Narrative

Synopsis

Umberto Eco suggests that all novels are a sort of detective story. To test the theory, argues Graham Martin, it is necessary to understand how a narrative works. A dramatised example of a scene from Chapter 3 of ‘Hard Times’ demonstrates the ways in which Dickens builds up our expectations of and predictions about how the story will work out. He shows that the main narrative line in the episode, Mrs Gradgrind’s ‘conversation’ with Mr Bounderby, links the scene to the opening of the book and also points to several later scenes. There are several narrative lines which interact, and how these different lines are put together constitutes an essential part of an author’s style. The final sequences are intended as a reminder of the original contexts in which Dickens’ work was produced (i.e. reading aloud to audiences), with an extended dramatised reading of part of Chapter 3. Concludes with a quotation from Umberto Eco on the importance of the detective novel.

Series

Arts Foundation Course, An: Course A102

Language

English

Country

Great Britain

Medium

Video; Videocassette. Standard formats. col. 25 min.

Year of production

1987

Availability

Off-air recording licence
Sale; 1998 sale: £85.00 (+VAT +p&p)

Subjects

English language and literature

Keywords

Dickens, Charles (1812-1870); fiction; writing

Credits

Producer

Tony Coe

Cast

Graham Martin
Umberto Eco

Production Company

Name

BBC Open University Productions

Distributor

Name

Open University Worldwide

Web

http://www.ouw.co.uk External site opens in new window

Phone

+44 (0) 1908 274066

Address

Walton Hall
Milton Keynes
MK7 6AA

Notes

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