Dickens' Self-Created Literary Brand in Novels and Adaptations
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DICKENS' SELF-CREATED LITERARY BRAND IN NOVELS AND ADAPTATIONS A Thesis Submitted to the College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy In the Department of English University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon By ADAM EPP © Adam Epp, July 2021. All rights reserved. Unless otherwise noted, copyright of the material in this thesis belongs to the author. PERMISSION TO USE In presenting this dissertation in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a Postgraduate degree from the University of Saskatchewan, I agree that the Libraries of this University may make it freely available for inspection. I further agree that permission for copying of this dissertation in any manner, in whole or in part, for scholarly purposes may be granted by the professor or professors who supervised my dissertation work or, in their absence, by the Head of the Department or the Dean of the College in which my thesis work was done. It is understood that any copying or publication or use of this dissertation or parts thereof for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. It is also understood that due recognition shall be given to me and to the University of Saskatchewan in any scholarly use which may be made of any material in my dissertation. Requests for permission to copy or to make other uses of materials in this dissertation in whole or part should be addressed to: Head of the Department of English 9 Campus Drive University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5A5 Canada OR Dean College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies University of Saskatchewan 116 Thorvaldson Building, 110 Science Place Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5C9 Canada i ABSTRACT Because Charles Dickens' literature has become a part of popular culture, Lyn Pykett wrote that modern critics must contend with "the Dickens industry." This industry includes Dickens's original canon, his novels, adaptations, plagiarisms, and works similar to his, which are referred to as "Dickensian." The adjective "Dickensian" now describes the author's literary brand, which includes Dickens' texts, his image and likeness, as well as the persona he used in his prefaces, letters, and public appearances. While Pykett mentions the modern Dickens industry, this dissertation primarily focuses on Dickens' works during his lifetime, when Dickens had to contend with other people, such as theatre adapters, publishers, and pirates, for control over the Dickens industry in the nineteenth century. In this dissertation, I argue that Dickens intentionally constructed the Dickensian literary brand to confront plagiarists of his works and control his texts in several media. My overarching question is: to what extent and in what way did Dickens control his literary brand? To answer this question, I outline five key strategies that Dickens used to gain control over his brand: first, he sought to defeat plagiarists of his literature in head-on confrontations, which did not work well for Dickens; second, Dickens sought to build a connection with readers, to make them feel as though he was their friend; third, he sought to dominate his publishers and negotiate contracts so that they would increasingly favour himself; fourth, Dickens rebranded himself in hopes of elevating his literary reputation; and, fifth, Dickens self-adapted his works for his Public Readings, using elements of his previous four strategies in the process. Each chapter in this dissertation, except the sixth, focuses on one of the aforementioned five strategies. The sixth chapter and conclusion consider Dickens' literary brand after his death, along with the broader implications of his efforts and others' attempts to replicate his successes. Throughout the dissertation, I demonstrate that Dickens was obsessed with control, especially when it came to his literature. Dickens was a pioneer in constructing a literary brand, and his strategies earned him this sought-after control of his literature while he lived. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I could not have finished this dissertation without the funding I received from the Graduate Teaching Fellowships given to me by the Department of English at the University of Saskatchewan, for which I am very grateful. In addition, I appreciate the Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching and Learning for the funding and experience I gained through my Teacher Scholar Doctoral Fellowship. Lastly, I would like to thank the Saskatchewan German Council for awarding me a scholarship despite not being an undergraduate student. Many brilliant scholars at the University of Saskatchewan (and elsewhere) helped make this dissertation a reality. First and foremost, I must acknowledge the guidance and advice of my supervisor, Dr. Douglas Thorpe, and I especially thank him for staying with me after his retirement. I also appreciate the constructive