Select two brief extracts of two short fiction and compare and contrast the functions in those works.

Extract One, from Horatio Sparkins (1834) by Charles Dickens:

At twelve oclock on the following morning, the fly was at the door at Oak Lodge, to convey Mrs Malderton and her daughters on their expedition for the day. They were to dine and dress for the play at a friends house. First, driving thither with their band boxes, they were to go to Redmaynes in Bond Street; thence, to innumerable places that no one ever heard of. The young ladies beguiled to tediousness of the ride by eulogising Mr Horatio Sparkins, scolding their mamma for taking them so far to save a shilling, and wondering whether they should ever reach their destination. At length, the vehicle stopped before a dirty-looking ticketed linen drapers shop, with goods of all kinds, and labels of all sorts and sizes, in the window. There were dropsical figures of sevens with a little three-farthings in the corner, perfectly invisible to the naked eye; three hundred and fifty thousand ladies boas, from one shilling and a penny halfpenny; real French kid shoes, at two and ninepence per pair; green parasols, at an equally cheap rate; and every description of goods, as the proprietors said and they must know best fifty per cent under cost price. Lor! ma, what a place you have brought us to! said Miss Teresa, what would Mr Sparkins say if he could see us! Ah! what, indeed said Mrs Marianne, horrified at the idea. Pray be seated, ladies. What is the first article? inquired the obsequious master of the ceremonies of the establishment, who, in his large white neckcloth and formal tie, looked like a bad portrait of a gentleman in the Somerset House exhibition. I want to see some silks, answered Mrs Malderton.

Directly, maam. Mr Smith! Where is Mr Smith? Here, sir, cried a voice at the back of the shop. Pray make haste, Mr Smith, said the M.C. You never are to be found when youre wanted, sir. Mr Smith, thus enjoined to use all possible dispatch, leaped over the counter with great agility, and placed himself before the newly arrived customers. Mrs Malderton uttered a faint scream; Miss Teresa, who had been stooping down to talk to her sister, raised her head, and beheld Horatio Sparkins! We will draw a veil, as novel writers say, over the scene that ensued. The mysterious, philosophical, romantic, metaphysical Sparkins he who, to the interesting Teresa, seemed like the embodied idea of the young dukes and poetical exquisites in blue silk dressing down, and ditto ditto slippers, of whom she had read and dreamed, but had never expected to behold, was suddenly converted into Mr Samuel Smith, the assistant at a cheap shop; the junior partner in a slippery firm of some three weeks unexpected recognition, could only be equalled by that of a furtive dog with a considerable kettle at his tail.1

Extract Two, from The Three Strangers (1883) by Thomas Hardy:

It was eleven oclock by the time they arrived. The light shining from the open door, a sound of mens voices within, proclaimed to them as they approached the house that some new events had arisen in their absence. On entering they discovered the shepherds living-room to be invaded by two officers from Casterbridge gaol, and a well-known magistrate who lived at the nearest country-seat, intelligence of the escape having become generally circulated.
1

Charles Dickens. Michael Slater (Ed). Dickens Journalism. Sketches By Boz and Other Early Papers. 1833 -39. (J.M Dent, 1994), P.357-58

Gentlemen, said the constable I have brought back your man not without risk and danger; but every one must do his duty. He is inside this circle of ablebodied persons, who have lent me useful aid considering their ignorance of Crown work. Men, bring forward your prisoner. And the third stranger was led to the light. Who is this? said one of the officials. The man said the constable. Certainly not, said the turnkey; and the first corroborated his statement. But how can it be otherwise? asked the constable. Or why was he so terrified at the sight o the signing instrument of the law who sat there? Here he related the strange behaviour of the third stranger on entering the house during the hangmans song. Cant understand it, said the officer coolly. All I know is that taint the condemned man. Hes quite a different character from this onea gauntish fellow, with dark hair and eyes, rather good-looking, and with a musical bass voice that if you heard it once youd never mistake as long you lived. Whysoulstwas the man in the chimney-corner! Heywhat? said the magistrate coming forward after inquiring particular from the shepherd in the background. Havent you got the man all? Well sir, said the constable, hes the man we were in search of, thatd true; and yet hes not the man we were in search of. For the man we were in search of was not the man we wanted, sir, if you understand my everyday way; for twas the man in the chimney-corner. A pretty kettle of fish, altogether! said the magistrate. You had better start for the other man at once. The prisoner now spoke for the first time. The mention of the man in the chimney-corner seemed to have moved him as nothing else could do, Sir, he said, stepping forward to the magistrate take no more trouble about me. The time is come when I may as well speak. I

