Great Expectations 1997
Distributed by Discovery Channel School
Produced by Jan Albert
Director n/a
DVD, color and b&, 60 min
Jr. High - Adult
Literature
Date Entered: 06/18/2004
Reviewed by Maureen Puffer-Rothenberg, Valdosta State University, Valdosta, GAThis installment of Discovery Channel School’s Great Books series covers Great Expectations (1860), Charles Dickens’ novel about a poor boy who rises to a life of wealth. The novel’s major plot points, primary devices and themes are introduced through dramatizations (many from movie adaptations dating from the silent era through 1998), numerous archival photographs, and vintage pen-and-ink illustrations.
The program notes the novel’s classic themes: the downtrodden orphan seeking a home; an individual’s rise from poverty to wealth; class divisions and the value of being part of the leisure class; and prisons both real and psychological. Dickens’ two original endings are contrasted with the less ambiguous and happier endings used in film adaptations. Extensive biographical material links Dickens’ childhood poverty, rise to celebrity, and romantic life with the novel’s themes.
Accessible and entertaining commentary is provided throughout by Dickens experts George Newlin, Douglas Broyles, Michael Slater, and David Parker, actor Ethan Hawke, film director Alfonso Cuaron, novelist John Irving, and Linda Hooper of the University of California’s Dickens Project.
Added features include an index dividing the program into four sections; six “thematic units” addressing specific topics; and a slide show of seven captioned, key images. A “Teacher Resources” section merely directs viewers to the included 12-page teacher’s guide, and to the Discovery School Web site.
This program is highly recommended and will be useful for instructors from middle school through introductory college classes. It is also appropriate for viewing by individual students doing independent research.