Friends group offers presentation on Dickens’ promotional efforts
In addition to being a prolific novelist, journalist, dramatist, actor, editor and public speaker, Charles Dickens (1812-1870) was an unusually resourceful promoter and marketer of his writing.
The Friends of the Joplin Public Library and Dr. William (Bill) Kumbier will present “My Dear Friends: The Wealth of Ways Charles Dickens Worked to Reach His Audiences” at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6, at the library, 1901 E. 20th Street.
Starting with The Pickwick Papers and Sketches by Boz and all through his last unfinished work, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Dickens energized and expanded the customary mode of serial publication, overseeing the monthly and sometimes weekly new episodes of his novels as they developed. Each novel then appeared in book form, which then reappeared in one or more editions of his complete works published during his lifetime.
“He was one of the first to design editions of his work that could be sold in railway terminals for travelers on England’s burgeoning rail system,” says Kumbier. “Over the last decade or so of his life, he took his work in person to large and enthusiastic audiences in Britain, Canada and the United States, giving an astounding number of popular public readings.”
During his presentation, Kumbier will discuss the many ways Dickens reached audiences, and offer a brief reading from David Copperfield that Dickens composed specifically for reading tours.
A professor of English and philosophy, Kumbier received his Bachelor of Arts in English from Michigan State University, followed by a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University at Buffalo. He taught at Iowa State University before joining the faculty at Missouri Southern State University in 1989, retiring in 2020.
Admission is free and open to the public, though attendees are invited to make a donation to support Friends of the Joplin Public Library.
A nonprofit organization, the Friends of the Joplin Public Library was founded to provide financial support beyond the library’s operating budget. Membership is open to individuals, families, businesses and other organizations regardless of card-holder status or city of residence.