have done nothing: my crime is that the condemned man is my brother. Early this afternoon I left home at Shottsford to tramp it all the way to Casterbridge gaol to bid him farewell. I was benighted, and called here to rest and ask the way. When I opened the door I saw before me the very man, my brother, that I thought to see in the condemned cell at Casterbridge. He was in this chimney-corner; and jammed close to him, so that he could not have got out if he had tried, was the executioner whod come to take his life, singing a song about it, and not knowing that it was his victim who was close by, joining in, to save appearances. My brother threw a glance of agony at me, and I knew he meant Dont reveal what you seemy life depends on it. I was so terror-struck that I could hardly stand, and not knowing what I did I turned and hurried away.2

Thomas Hardy. Wessex Tales, (Oxford University Press, 2009), p.28

The motivations behind each of the climaxes in Horatio Sparkins (1834) by Charles Dickens and The Three Strangers (1883) by Thomas Hardy (extracts One and Two) share the common ambition to surprise the reader. Analysing the texts through the dimensions of audience, narrative, historical and class divide, distinct differences and even some similarities can be distinguished between the texts. Through these aforementioned factors, the methods both writers use to construct distinct revelations can be exposed. Using this research the different processes can be identified to discover why Hardy chooses a different method of dnouement to Dickens.

These stories were written primarily for entertainment with The Three Strangers being originally published in Longmans Magazine and Harpers Weekly in March 1883 and Horatio Sparkins in The Monthly Magazine in February 1834; the readership of these publications consisted predominately of educated classes who would expect a well rounded and comfortable narrative. The commonality of both Horatio Sparkins and The Three Strangers is the solidity in the construction of the plot, which has a universal appeal. This has lead to numerous productions of Hardys short story, often retitled The Three Wayfarers, Wilsons analysis elucidates the reasons for the adaptations success:

The story itself has a combination of ironic humour, circumscription of event and suspense that make it easily adaptable to the demands of dramatic ironic and dramatic unity, especially of the type required in the limited scope of a one act play.3

Keith Wilson. Hardy and the Hangman: The Dramatic Appeal of The Three Strangers, (English In Transition, 1981), p. 159

The circumscription of event, as with the majority of one act plays and short stories, the revelation is possibly the crucial point that decrees the narrative as copacetic. Wilsons comment could equally be applied to Horatio Sparkins in regards to the composition of Dickenss narrative. The understanding of this structure was understood by the prolific filmmaker Van Dyke Brooke when he directed Mr Horatio Sparkins (1913). Dyke Brooke was known around this period for his short films consisting of morality tales with melodramatic twists and happy endings, such as in his comedies Fathers Hatband (1913) and A Happy Sisterhood (1914). Mr. Horatio Sparkins was typical of his work because these remits of his criteria to produce a successful movie were fulfilled.

Dramatic unity and ironic humour is perhaps no better executed than in the plays of William Shakespeare. Shakespeare provided a canon for both the author and the contemporary audience to draw upon. Thomas Hardy even wrote a poem, To Shakespeare, which encapsulates his admiration. According to Jim Davies, Dickenss novels contain hundreds of references to nearly all of Shakespeares plays4. The character Horatio Sparkins can be likened to the Earl of Kent in King Lear. Sparkins does not change his name like Kent does (to Caius) but both live a double life. Dickens would most likely have thought the problematic consequences axiomatic if Sparkins had changed his name. The sudden exposition would not work and complicate the plot, losing both comedic and dramatic impact. Oscar Wilde in his play The Importance of Being Earnest, exploited the changing of a name to the maximum ability. The character John Worthing pretends to be called Ernest Worthing so he, like Horatio Sparkins can lead a double life. Another parallel is Worthing also gets caught in his deception leading to a comical moment. The similarity of Earnest and Horatio Sparkins, regarding the construction of narrative is the build up to the crescendo.
4

Paul Schlicke (ed) The Oxford Companion to Charles Dickens. Anniversary Edition . (Oxford University Press, 2011), Jim Davies, drama and dramatists and dramatists before Dickens, p.194

The most overt technique is the repetition of the characters name throughout. This creates a common hook for the reader to follow so even the unobservant reader cannot help but notice. This can be observed in both climaxes; the anagnorisis of Jacks name being Ernest all along and the revelation of who Horatio Sparkins really is.

