When his father dies a poor man, Nicholas Nickleby goes to London with his mother and sister, Kate. He hopes for help from his rich Uncle Ralph. But Ralph Nickleby is only interested in making money. So Nicholas takes a teaching job at Dotheboys Hall. There he helps a poor boy called Smike who has no one to look after him.
Nicholas Nickleby - Penguin Active Reading - Level 4
Nicholas Nickleby is a kind man who works at a cruel school full of poor, hungry children. Can he ever find happiness in a world where stupid, greedy people have all the power and brave, honest people have nothing? Now a major film.
Classics Illustrated 171 - Nicholas Nickleby (2012)
The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, is a comic-novel by Charles Dickens. Originally published as a serial from 1838 to 1839, it was Dickens' third novel. The novel centers on the life and adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, a young man who must support his mother and sister after his father dies. His Uncle Ralph, who thinks Nicholas will never amount to anything, plays the role of principal antagonist. Instantly disliking Nicholas, Ralph sends him to teach in a school run by the stupidly sadistic Wackford Squeers.
Added by: mikiduzza | Karma: 34.85 | Fiction literature | 17 December 2011
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Nicholas Nickleby is Dickens' commentary on the educational system in place in England when he was growing up. In it he uses "Dotheboys Hall" as the school setting where his main character, who is a teacher's aide, finally rebels at the evil of his boss and strikes out on his own. Another powerful social commentary, and one that led directly to legislation to correct the perceptions/situations Dickens identifies.