criticism and knowledge of my specialist examiner, Dr. Lisa Vargo, whose suggestions helped make this dissertation better. I am very grateful to Dr. Yin Liu, the departmental reader, for mentoring me in my Teacher Scholar Doctoral Fellowship and providing extensive corrections to my draft. I was lucky to have Dr. Dwayne Brenna from the Department of Drama on my committee from the start, and his knowledge of Victorian drama has helped strengthen this dissertation. Dr. Susan Johnston, from the University of Regina, suffered through the trials of learning WebEx to serve as an amazing external examiner, for which I will always appreciate her. Also, I acknowledge the Department of English's graduate chairs, Dr. Allison Muri and Dr. Lindsey Banco, for their general assistance and graduate seminars that I participated in. And, without the University of Saskatchewan's librarians who handle external loans, I never could have found certain articles and books, so I appreciate them, even if I never met them directly. Throughout my doctoral studies, I have been extremely fortunate to have the love and assistance of my family. My father Robert and mother Lori have been with me from the start, of course, and I am eternally thankful that they always go above and beyond to support me. Finally, I acknowledge my loving wife Rachel, who moved from California to be with me and gave birth to our beloved daughter Lucia while I completed this dissertation: I could not ask for a more caring and supportive partner. iii DEDICATION I dedicate this dissertation to my daughter Lucia Jane Epp, who wasn't yet born when I started my doctoral studies but encouraged me to reach the finish line: you are worth all the sleepless nights since your smiles make my days so much better. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS PERMISSION TO USE i ABSTRACT ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iii DEDICATION iv TABLE OF CONTENTS v Introduction 1 Chapter 1: Dickens' Early Career and His Struggles with Literary Theft 14 1.1. Dickens' Literary Brand at the Start of his Career 14 1.2. Unofficial Stage Adaptations of Dickens' Early Serials 24 1.3. Dickens Attacks the Imitators with Nicholas Nickleby 31 Chapter 2: Author-Reader Intimacy and Authorized Adaptations 45 2.1. The Failed Miscellany 45 2.2. Narrator Intimacy in A Christmas Carol 52 2.3. Authorizing Adaptations Against the Pirates 59 Chapter 3: Dickens' Control of his Brand in the Dombey Era 67 3.1. Dickens' Dealings with Publishers 68 3.2. Planning the Brand in Dombey and Son 75 3.3. Traditionalism and Innovation in Dombey and Son 82 Chapter 4: Dickens' Rebranding in New Editions, Prefaces, and David Copperfield 93 4.1. Rebranding in Dickens' New Editions 95 4.2. Dickens' Reconstructed Brand in His Prefaces 100 4.3. David Copperfield: Rebranding through Fictional Autobiography 107 Chapter 5: Dickens' Brand as a Public Reader 122 5.1. Defeating Imitators with Inimitable Performances 125 5.2. Dickens' Intimate Connection with His Audiences 131 5.3. Dickens' Publishing Independence as a Public Reader 139 5.4. Dickens' Revisions in the Public Readings 145 5.5. The Impact of the Public Readings 151 Chapter 6: The Post-mortem Dickensian Brand 159 6.1. Dickens' Legacy 160 v 6.2. Dickens' Brand, Adapted 166 6.3. The Influence of Dickens' Brand 175 Conclusion: The Present Dickensian Brand 185 Works Cited 192 vi Introduction From the outset of his career as a novelist, Charles Dickens demonstrated a need to control his literary position. After writing Sketches by Boz (1833-6), a series of short pieces based on people he saw in and around London, Dickens was asked by the publisher Chapman & Hall to provide words for Robert Seymour's illustrations in a monthly serial. In the original proposal, Seymour's art would dictate Dickens' contributions to this project. Dickens was interested in the money that Chapman & Hall offered him, but he rejected the notion of creating fiction based on whatever Seymour drew. As biographer Edgar Johnson writes, Dickens would only agree to the terms if "instead of his illustrating Seymour, as had been proposed, Seymour should illustrate him" (117). Dickens' confidence impressed William Hall, and he was hired to write the text for The Pickwick Papers. Seymour, however, was frustrated by Dickens assuming larger control of the serialization, and the illustrator and author clashed during a meeting with one another on April 17, 1836 (Johnson 137). Three days later, Seymour committed suicide, ending any future friction between the two. A new illustrator, Robert William Buss, was hired for the third issue of Pickwick, but his artwork was deemed inadequate, and Dickens formed a relationship with the third illustrator, Hablot Knight Browne, or Phiz, that Dickens found satisfactory, both in terms of the art produced and Dickens' ability to dictate what should be illustrated. Moreover, after Browne's hiring, Pickwick became a publishing sensation with the introduction of the character Sam Weller in the fourth issue, and its success grew from that point onward.