The dramatic unity that occurs in Extract Two is reminiscent of a Shakesperian play like Hamlet, where multiple strands of the plot come together in the final act. Fredson Bowers observes in his analysis of Shakespeares dramatic structure that the protagonist is integral to the climax of the story:

Let us over-simplify the case and take it that if the main plot concerns the affairs of a protagonist, as ultimately it must, the technical climax, or turning point of the actionwhether for good or for illmust necessarily affect that protagonist and his affairs.5

The protagonist in Horatio Sparkins is Teresa Malderton. The reader has learned her expectations and speculations surrounding the enigmatic Horatio Sparkins. The audience share the same journey as Miss Malderton. The reader cannot help but also hypothesise his occupation, if only because her and her family and friends keep asking the question. The revelation is made using carefully crafted linguistic devices: Miss Teresa, who had been stooping down to talk to her sister, raised her head, and beheld Horatio Sparkins!6. The use of parataxis is important for the surprise to work effectively. Many other authors reserve this literary device solely for the dialogue of their characters. Dickens is a master of parataxis, a

Fredson Bowers. Climax and Protagonist in Shakespeares Dramatic Structure , (South Atlantic Review, Vol 47, No. 2), (May, 1982), p.24 6 Charles Dickens. Michael Slater (Ed). Dickens Journalism. Sketches By Boz and Other Early Papers. 183339. (J.M Dent, 1994), p.358

technique which he often employs in the body of the text as in the former example. Dickens also effectively uses parataxis for his characters throughout his writing. Alfred Jingles comical speech in the second chapter of The Pickwick Papers (1836) is an outstanding example:

Here, No. 924, take your fare, and take yourself offrespectable gentlemanknow him wellnone of your nonsensethis way, sir where's your friends?all a mistake, I seenever mindaccidents will happenbest regulated familiesnever say diedown upon your luck Pull him UPPut that in his pipelike the flavourdamned rascals. 7

The audience does not know what Mr Jingle is going to say next, due to his fragmented and haphazard speech. The reader becomes accustomed to this mode of patterning and conditioning to Dickenss style only shortly before with the extensive list of items in the tailors shop. Using the authoritive narrator, Dickens intention is catch the reader off guard to produce the most compelling climax possible. At the end of what seems to be an arbitrary sequence of actions from Miss Teresa, the pace has been set and the abrupt stop caused by the isolation of his name and the framing with the exclamation mark and an em dash. By using these elaborate linguistic devices Dickens is able to create the most dramatic effect possible.

The difference in the composition of The Three Strangers, is the revelation is more gradual in the unravelling of the plot. Thomas Hardy has a particular fascination of setting his characters on paths of convergence (his poem Convergence of the Twain (1912) about the sinking of Titanic explicitly explores this concept). Hardy creates a complex narratological

Charles Dickens. The Pickwick Papers. (The Amalgamated Press, 1905), P.9

web with many threads, opposed to Dickenss single strand. This is clear in the difference in time between the two stories; the fifty years between The Three Strangers and Horatio Sparkins. The Industrial Revolution at this time created a higher standard of education in comparison with previous generations; consequently, stories with a twist became more predictable. The premise of the prisoner being among them is evident to the reader in this extract. Up until this point in The Three Strangers a mixture of red herrings have been placed throughout the narrative to subvert the sceptical reader into drawing false conclusions. There is a state of confusion in the mind of the reader in what is occurring. Through the Constables comical vernacular, what he calls his everyday way, the reader is beguiled and confused to the state of affairs in this scene. Hardy is keeping the audience guessing and wishes to exploit the situation for humour.

Hardy also violates the decorum of literary realism with his cinematic eye for what one critic calls the exuberant density of the big scene. He is a dab hand at the carefully staged spectacular.8

This comical prelude is a preamble for the big scene. There is a distinct tonal shift after the farce between the magistrate and the constable. The scene becomes serious as the revelation of events is spoken by the prisoners brother in a confessional tone. The characters motivations are confessed in a monologue culminating in the explanation to previous events. His register is higher than the rest of the Wessex characters. Hardy purposely emphasises the contrast between the characters educated background and being related to such a felon. This also allows the writer to use clarity in this crucial conundrum. At the end of the prisoners brothers speech, the author ensures that there is no ambiguity to this really being

Terry Eagleton. The English Novel. An Introduction. (Blackwell Publishing, 2005), P.208

the case of events and there are no plot twists left by having everyone in the room agree. This contrasts to the characters impetuses in Horatio Sparkins, which are self-evident. Dickenss characters are ostensibly stereotypes rather than fully fleshed out people. This works for Dickenss humour and his fun conceit but Hardy has a sense of tragedy behind his comedy.

