Of all of the Dickens scenes that we read this semester, one in particular stands out\u2014Nancy Sikes death scene.\u00a0 In fact, in all of the subsequent works by Dickens, there was never anything quite as shocking or grotesquely, vividly depicted as that particular murder.\u00a0 As Bill confronts Nancy, his blood is boiling.\u00a0 Her blood runs cold.\u00a0 She pleads against his anger for her life\u2014but he simply bludgeons her. Again. And again. And again.\u00a0 And as the sun rises to reveal the horror of Bill\u2019s actions\u2014the blood of death drips from the ceiling, sunlight dancing as it reflects and refracts.<\/p>\n
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But why?\u00a0 What is the point of such vivid horror?\u00a0 Theories abound on the internet that it was modeled after an actual murder, and Dickens himself loved the scene so much that he often acted it out on stage with so much energy that his close friends blamed it for his early death.\u00a0 It is perhaps most interesting, because 19th century England did not have the same sort of fascination with violence and murder that a modern audience would. We spend our time watching CSI and Law and Order re-runs\u2014or even the serial-killing work of Dexter\u2014soaking up the blood like sponges, reveling in both justice well served, and crime well committed.\u00a0 But why would Dickens have felt compelled to include such a scene in his own novel? I won\u2019t pretend to have an answer to that question, but it\u2019s interesting to think about all of the ways in which Dickens was ahead of his time\u2014perhaps his bloodlust was too.<\/p>\n
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Of all of the Dickens scenes that we read this semester, one in particular stands out\u2014Nancy Sikes death scene.\u00a0 In fact, in all of the subsequent works by Dickens, there was never anything quite as shocking or grotesquely, vividly depicted … Continue reading