A Book Recommendation

I have been re-reading Death and Mr Pickwick, by Stephen Jarvis, which deals with the evolution of British caricature and the origins of The Pickwick Papers. Jarvis presents, in the format of a novel, the theory that the artist Robert Seymour invented the character of Pickwick, and not Charles Dickens. I had come across the work of Seymour myself in 2016, as I was working on Scrooge Studies, and wondered about his influence on Dickens. I later had the good fortune to make the online acquaintance of Mr. Jarvis, who is much more knowledgable on the subject. Jarvis's arguments are quite compelling, and Death and Mr Pickwick ultimately influenced my illustrations for A Christmas Carol in a pretty significant way.

Even though I've read it before, Jarvis's writing is so fresh and engaging that it still feels new. There are numerous gems of phrases and sentences that have prompted me to start putting little paper sticky-flags in the margins, so that I can go back and find those anecdotes and pieces of language more easily.

And a little before page 200, I realized something - I was so pulled in to the story that I had forgotten I was reading a book.

Now that's some good writing.

As we approach Christmas, it's my distinct pleasure to recommend Mr. Jarvis's book. You don't need to have read The Pickwick Papers before, or to have previous knowledge of Dickens, to enjoy the book, but if you do know of any fans of The Pickwick Papers, Charles Dickens, or nineteenth-century Britain generally, this book would be an excellent Christmas gift.

You can find Death and Mr Pickwick online at Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Pickwick-Stephen-Jarvis-21-May-2015-Hardcover/dp/B011T884CW/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1544648845&sr=1-2&keywords=death+and+mr+pickwick), Barnes & Noble (https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/death-and-mr-pickwick-stephen-jarvis/1120160537?ean=9781250094667) and at many brick-and-mortar bookstores.

I have neither received nor sought any compensation for the above endorsement.

Stave 1 : Bob Cratchit in the Tank

Task to come, time permitting : to read the first chapters of The Pickwick Papers, through to the end of the sections completed at the time the illustrator Robert Seymour killed himself on April 20, 1836.  This, because I am curious about the coincidence of Jacob Marley's death occurring seven years before the events in A Christmas Carol and Seymour's committing suicide seven years before Dickens wrote it.  I've modeled Bob Cratchit after a self-portrait by Seymour.  There were problems between Dickens and Seymour over The Pickwick Papers, and Dickens was one of the last people to see Seymour alive.  However, Seymour had some pre-existing mental health problems.  I wonder, did Dickens find himself feeling guilty about Seymour?  See the link below to the Wikipedia article on Seymour for more information.  It's a bit complicated.

Dickens doesn't give much of a physical description for Bob (his most notable feature is his clothing, a white "comforter," or scarf, and "no great-coat"), but Seymour would have been about the right age, based on the number and ages of Bob Cratchit's children.  English law on suicide during that period prevented his wife from inheriting anything from him, leaving Bob Seymour's family probably as badly off as Bob Cratchit's.  Again, please see the Wikipedia article.

And what about Seymour's illustrations for Thomas Hervey's 1835 Book of Christmas - did these have an influence on A Christmas Carol?  I'd be surprised if Dickens hadn't been familiar with it.  So I have another task to come, time permitting : to read all of Hervey's Book of Christmas.

Here are some relevant links :

Wikipedia : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Seymour_(illustrator)

Wikisource : https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Seymour,_Robert_(DNB00)

The Pickwick Papers, from Project Gutenberg : http://www.gutenberg.org/files/580/580-h/580-h.htm

Thomas K. Hervey's Book of Christmas (1835, reprinted 1888) with illustrations by Seymour, also from Project Gutenberg (found via its mention in the above link to Wikisource) : http://www.gutenberg.org/files/42622/42622-h/42622-h.htm

And here is my original sketch of Bob Cratchit, showing both the outlines of his comforter and his entire face :