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Oliver Twist is not the only famous orphan that Dickens created. Philip Pirrip, also known as Pip was another orphan kid that Dickens brought to life. Pip appears in Great Expectations; it is a coming of age novel.

Pip narrates his story many years after the events of the novel take place. He grows up in the marshlands of Kent, where he lives with his disagreeable sister and her sweet-natured husband, the blacksmith Joe Gargery. Pip is immature, kind and ambitious at the same time. He grows to be a gentleman towards the end of the novel.

Dickens throws light upon the societal conditions of the time along with Pip’s growth from childhood to adulthood. He also exposes the financial, moral and emotional states of Pip. In fact, Pip is one of the most popular characters in the whole of English literature.

A Tale of Two Cities is a historical novel that is set during the French Revolution. The two cities mentioned in the title are London and Paris. The novel is political in nature; it revolves around Sydney Carton and the sacrifice of his own life on behalf of his friends Charles Damay and Lucie Manette.

Carton is portrayed as a brilliant, yet depressed cynic who views himself as a wasted man. Though his love for Lucie Manette is unrequited, she nevertheless inspires him to try to be a better person. Towards the end of the novel, Carton manages to change places with her husband Charles Darnay hours before Darnay’s scheduled execution in France, thus giving his life for Lucie’s sake. Later, Lucie and Charles honour Carton by naming their second son after him.

A Tale of Two Cities is one of the best historical novels ever written. In 2003, the novel was ranked 63rd on the BBC’s The Big Read Poll.

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David Copperfield is popular not only because of its quality; it was also Dickens’s favourite novel. Needless to say, the novel is about David Copperfield and his life until his middle age. It is about his adventures and the numerous friends and enemies he meets along his way. It is often described as Dickens’s masterpiece.

The novel is about David’s growth and maturity from infancy. David goes through different stages of development and his personality transforms different people come and go in his life.

David Copperfield is the testimony of Dickens’s talent in narrating personal histories in a coherent manner. He was also able to bring in social changes like schooling for children and reforms in child labour through his penmanship.

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Many of us know of Oliver Twist, an orphan boy with a pure heart, raised in horrible surroundings. He lives a tough life in search of security and happiness. He is a true child hero.

Oliver Twist is the hero of Dickens’s Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy’s Progress. Oliver Twist is born in a workhouse and is sold off as an apprentice to a cruel undertaker. With much difficulty, he escapes from the undertaker and flees to London where he meets the ‘Artful Dodger’ who invites him to stay at the house of a ‘gentleman’.

Oliver Twist later learns that his benefactor is a member of a gang of juvenile pickpockets led by the elderly criminal named Fagin. Here begin the adventures of Oliver Twist.

In a series of events, he is arrested, released, chased by Fagin and his gang, finds his half-brother and at last inherits a large fortune. Dickens wrote Oliver Twist to illustrate his belief that poverty leads to crime.

He was well-acquainted with the poverty of London and had sound understanding of the cruel treatment of orphans and London’s under-world. The novel was first published in a serialised form from 1837 to 1839.

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Have you heard of Twelfth Night? It is one of Shakespeare’s finest comedies. Let us now talk about Viola, the protagonist of the play.

Sebastian and Viola are twins who are unfortunately separated during a shipwreck off the coast of Illyria. Each of them believes the other to be dead. Viola disguises herself as a boy named Cesario and enters the service of Duke Orsino, who soon becomes fond of her. Viola falls in love with Orsino, who is already in love with Lady Olivia. Orsino sends Viola disguised as Cesario- to confess his love for Olivia. Olivia falls in love with the messenger instead.

Meanwhile, Sebastian returns and in a turn of events, Orsino falls in love with Viola and Sebastian marries Olivia. A lot of comical events unfold while the true identities of the twins are exposed.

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King Lear is the tale of a king who bestows his power and land to two of his three daughters, after they declare their love for him in a flattering manner. His third daughter Cordelia however does not receive any of these privileges as she does not follow her sisters’ path in flattering the king.

