Charles Dickens, Great Expectations

Grace Moore (University of Otago)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.07: English Writing and Culture of the Victorian Period, 1837-1901.
Vol. editors: Gillian Fenwick (University of Toronto), Jessica Gossling (Goldsmiths College, University of London)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1860 - 1861

Places

England (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novel
- Bildungsroman
Children's Literature
- Young Adult

Resources

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Recommended Reading

The first publication of

Great Expectations

All The Year Round

, Volume 4, Number 84. 1st December 1860

Charles Dickens's Great Expectations was published in thirty-six weekly installments in Dickens's journal All the Year Round between 1860 and 1861. The first part appeared on December 1st 1860 (contrary to Dickens's original intentions for the work) in a bid to boost dwindling circulation figures. Charles Lever's novel A Day's Ride: A Life's Romance had been the journal's featured serial, but the story had received unfavourable reviews and was not popular with readers. The strategy was a successful one; Robert L. Patten notes that by the final installment of Great Expectations, weekly sales figures had risen to 100,000 copies.

Charles Dickens's

Great Expectations

was published in…

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2776 words

Citation: Moore, Grace. "Great Expectations". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 09 December 2004 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=4892, accessed 25 November 2024.]

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Charles Dickens, Great Expectations

Dates

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