Wonderful post. I really enjoyed the link to Poe, about whom I'm writing a post this week. I'm exploring Poe's long obsession with liminal spaces between life and death. But the Telltale Heart reminds me that this is also all bound up in liminal spaces between sanity and madness.
Thank you for linking Dickens and Poe ! Makes a lot of sense. The tell tale heart takes the confessions a step further and beautifully portrays how the shame guilt and fear would have eaten him alive.
Thanks Henry. I know that the Old Curiosity Shop basically takes over the Master Humphrey's Clock storyline. Do you think Dickens had an original plan for MHC and then changed that plan when OCS caught fire? Or maybe he started the serial with only a very rough idea of the framework, wrote the first couple of stories on the fly, but didn't have a clear idea where the story would go until he began writing the OCS? I get the impression that he's sort of making it up as he goes along (not that that's a bad thing).
Great questions Sandra - we'll discuss more as the instalments unfold, but yes absolutely – I think Dickens intended to write a varied miscellany in Master Humphrey's Clock, but soon realised that what his readers really wanted was another novel. I think he probably was making it up as he went along – at least initially!
Wonderful post. I really enjoyed the link to Poe, about whom I'm writing a post this week. I'm exploring Poe's long obsession with liminal spaces between life and death. But the Telltale Heart reminds me that this is also all bound up in liminal spaces between sanity and madness.
The old film was also great - many thanks!
A pleasure! Please do share a link to your post when it's up.
It's up! I didn't discuss the madness - too many other things to cover, as you'll see. Thanks for reading! https://clairelaporte.substack.com/p/at-the-edge-of-death-waiting-mortuaries
The James Mason film is breathtaking! Thank you for sharing it.
Such a pleasure! It's great isn't it? Often voted amongst the best animations ever.
Thank you for linking Dickens and Poe ! Makes a lot of sense. The tell tale heart takes the confessions a step further and beautifully portrays how the shame guilt and fear would have eaten him alive.
I like the connection with Dickens and Poe. Also reminds me of Rope by Alfred Hitchcock
Great connection! I hadn't thought of that.
Yes the story did set me to Googling the connection between Dickens and Poe. Thanks!
This was a great section. Chilling on a number of levels. Thanks for the notes. Lots of fascinating stuff to follow up there.
Thanks Henry. I know that the Old Curiosity Shop basically takes over the Master Humphrey's Clock storyline. Do you think Dickens had an original plan for MHC and then changed that plan when OCS caught fire? Or maybe he started the serial with only a very rough idea of the framework, wrote the first couple of stories on the fly, but didn't have a clear idea where the story would go until he began writing the OCS? I get the impression that he's sort of making it up as he goes along (not that that's a bad thing).
Great questions Sandra - we'll discuss more as the instalments unfold, but yes absolutely – I think Dickens intended to write a varied miscellany in Master Humphrey's Clock, but soon realised that what his readers really wanted was another novel. I think he probably was making it up as he went along – at least initially!