It did not take much time for the king to realise the impact of his bad decision. He is treated with disrespect by the two daughters who now have his wealth and power, and he becomes furious to the point of madness. He flees his daughters’ houses along with his Fool and a trusted nobleman during a thunderstorm. The king eventually reconciles with Cordelia.

Cordelia, who married to the king of France, invades her motherland for the sake of her insane father. But she is defeated and captured along with King Lear. With a heavy heart, he dies with Cordelia’s body in his arms. The play is based on the legend of Leir of Britain, a mythological pre-Roman Celtic king.

Which is your favourite Christmas story? Well, there are many stories set during Christmas. The one of Ebenezer Scrooge's Christmas holidays unfolds in Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol, the defining tale of Christmas in the English language.

Scrooge is an elderly miser who dislikes Christmas. The story opens on a Christmas Eve, seven years after the death of his business partner, Jacob Marley. Scrooge first turns down his nephew’s dinner invitation and turns away two men who came for donations. He gives his clerk a day off, only because of the social custom.

Things change when Marley’s ghost visits him that night, followed by three other spirits-Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas Future! The Ghost of Christmas Future terrifies Scrooge by showing him visions of his own death. The ghosts’ journey through time teaches Scrooge the error of his ways.

When he wakes up on Christmas Day he is a changed man, full of the joys of Christmas.

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All of you must have heard about Cleopatra, the Egyptian queen: she is known around, the world for her beauty and leadership.

Shakespeare has given life to this great historical figure in his play Antony and Cleopatra, a play about the relationship between Mark Antony and Cleopatra.

Mark Antony, a Roman military leader and triumvir, is in love with Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt. However, he is already married to Fulvia, a Roman lady.

While he is in Egypt with his love, he receives a message that says his wife is dead and he must return to Rome.

There, Antony marries his fellow triumvir Octavius’s sister, in an attempt to end their political rift. But peace is short-lived and war breaks out between them again, when Antony returns to Cleopatra.

Octavius has the upper hand and most of Antony’s friends switch sides. The play ends in tragedy with both Antony and Cleopatra killing them.

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The play The Tempest is famous for many reasons. It is about Prospero, the rightful duke of Milan who had been deposed by his brother Antonio and cast away on a boat along with his daughter Miranda. This happens twelve years before the play begins.

The play is primarily set on an island. Prospero learns sorcery and uses it to protect Miranda. He also uses it to control other characters. At last, Prospero takes revenge and with his magic, he makes his brother stranded on an island before returning to Italy. The play also pictures some other characters like Ferdinand, a prince from a wrecked ship who eventually falls in love with Miranda, Caliban a savage monster figure, and Ariel, a friendly spirit.

The Tempest is one of the last plays written by Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written in 1610.

Have you heard the story of a Venetian merchant named Antonio who has to pay a large sum of money to Shylock, a Jewish moneylender? Antonio and Shylock are from Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. It is Portia’s intelligence that saves Antonio from the clutches of Shylock. Needless to say. Portia is the protagonist of the play.

Portia is the heiress of Belmont, known for her beauty, intelligence and quick wit. She is in love with Antonio’s friend, Bassano. Antonio borrows money from Shylock to help Bassanio woo Portia. Shylock lends the huge sum on one condition- that he could take a pound of Antonio’s flesh if he fails to repay the sum!

Hearing that Antonio’s ships have been lost, Shylock goes to court in an attempt to extract his dues. But Portia disguises herself as a young lawyer and argues that Shylock is entitled to take the flesh but not to spill a drop of blood. Her wit saves Antonio.

The play ends on a happy note with Antonio’s ships reappearing.

It is believed that Shakespeare wrote Othello in 1603. This play too is a tragedy that revolves around Othello, a Moorish general in the Venetian army, and his treacherous ensign, lago. As some of you might already know, a Moor is a native of North Africa.

