|
I checked out from my library the Modern Library edition with an introduction by Matthew Pearl and have read through his analysis this weekend. He addresses the question “are we certain Dickens himself knew the ending?”. He believes that Dickens did have a structure in his head, but while he was writing it really was still a work in progress. He says that at times Dickens might be writing months, weeks or even days before each installment deadline. He provides examples from Great Expectations, Martin Chuzzlewit and David Copperfield where Dickens rewrote scenes or changed plot direction based on feedback from friends, events happening in his real life such as negative American coverage or even complaints from readers of earlier installments. Pearl also states that there is strong evidence that the number plans to outline the plot were filled out after writing rather than before (i.e. more a log than a plan), indicating flexibility in where the novel was headed. Lastly, Pearl asserts that Dickens paid close attention to sales reports on the last day of each month called “Magazine Day.” He was able to revise his works according to the market success or disappointment.
|