says John Forster's bio does liven up a bit while Charles Dickens is in Italy!

I'm looking forward to Saturday (18th) :)

Bionic Jean wrote: "The Chimes by Charles Dickens is the second of our seasonal reads to take us over the end of the year. It was Charles Dickens's second book, after his..."

Bionic Jean wrote: "Mary Lou! Welcome - I'm delighted to see you'll be joining in this read too :) It seems to fit quite well for quite a few of us.

Petra's intro is well worth reading - and those who read Pict..."</i>

<i>Petra wrote: "John Forster managed to convey Charles Dickens' enthusiasm and attachment to The Chimes in Volume 2 of [book:The Life of Charles Dickens : Volume II.
Here are a few excerpts:

On finding..."

Petra wrote: "I am looking forward to this read. Charles Dickens writes such a good Holiday story.

The Chimes is written in four quarters. We will read and discuss one quarter each week. I think..."
I thoroughly enjoy the Chimes. The opening about the passage of the wind through the church and up into the belfry is something that should be taught in every creative writing class. Such a compelling description. It is one of Dickens' passages that has inspired me to write
Of course, Trotty is such an unforgettable character, probably a lot like many of us. Especially me.

Yes, it's a phenomenal opening - and a great one to discuss in due course ...

Good to have you along, Curt :)

Thank you all for joining in this read. I am looking forward to discussing this story next week and onwards. I'm really glad to hear that The Chimes has drawn in a number of new members to join us. I'm excited to get started on Saturday.

Curt, I'm looking forward to discussing Trotty next week. I agree, he's a wonderful character.

Just a heads up on how I plan on organizing this discussion. I like to follow Jean's excellent format for our longer reads because I find it works so well.

I will post a summary of each quarter at the start of each week's discussion. This will remind us of where the story is and what has taken place so that we can discuss everything up to that point and not accidently give out spoilers. That way, those who are reading a section a week will have novelty of surprise and delight when reading each section.

I'll post the summary for the First Quarter on Saturday morning. :D

I do plan to join as well. I've read it before, but there can never be too many Dickens Christmas stories for me in December! :)

Looking forward to it! Thanks for leading this Petra!

Thanks Petra :)

It's great that everyone is so keen, but please can we wait to discuss anything in the text itself, until Petra posts her summary of the first quarter, as she says? Thanks.

At that point, and the three subsequent quarters, the discussion will be linked to the start, so it is easy to go straight to, wherever you are :)

The plan sounds great, Petra and thanks for the wonderful introduction material.

I plan on trying to join in as well. I bought a Kindle version of the book. I have a few other reads going on but need to get back to reading Dickens in December, a perfect time to read him.

Sounding good, Sue and Franky :)

Looks like we're going to have a great group for this read! I'm so happy that we'll be reading this together. I hope many more will join us.

Jean, thank you for linking to Milena's experience in Genoa at the Palazzo Peschiere. What a wonderful experience! She took a lovely picture.

It surprises me when I see these huge residences as "holiday lets" for single families. Imagine how wonderful it must be to roam through the rooms and enjoy the grounds! If I were to rent a holiday home it would be a tiny cabin or a yurt or something else less palatial. LOL.

Thanks so much. I love the characters in this story. They are so well painted with Dickens' words.

Agreed

Gia wrote: "Hello! I was able to check this out in ebook version from my library and I'm looking forward to joining you all:) Thank you, Petra, for hosting this read and for the introductory material which is ..."

Thank you Gia. I appreciate your thoughts very much.

Virtually sending sweets to everyone to enjoy through this read:

Petra wrote: "Virtually sending sweets to everyone to enjoy through this read:

"

Mmmmm, love ginger!

I love lemon!!!!

When you make the first comment in a new group and the rules come up beside the comment box that's fine. But isn't it suppose to disappear after the first comment? It's still showing up for me every time I click on the comment box.