His writing dramatizes the tension in English class-society between subtle but overabstract form of speech, and a concrete but constructed one The divisions of that society, in other words, are inscribed in the very letter of Hardys work.9

In both extracts the complicity of the readers expectations are prejudiced by the issue of class. Mr. Horatio Sparkins works as a shop assistant. Even though the tailors are a high end store, the revelation that he is not a person of prestige is the storys punch line. The humour and dramatic tension derives from this conceit of class bias. In this context, Eagleton is incorrect when he comments:

Dickens was no revolutionary, though he was an ardent, tireless reformer. He was never the kind of threat to Victorian society that Thomas Hardy was. His views on education were fuzzily libertarian, and he disliked both patrician hauteur and middle-class pomposity.10

Hardy was not a threat to Victorian society either. Both Dickens and Hardy loathed pretention and ostentation as Horatio Sparkins and The Three Strangers overtly convey. These extracts expose the hypocrisies of expectations, emanating from pressures of class and
9

10

Terry Eagleton. The English Novel. An Introduction. (Blackwell Publishing, 2005), P.208 Terry Eagleton. The English Novel. An Introduction. (Blackwell Publishing, 2005), P.162

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social status. Oscar Wildes Ernest is also of good standing. The notorious Lady Bracknell approves marriage to her niece, Gwendolyn on this basis. Horatio Sparkins has no such reprieve and does not marry into the upper classes. The dnouement of both short stories rely on punctuating the class tensions as part of their humour. The conclusion is distinctly different in both texts. Hardy spends several hundred more words rounding up his narrative, Dickens takes a couple of paragraphs. The audience of both writers expect a satisfying closed ending where little is left to the imagination. Hardy has practical considerations to being winding up his and tying up various loose ends. The straightforward plot in Horatio Sparkins is means there is little need to prolong the story, once the revelation occurs.

We will draw a veil, as novel writers say[...]11 By 1834 Dickens had not yet published a novel. The author in rupturing the verisimilitude with the personal pronoun we, is appeasing the reader. In this observatory humour the writer is acknowledging his self-awareness of the surprise he has sprung on the reader, ultimately, the purpose of the story. A search through the archive of Dickenss oeuvre reveals he never uses this idiom again. This is one of the countless reasons why he became one of the greatest and certainly popular novelists in history, because he avoided such tiresome clichs without the sense of irony. What may be considered as historical irony is that many of Dickenss neologisms have become overused phrases in the modern English lexicon.

In view of this detestment for superciliousness among the upper classes, both styles of writing are writing for the middle and lower classes. The stories encapsulate the feeling of Victorian class anxieties. The unfolding of the climax is more sombre and heartfelt in The Three Strangers to Horatio Sparkins. The savvy audience have slightly different
11

Charles Dickens. Michael Slater (Ed). Dickens Journalism. Sketches By Boz and Other Early Papers. 183339. (J.M Dent, 1994), P.358

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expectations. They both want entertainment but Dickenss simplistic format would be less appreciated by 1883. Hardys interwoven plot is unexpected for the modern audience in comparison to the mechanical trap device in Dickenss short tale.

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Bibliography

Armstrong, Tim (ed). Hardy, Thomas. Selected Poems. (Pearson Education Limited, 2009)

Barry, Peter. Beginning Theory: An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory. Third Edition. (Manchester University Press, 2009)

Bowers, Fredson. Climax and Protagonist in Shakespeares Dramatic Structure, (South Atlantic Review, Vol 47, No. 2), (May, 1982)

Dickens, Charles. The Pickwick Papers. (The Amalgamated Press, 1905)

Dickens, Charles. Slater, Michael (Ed). Dickens Journalism. Sketches By Boz and Other Early Papers. 1833-39. (J.M Dent, 1994),

Eagleton, Terry. The English Novel. An Introduction. (Blackwell Publishing, 2005)

Hardy, Thomas. Wessex Tales, (Oxford University Press, 2009)

Kramer, Dick (ed). The Cambridge Companion to Thomas Hardy. (Cambridge University Press, 2005)

Reed, John R. Dickenss Hyperrealism. (The Ohio State University, 2010)

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Schlicke, Paul (ed). The Oxford Companion to Charles Dickens. Anniversary Edition. (Oxford University Press, 2011), Davies, Jim drama and dramatists before Dickens.

Shakespeare, William. King Lear (Penguin, 1996)

Shakespeare, William, Troilus and Cressida. (Forgotten Books, 1957)

Wilde, Oscar. The Complete Works of Oscar Wilde, (HarperCollins, 2003)

Wilson, Keith. Hardy and the Hangman: The Dramatic Appeal of The Three Strangers, (English in Transition, 1981)

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