Crime, class, and ambition drive the plot ofGreat Expectations, one of Charles Dickens’s most powerful novels. In this five-session Reading Group, we’ll debate key themes and issues, view related manuscripts and books in the Rosenbach’s collection, and talk about the novel’s reception over time - from its publication in 1861 to its inclusion in Oprah’s Book Club in 2010.

The group will be led by Assistant Professor Rachel Sagner Buurma of Swarthmore College. Professor Buurma’s expertise is in the areas of Victorian literature and culture, the history and theory of the novel, literary and cultural theory, and the history of books.

Click here to view the reading group syllabus.

Click here to learn more about Reading Groups at the Rosenbach.