Current Search:   Kriegel, Jill A. (x)

View All Items

  • CSV Spreadsheet
(1 - 2 of 2)
atmosphere for "Orthodoxy": A Chestertonian reading of the Marian heroine in Charles Dickens's "Dombey and Son"
Title
An atmosphere for "Orthodoxy": A Chestertonian reading of the Marian heroine in Charles Dickens's "Dombey and Son".
Creator
Kriegel, Jill A., Florida Atlantic University, Buckton, Oliver
Abstract/Description
Considering the fervent Catholicism of convert G. K. Chesterton's societal views, his championship of Charles Dickens, a seemingly avid non-Catholic, may appear misplaced. Upon examination, however, the wisdom of Chesterton's rationale will manifest itself; in fact, rereading Dickens's Dombey and Son through the eyes of Chesterton's Orthodoxy will prove Dickens himself to be a champion, albeit an inadvertent one, of the very core of Catholicism. Presenting Florence Dombey as a heroine, as a...
Show moreConsidering the fervent Catholicism of convert G. K. Chesterton's societal views, his championship of Charles Dickens, a seemingly avid non-Catholic, may appear misplaced. Upon examination, however, the wisdom of Chesterton's rationale will manifest itself; in fact, rereading Dickens's Dombey and Son through the eyes of Chesterton's Orthodoxy will prove Dickens himself to be a champion, albeit an inadvertent one, of the very core of Catholicism. Presenting Florence Dombey as a heroine, as a paragon of religious strength, and as a path to salvation for her misguided father, I present her not only as Dickens's literary and moral contribution to readers of his age, but also as a symbolic Marian model to readers of any age. Through a Chestertonian reading of Dombey and Son, two things become overwhelmingly apparent: Dickens's own "orthodoxy" and his powerful optimism.
Show less
Date Issued
2005
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/13274
Subject Headings
Dickens, Charles,--1812-1870--Characters., Dickens, Charles,--1812-1870--Influence., Chesterton, G.K.--(Gilbert Keith),--1874-1936.--Orthodoxy., Dickens, Charles,--1812-1870.--Dombey and Son., Religion in literature.
Format
Document (PDF)
Augustinian virtue in the Dickensian world
Title
Augustinian virtue in the Dickensian world: the role of Christian friendship in the conversion of souls and the move toward the Heavenly City.
Creator
Kriegel, Jill A., Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, Department of English
Abstract/Description
The novels of Charles Dickens resonate with ancient and Christian moral messages: From plots and characters representative of Victorian ideals and concerns emerge themes that reflect centuries of moral, and, as I argue, specifically Augustinian, teaching. While the Christian overtones of Charles Dickens's novels are seldom denied, their Augustinian nature, their purpose, and Dickens's hopes for their effect are rarely given their proper due. In opposition to the postmodern idea of an...
Show moreThe novels of Charles Dickens resonate with ancient and Christian moral messages: From plots and characters representative of Victorian ideals and concerns emerge themes that reflect centuries of moral, and, as I argue, specifically Augustinian, teaching. While the Christian overtones of Charles Dickens's novels are seldom denied, their Augustinian nature, their purpose, and Dickens's hopes for their effect are rarely given their proper due. In opposition to the postmodern idea of an increasing nihilism and despair in Dickens's message, I examine instead his steadfast fascination with and joy in the power of charitable friendships-friendships that embody goodness and the possibility for conversion, friendships that are especially noteworthy amid the societal darkness ushered in by the crises of faith that accompanied nineteenth-century industrialization, commercialization, and de-moralization. Preparing to highlight the undeniable moral value in both the rejected and realized friendships and conversions of Dickens's Martin Chuzzlewit, Bleak House, and Great Expectations, first I focus on true friendship as a necessary part of a soul's ascent developed in Plato's Symposium and Phaedrus, as well as in Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, illustrating how these classical texts anticipate the Augustinian notion of a soul's transformation from the earthly city to the city of God. With this literary continuum thus established, I contend that the Heavenly City as it is reflected in the Dickensian world relies on its virtuous citizens, those true friends who consistently manifest Christian charity, humility, and forgiveness.
Show less
Date Issued
2010
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/2683142
Subject Headings
Criticism and interpretation, Criticism and interpretation, Christianity in literature, Criticism and interpretation, Religion in literature, Criticism and interpretation, Friendship in literature, Criticism and interpretation, Soul, Christianity
Format
Document (PDF)