Martin Chuzzlewit (Wordsworth Classics) (Wordsworth Collection) [Paperback]

Charles Dickens (Author), Hablot K. Browne (Phiz) (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1998 | Series: Wordsworth Collection

With an Introduction and Notes by Dr John Bowen, Department of English, University of Keele Martin Chuzzlewit is Charles Dickens' comic masterpiece about which his biographer, Forster, noted that it marked a crucial phase in the author's development as he began to delve deeper into the 'springs of character'. Old Martin Chuzzlewit, tormented by the greed and selfishness of his family, effectively drives his grandson, young Martin, to undertake a voyage to America. It is a voyage which will have crucial consequences not only for young Martin, but also for his grandfather and his grandfather's servant, Mary Graham with whom young Martin is in love. The commercial swindle of the Anglo-Bengalee company and the fraudulent Eden Land Corporation have a topicality in our own time. This strong sub-plot shows evidence of Dickens' mastery of crime where characters such as the criminal Jonas Chuzzlewit, the old nurse Mrs Gamp, and the arch-hypocrite Seth Pecksniff are the equal to any in his other great novels. Generations of readers have also delighted in Dickens' wonderful description of the London boarding-house - 'Todgers'.

Editorial Reviews

Review

(in full The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit) Novel by Charles Dickens, published serially by "Boz" from 1843 to 1844 and in book form in 1844. The story's protagonist, Martin Chuzzlewit, is an apprentice architect who is fired by Seth Pecksniff and is also disinherited by his own eccentric, wealthy grandfather. Martin and a servant, Mark Tapley, travel to the United States, where they are swindled by land speculators and have other unpleasant but sometimes comic experiences. Thoroughly disillusioned with the New World, the pair returns to England, where a chastened Martin is reconciled with his grandfather, who gives his approval to Martin's forthcoming marriage to his true love, Mary Graham. -- The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

This book is in Electronic Paperback Format. If you view this book on any of the computer systems below, it will look like a book. Simple to run, no program to install. Just put the CD in your CDROM drive and start reading. The simple easy to use interface is child tested at pre-school levels.

Windows 3.11, Windows/95, Windows/98, OS/2 and MacIntosh and Linux with Windows Emulation.

Includes Quiet Vision's Dynamic Index. the abilty to build a index for any set of characters or words. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 832 pages
• Publisher: Wordsworth Editions Ltd (April 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1853262056
• ISBN-13: 978-1853262050
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #467,387 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #61 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Authors, A-Z > ( D ) > Dickens, Charles

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Major Milestone for Dickens, November 12, 2002

By 

Thaddeus Wert (Nashville, TN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Martin Chuzzlewit (The Oxford Illustrated Dickens) (Hardcover)

With this novel, Dickens left behind the shallow characters that sometimes marred his early works, and developed full-fledged people. Pecksniff and his daughters are marvelous creations that make one cringe with embarassment while laughing at their incredible selfishness. Tom Pinch is another character in a distinguished line of "too good to be true" Dickensian personalities, but he is shown to suffer and grow into a believable human being. The American episodes are biting in their satire, but overall they are on the money. Dickens' contempt for American armchair philosophers and "freedom-loving" slave owners fueled some of his most pointed social commentary. As always, there is a happy ending, but the plot is more complex than anything Dickens had written before. I have read Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist, Nicholas Nickleby, The Old Curiousity Shop, and Barnaby Rudge, and Martin Chuzzlewit ranks right up there with his best.

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Martin Chuzzlewit is funny, memorable, and insightful., April 3, 1998

By 

Kenneth Umbach (California USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Martin Chuzzlewit (The Oxford Illustrated Dickens) (Hardcover)

Martin Chuzzlewit is a funny, memorable, and insightful book. The engravings in the Oxford Illustrated edition are a charming addition to this story of hypocrisy, family intrigue, selfishness, loyalty, and friendship. Dickens's use of language is precise and often stinging. The book is laced with humor in the service of more profound goals. If you buy the Oxford Illustrated edition, skip the critical essay at the start of the volume, as it gives away some plot elements best left for the reader to discover. (Read the essay AFTER you have finished the book, if you like, or just ignore it.) My 9 rating reflects the combination of humor, satire, memorable characters (most especially the resolutely jolly Mark Tapley and the hypocritical Mr. Pecksniff), and a thoroughly entertaining plot.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Cathartic Read for problems with $ and Family, June 15, 2004

By 

Ted Magnuson "author of The Moses Probe" (Oregon, Western USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Martin Chuzzlewit (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

Martin Chuzzlewit the elder is dying and all the family has designs on gaining their inheritance. His grandson seems the odds on favorite but young Martin, the grandson has fallen madly in love with the elder Martin's altruistic nurse, Mary Graham. Why the elder Martin finds this terrifying is puzzling. Does he really think Mary's interest in Martin the younger will compromise the quality of her job? Oh, oh...I've done it, I've caught Dickens capturing the foibles of humanity again!!!
These characters sometimes make me scream. I'd like to be face to face with them, vigourously attempting to argue them out of their other-destructive behavior...Of course it would be totally useless as far as they're concerned, but hopefully cathartic for me.
The PBS video (6 hours) is how I was introduced to this story. After viewing the video I read the book. Dickens offers a marked contrast to his near contemporary Alexis deTocqueville's. Where Tocqueville saw free association and high community spirit in his Democracy in America, Dickens saw flim-flam and greed everywhere. -As greed and selfishness are big themes in Chuzzlewit, America proved an apt foil. It is said American publishers pirated Dickens work, paying him no royalties, adding fuel to his ire. Other reviewers have commented on Pecksniff , Mrs. Gump, Jonas Chuzzlewit and Tom Pinch. Oh, there are Dickensian characters in this book. The rivalry between Mercy and Charity Pecksniff results in this case, in alarming tragedies of self-centeredness. If there be humor in such goings on, you'll love Montigue Tigg (Tigg Montigue). He is every bit the operator, having much in common with Mr. Merdle of Dicken's Little Dorritt. Rest assured, as Dickens torments the reader with the trials of his characters, this is one of those tales where just desserts are served in the end.