Another Great Expectations. Why?

Deedaa

I think Dickens would probably be appalled at the speed society is moving backwards.

I agree, along with him being appalled at his works being trashed.

"----his works being trashed."

Would Shakespeare born in 1947 use a word processor?

Would Mozart play a piano ?

Would Darwin understand genetic engineering?

Their works were of their time and if we modernise them, we do not learn about those times through drama.

There are plenty of modern dramas on TV and in the cinema.

Not many people are going to sit and read a history tome about life as it was for many people in centuries past and history is not a compulsory GCSE subject at school now.

Callistemon wrote:

"Their works were of their time---"

I do agree and I think we need to remember that fact. But there is something in some works of art that makes them relevant today. The new interpretation of GE is relevant to today's society, and I think Dickens intended his work to be social commentary.

Callistemon wrote:

"Not many people are going to sit and read a history tome about life as it was for many people in centuries past".

Again, that is absolutely true. Of Dickens I have read only Bleak House, and I found it to be full of feelings of the characters and not at all like a history tome. I like reading some history books and I chose and bought one recently mostly because the author writes about how it may have felt to be an ordinary obscure person two thousand years ago in Britain. I'd not consider buying and reading a history tome.

After the second episode I was so infuriated that I vowed not to watch any more. It was so wrong on so many levels. If a writer wants to use a book as an inspiration for his modern take on it then he should do it but for goodness sake give it his own title. Do not take a gem of a book and tear it to pieces and then place the blame on the original genius that Dickens was.

I'd not consider buying and reading a history tome

DH does then I have to listen as he recounts something he read of interest ........... 😴

What is DH?

Lovetopaint037

After the second episode I was so infuriated that I vowed not to watch any more. It was so wrong on so many levels. If a writer wants to use a book as an inspiration for his modern take on it then he should do it but for goodness sake give it his own title. Do not take a gem of a book and tear it to pieces and then place the blame on the original genius that Dickens was.

Completely agree with you, and yes it should have had a different title!

I like to read about how ordinary people lived before there was anything written about ordinary people. My history book that I bought recently is about Scotland and its people before there was such a country as Scotland. I like the new Great Expectations because it's an exciting story with the theme of how politics was then and the implication of how the more things change the more they stay the same.

History has been very badly taught and results in some school leavers being put off it for life.

Fortunately some modern children's literature ( e.g. Rosemary Sutcliffe's novels) can save the day. Among novels and plays for adults there are a few with historically accurate backgrounds.

Caleo

What is DH?

My Dear Husband 😁

He reads history books for fun.
I don't mean historical novels which I like.

Lovetopaint037

After the second episode I was so infuriated that I vowed not to watch any more. It was so wrong on so many levels. If a writer wants to use a book as an inspiration for his modern take on it then he should do it but for goodness sake give it his own title. Do not take a gem of a book and tear it to pieces and then place the blame on the original genius that Dickens was.

👍

Callistemon, now I understand. I bet there are a lot of husbands and wives who wish the spouse would take an interest in something or other.

Do please let me know the titles of the history books your husband is reading. I am interested in the teaching of history and I wonder if he appreciates the historical novels you read. Some of these authors have properly researched their material. I used to be devoted to Maurice Walsh who is very old-fashioned and romantic now. Even romantic novelists can start a reader on an interest in some aspect of history.

This is an interesting debate. I don't see TV productions as necessarily educational, particularly dramas (obviously I'd expect a documentary to be as close to the makers' views of the truth as possible), but I take the point about people who have never learnt history at school (how can it not be a core subject?) never knowing about other times. OTOH, a story is only one person's view of the times, and it would be misleading to base a perspective of an era based on one novel or dramatisation, particularly if the author is making a political point. It is not the role of TV dramatists to teach classics to exam standard - they are reproducing them as entertainment for our times. There are plenty of 'faithful' productions for educational purposes if teachers want to use them alongside the books.

I still believe what I posted upthread that Dickens was very current when he wrote, and his characters were using street language, so he would probably hate the idea of their still being portrayed as what now sounds pompous and irrelevant old duffers. I think he would thoroughly approve of their being given more 21st century scripts.

I have only seen 2 episodes of this series (we've been away), but I plan to catch up with the rest at the weekend if possible.

Doodledog, isn't it part of the BBC's remit to educate and we pay our licences in exchange for quality? There is plenty of pure entertainment on commercial channels.

Education is not about passing exams, it's about how to access honest information and stimulus to explore further.

Doodledog, do you think it's okay to present Dickens's moral and political ideas to a modern audience, and even better when the dialogue is updated? I gather this is what you are saying.

I was thinking aloud really, but yes, I know that education is in the remit of the BBC, and it does that well. But all drama need not be educational. Classics were not written to educate, but to entertain the readers of the day. Yes, some of them had political messages, but all the same the readers read for the same reasons we do, and we now have the additional option of watching a televised version. So yes, your second post is pretty much what I am saying . IMO and updated and relevant production is in many ways more true to the original than a slavish copy that is now out of date.

Have watched two episodes now and tbh found it boring.
I don’t mind classic books being re-written for tv or a new slant on things but just didn’t enjoy this.

Doodledog, I confess I am partial to moralising in fictional narratives. I was brought up Protestant and I even feel mildly guilty when I enjoy something that's nothing but pure entertainment.

I never actually watched any of Peaky Blinders, was it as terminally boring as this effort? If so you have to wonder how these writers get any work - Sarah Phelps is another one. When you think how people queued up to get the latest chapter of any Dickens novel they were looking for excitement and entertainment. It may come as a surprise to the author but it takes more that nudity and people saying fuck to hold an audience's interest We've still got the deaths of Miss Havisham, Magwitch and Pip's sister to come and the revelation of Estella's parentage - or will that all be forgotten and replaced with something completely different? Perhaps Miss Havisham could take Magwitch in, Estella could have a lesbian relationship with Pip's sister and Pip could set up as an opium dealer with Herbert Pocket. Come to think of it what's happened to Herbert? We only saw him when Pip arrived in London.

Deeda
We should have got you to write the script!

It is utterly boring 😴

We never watched Peaky Blinders either, it was on the list of catch ups, but perhaps not now, especially if the accents slip sometimes.

I was put off PB because of the title, of all things. Mr D loved it though, and I watched it with him over a rainy weekend, and quite enjoyed it. It's not up there with my favourite box sets, but I wouldn't write it off.

Oh, I’d definitely recommend Peaky Blinders. It was original and quirky, with great characters and acting.

I gave up on Great Expectations after two episodes, and that was one too many.

I admit this recent GE is hard work. I am asking myself "do I like Jaggers?" I am wondering if you have to beak eggs to make an omelette. Yes, you do, but when the 'eggs' are human lives what then?

Easy to love Pip ,and Estella who are both innocents. I find myself wanting to like Jaggers too.