Saturday Symposium event will celebrate famed author Charles Dickens

11:36 a.m., Jan. 17, 2012--University of Delaware alumni and friends are invited to attend a special Saturday Symposium on Feb. 18 in honor of the 200th anniversary of the birth of the famed author Charles Dickens. 

The "Celebrating Mr. Dickens" program will include faculty talks on Dickens and his world, a tour of two special exhibits on Dickens in the University of Delaware Library and a performance of the author's most celebrated public reading, Sikes and Nancy.

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"All over the world, lovers of Dickens are commemorating the 200th anniversary of his birth this February. The Saturday Symposium is UD's contribution to this celebration," said Iain Crawford, acting chair of the Department of English.

Crawford added, "Designed for anyone who has read and been moved by his work, the event will showcase UD faculty experts in 19th-century literature, the talents of the Resident Ensemble Players, and the rich resources of the Morris Library. We expect it will be a day that is both stimulating and entertaining for all those who attend."

The symposium will begin at 10:30 a.m. in 103 Gore Hall on the UD campus in Newark.

Following coffee, Margaret D. Stetz, the Mae and Robert Carter Professor of Women's Studies and professor of humanities at UD, will speak on the topic “He Wanted a Wife and a Family: Charles Dickens and Women.” 

The second speaker will be Thomas Leitch, professor of English and director of the Film Studies Program, who will discuss “Dickens, Dickens, and Adaptation.”

Following the two morning sessions, a buffet lunch will be served. Participants will then visit the Morris Library and tour exhibits of rare books and Dickens memorabilia in Special Collections and in the Mark Samuels Lasner Collection.

Exhibits to be viewed include "Dickens at 200: 1812-2012" in the Special Collections Gallery on the second floor of Morris Library and "Dickens and the Late Victorians" in the Mark Samuels Lasner Collection in 115A Morris Library. The exhibits are curated by Samuels Lasner, senior research fellow at the University of Delaware Library, and Jaime Margalotti, senior assistant librarian.

The third talk of the day will be by Heidi Kaufman, associate professor of English and Jewish Studies, who will speak on “The Fagin Myth.”

Following Kaufman’s talk and a break for coffee and tea, Crawford will introduce Dickens’ public recitals and a performance by Mic Matarrese of UD’s Resident Ensemble Players of Sikes and Nancy, the reading that most deeply thrilled Victorian audiences.

The symposium will conclude at 4:30 p.m.

The cost is $50 per person. Registration for the first 25 students or staff is free, with lunch not included. Space is limited.

For details or to register, see the UDconnection Saturday Symposium website.

The symposium has been made possible through the generous support of Mark Samuels Lasner and the assistance of the University of Delaware Library.