critics was Karl Bleibtreu who, during the
fifty years between 1875 and 1925, offers
a characteristic example of the attitude
assumed by many intellectuals in Germany
during this period. Bleibtreu's criticism
was usually rather trenchant.
Thus even Dickens' more realistic works
appeared to him to be 'as far from the
realities of life as it was possible to be.' In
his opinion Dickens was providing his
readers with 'fairy tales' rather than with
realistic accounts.
He furthermore reproached Dickens for
not providing enough intellectual ballast as
a counterweight to the emotional qualities.
To Bleibtreu, Dickens was a man 'with no
education whatsoever, trivial and superfici
al in everything he wrote the moment he
tried to step below the surface of everyday
life'. He was also rather contemptuous on
Dickens' strict moral standards. Above all
he scorned Dickens' reserve on sexual
matters. Bleibtreu, when writing about the
fate of Little Em'ly could find in it not
hing but 'an exaggerated fuss over a com
mon matter'. 'The seduction of a fisher
man's daughter is, without doubt, nothing
to be laughed at, but even so it is somet
hing that must be expected and that hap
pens frequently. Dickens treats it as if the
very world had come to an end.'
It is no wonder that the naturalist Bleibtreu
took exception to Dickens' plots: 'Unex
pected inheritances, advantageous marria
ges, a sudden discovery of noble blood or
kinship - all the usual requisites of family
literature are there.' Nor can Dickens
resist the popular betrothal at the end:
'The hero and the heroine are joined in
holy matrimony and everybody lives hap
pily ever after!
Bleibtreu's humourless criticism even
showed no mercy to Dickens' lovable
eccentrics and harmless madmen. He
blamed the popularity of such comic figu
res on the peculiarities of the English:
'Such a gallery of curiosities could be
admired abroad only of the prevalent craze
for anything droll; every Englishman is an
eccentric, and these comic cranks are
merely true representatives of their race.'
Dickens' evil characters fared little better;
'they seem to be carrying a notice round
their neck 'Beware of Pickpockets". Such
a procedure puts one in mind of a common
method used for acting the part of Richard
III: a series of excruciating grimaces plus
sounds resembling a raven's croaking
Real life is far more complicated and
subtle.
Bleibtreu also believed that Dickens, when
delineating his characters, lacked the
ability 'to examine the intimate intricacies
of the human soul through the microscope
of psychological analysis. Hardly a single
one of his characters can be truly said to
live.'
It can hardly surprise that Bleibtreu also
found fault with Dickens' narrative techni
que.
An exaggerated fuss over a common matter
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