A general with great military feats, Othello was married to Desdemona, the daughter of a Venetian senator Brabanzio. While on a mission in Cyprus, his ensign lago manipulates Othello to believe that Desdemona was cheating on him. A vengeful Othello kills his wife only to realise later that he was manipulated. A heartbroken Othello then kills himself. Jealousy leads to his tragic downfall.

Othello is portrayed in the play as a plainspoken, honest man. He is brave and celebrated which becomes the source of lago’s intense hatred for him- lago is one of Shakespeare’s most sinister villains. Othello’s status as an outsider leaves him vulnerable to the plots of lago.

 

Romeo is believed to be the ideal lover and his name became the synonym of the passionate male lover in various languages.

Romeo, the son of Lord Montague is smitten by the beauty of Juliet Capulet, and both of them instantly fall in love. Unfortunately, Juliet belongs to a rival family and her marriage is already arranged by her father. With the help of Juliet’s nurse, Friar Lawrence gets Romeo and Juliet married secretly, but Romeo’s attempt to halt a street fight leads to the death of Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt and Romeo’s banishment.

Lovesick and desperate, Juliet fakes her death to reunite with Romeo, following the advice of the Friar. However, the message fails to reach Romeo and he takes his life in her tomb believing that Juliet died. Juliet wakes to find Romeo’s lifeless body near her and kills herself. These tragic events put an end to the feud between the families.

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Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s four great tragedies. The main character Macbeth is a brave Scottish general. A trio of witches he once meets foretells that one day; Macbeth will become the King of Scotland.

Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders King Duncan, the Scottish king and takes the throne for himself. His ambition however does him no good. Wracked with guilt and paranoia, he commits more and more crimes to protect himself and his throne, soon becoming a tyrannical leader.

The ambition behind his rise becomes the reason for his tragic fall too; his kingdom is swept by a civil war that pushes Macbeth and Lady Macbeth to realms of madness and eventually death.

Lady Macbeth is one of Shakespeare’s most famous and frightening female characters; she is a powerful presence in the play though her role diminishes towards the end.

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AII of you might have heard the phrase, ‘you too Brutus?’ But did you know that Shakespeare wrote this line for his famous play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar? It is one among several plays written by Shakespeare based on true events from Roman history, such as Coriolanus and Antony and Cleopatra.

The play is based on the translation of Plutarch’s Parallel Lives, originally written in French. It chronicles the events that happen after Caesar’s return to Rome. Cassius forms a conspiracy among Roman republicans against Caesar, fearing his ambition. He persuades a reluctant Brutus, Caesar’s trusted friend, to join them.

Though Caesar possessed great leadership skills, he had many flaws as well. He believed that he was as eternal as the North Star. It was because of this baseless belief that he ignored bad omens and threats against his life. As a result, he was slain in the Senate on the Ides of March.

His friend Mark Antony gives a stirring funeral speech that inspires the crowd to turn against the conspirators. Octavius, Caesar’s great-nephew, forms a triumvirate with Antony and Lepidus. In the turn of events, Brutus and his friend Cassius are eventually defeated at the Battle of Philippi, where they kill themselves to avoid further dishonor.

Shakespeare is famous for creating scores of characters that have stood the test of time including Prince Hamlet, one of the greatest characters ever created. Prince Hamlet is the hero of The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark.

This play is widely recognized as one of the most powerful plays in the history of English literature.

Prince Hamlet is the son of King Hamlet who is killed in the beginning of the play by his brother Claudius. The play begins with the ascension of Claudius to the throne after a hasty marriage to Gertrude, Hamlet’s mother. His father’s ghost appears in Hamlet’s dream asking him to avenge his death by killing Claudius, the murderer. Hamlet’s indecisiveness ends tragically resulting in his death.

Hamlet is a thoughtful young man whose indecisiveness and confusions often end in impulsive acts. His actions indirectly lead to the death of many including his mother Gertrude- who is poisoned by Claudius- and his love Ophelia. Hamlet was written between 1599 and 1601. Frailty, thy name is woman’, and ‘To be or not to be’ are some of the famous lines from this drama.

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