Mm, ginger chews are the best! I've never had them with cayenne lemon...sounds wonderful! :)

Teresa "It's still showing up for me every time I click on the comment box." - that's correct. It comes up for us all, just as a reminder. All you need to do if it obscures anything is refresh the page.

Armed with my Chimes and a cuppa, I'm off to Mrs. Dickens parlour and will be ready for a Saturday start :)

Thanks Jean.

Daniel Maclise 25 January 1806 – 25 April 1870



Daniel Maclise was plainly educated, but he was eager for culture, fond of reading, and anxious to become an artist. His father, however, placed him in employment, in 1820, in Newenham's Bank, where he remained for two years, before leaving to study at the Cork School of Art. In 1825 it happened that Sir Walter Scott was travelling in Ireland, and young Maclise, having seen him in a bookseller's shop, made a surreptitious sketch of the great man, which he afterwards lithographed. It became very popular, and led to many commissions for portraits, which he executed, in pencil. He saved his money and arrived in London on 18 July 1827. There he made a sketch of Charles John Kean, the actor, which, like his portrait of Scott, was lithographed and published, making the artist a considerable sum.
Maclise exhibited for the first time at the Royal Academy in 1829. Gradually he began to confine himself more exclusively to subject and historical pictures, varied occasionally by portraits, including Charles Dickens.
He designed illustrations for several of Dickens's Christmas books and other works.

Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_...

Richard Doyle 18 September 1824 – 10 December 1883



Richard Doyle was a British illustrator. His work frequently appeared, amongst other places, in Punch magazine; he drew the cover of the first issue, and designed the magazine's masthead, a design that was used for over a century.
He joined the staff of Punch in 1843 aged 19, remaining there for seven years.
He was the uncle of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes stories.
Doyle's first published illustrations appeared in The Eglinton Tournament (1840), a humour book set in the Middle Ages, which met with commercial success.[3]
Doyle collaborated with John Leech, W. C. Stanfield and other artists to co-illustrate three Charles Dickens Christmas books, The Chimes (1844), The Cricket on the Hearth (1845) and The Battle of Life (1846).
He also wrote for Punch a series of articles entitled Manners and Customes of ye Englyshe.[1] A devout Roman Catholic, he resigned his position on the staff of Punch in 1850 in response to its hostility to what was termed "papal aggression", and spent the remainder of his career in preparing drawings for book illustration and to painting in watercolour. Doyle published works of his own, which helped establish his reputation with a large readership: Manners and Customs of Ye Englishe (1849)[1] and Bird's Eye View of Society (1864).

Doyle signed many of his drawings with the depiction of a small bird standing on the initials 'RD', a reference to his nickname "Dickie" (as in "dickie bird").

Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard...

By Daniel Maclise:

By Richard Doyle:

First Quarter Summary:

