February 7th 2012 marked the bicentenary of Charles Dickens’ birth; at the University Centre Folkestone this May, there will be a seminar and discussion on one of Dickens’ best loved novels, Great Expectations, which was recently adapted into a three part series on BBC One.

Exploring Great Expectations Thursday 3rd May 2012 6pm FREE ENTRY

Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations is a novel grown from Kentish soil at whose core is a satisfyingly simple yet richly resonant parable of a young boy’s entrance into the world. Distilled into it are years of deep reflection on what it means to grow up and what the world into which Dickens himself had come was like. All of this makes it the perfect book in which to examine its author’s continuing claims on our attention in 2012, the year that sees the bicentenary of his birth. Dr Peter Merchant, Principal Lecturer in English at Canterbury Christ Church University, will offer a résumé of the novel and a discussion in which all readers of Great Expectations—past or current—are welcome to join.

To book a place, please email lucy.dearden@canterbury.ac.uk

University Centre Folkestone offers degrees and Foundation degrees in subjects including Performing and Visual Arts, Dance Education, Creative Writing, Arts Management and Early Years education.