An atmospheric description of the winds blowing through an empty church at night; around the vestry, the pews, up the bell tower and around the bells. The winds, it is suggested, keep people from wanting to visit the Church at night. They are happy to visit in the day but not at night and certainly not alone.
Confined by the walls surrounding it, wind moans and howls through every crevice; it blows its way past the dead, sometimes laughing, sometimes bellowing at them. But in the steeple it is free to blow through the open arches and around the ancient bells. The bells have chimed through the district for so long that their history has been forgotten.
Toby “Trotty” Veck is a messenger and porter, working in the area around the church for many years. He waits for work at the stairs of the Church every day, listening to the chimes; living with them. Over time, he’s come to love the bells and gotten to know them, in his way. Known as Trotty because he’s always trotting around delivering his messages and parcels. In cold or heat, Trotty is always outdoors, waiting for work, trotting the messages and packages around.
Trotty pulls an old newspaper out of his pocket and looks it over. The papers are full of stories of the poor. Trotty himself acknowledges that he “hadn’t much schooling” but he sometimes gets confused and wonders whether the poor have good in them or are bad.
He returns to the Church steps to find that his daughter, Meg, has surprised him with a visit. She’s a pretty young woman of 20 years, bright, cheerful, happy. She brings him two additional surprises: a lovely warm lunch (which she teasingly asks him to guess the contents of before serving it) and news that she means to marry Richard on New Year’s Day. She’s been seeing Richard for over 3 years. They’ve been waiting for Times to get better and have concluded that they’d rather live through the bad times together and share memories than wait for better times. Richard then approaches the stairs to receive Trotty’s blessings.
The doors open and Magistrate Alderman Cute and two of his wealthy friends, Mister Filer and Mister Worthy, come out of the building. The three are annoyed that the family are blocking their way and start conversing with them about moving. The news of the upcoming wedding is announced. The three then all begin postulating on the rights of the poor to marry ….even their right to be born!
Alderman Cute takes Trotty’s lunch and statically analyzes the “shrinkage” of tripe and how many people that shrinkage could have fed had the tripe not shrunk away. He accuses Trotty of denying his fellow man of food and starving them. Trotty is appalled and no longer wants to eat or enjoys seeing his lunch, which works out well since the Alderman ends his speech by eating the last piece of tripe. Trotty again feels that perhaps the papers are correct and the poor have no right to exist or to be. They are doing “bad” and not “good” by their ways and existence.
The men then speak with Meg and Richard about their upcoming marriage and how it will come to ruin through a number of possible futures; all of which end with either Meg & her children on the street or Richard married to an unappealing, old woman; a “draggle-tailed wife and a crowd of squalling children”. The two leave, no longer holder hands; the joy gone out of their day.
Alderman Cute then hires Toby to deliver a letter for him. Mr. Filer pays him only 6 pence, rather than his usual shilling, showing that to pay more would rob other poor people of the extra amount that Toby would have robbed them of.
The three men then start to walk away but the Alderman returns to tell Toby to watch his daughter. She’s much too pretty and will come to no good because of it. Toby muses that her beauty has robbed many other women of any beauty and begins to feel that she, too, is born bad and has no business in the World. The Alderman hurries away.
The chimes start to ring and clang as Toby thinks the despondent words of being bad and having no place. He listens and feels that the tune and tone of them has changed. The joy is out of them. They now peal “put them down”. But he feels that this should be so as he’s such an impediment to the World. Toby listened until his head reeled.
He pressed his head into his hands, which still held the letter. This reminded him of his errand and he mechanically goes trotting off to deliver it.

And we begin.....

I hope everyone enjoys this story. Happy Reading!!

Daniel Maclise's portrait of Charles Dickens; painted in 1839:



More information on the painting: http://www.collections.dickensmuseum....

Wonderful! Thank you for all this information Petra, and for getting us firmly back on topic :)

The portrait of the young Charles Dickens is such a famous one, and of course it is of him living at Doughty Street, (which is now the museum in London which I post about sometimes) where he wrote his early works.

We remember Daniel Maclise mainly for this portrait, so it's good to know that he did illustrate some of the Christmas books too :) He incorporates the mention of goblins in his frontispiece - how intriguing!

Thank you so much for the summary, and I'm looking forward to reading everyone's comments :)

Has anyone in the group ever tried reading Dickens aloud to themselves, in effect pretending to be the narrator in an audible book by putting in all the rises and falls in the voice and actually acting out the words? Some of Dickens' sentences are so long, so convoluted, and so complicated that to read them with anything less than complete attention makes the understanding of the sentence simply vanish into the ether. I found that reading it aloud makes one pay considerably more attention to what the sentence is actually saying. In the opening chapter of THE CHIMES, for example, I found that doing that made Toby's relationship with the bells and his loving street dinner with his daughter absolutely leap off the page.

Some of the long sentences in the beginning of "The Chimes" accentuate the power of the wind whipping around the building, up in the steeple, twisting around the various parts of the church tower. The reader can visualize the ribbon of chilly wind twisting and turning wildly with great energy.

I'll be reading more of Part I later this weekend.

I have just begun and am enjoying the writing itself. The wind is actually a character in the story and everything is written so that it’s easy to visualize, from the grave stones to the fat dangling spiders.