A comparative study of the dramatic and narrative versions of Charles Reade's 'It Is Never Too Late To Mend'

Abstract

This thesis makes a detailed study of Charles Reade's It Is Never Too Late To Mend, a best-selling novel and a highly successful play, in order to illuminate both Reade himself and his public.Since Reade was determined to, in his own words, 'make a hit', he consciously evaluated and utilized contemporary tastes. Examining the materials he chose and his way of using them tells us much about Reade and his method of work; but, in addition, such a study also tells us much about his public.The thesis is divided into two main sections. The first section sets Reade's work in its literary and social context. A chapter deals with his aspiration to become a dramatist; examines the claim that he was a forerunner in the school of realistic dramaj and concludes that he was too bound by the conventions of Victorian melodrama to be considered innovative. The last chapter of this section gives a history of It Is Never Too Late To fiend from its beginnings as an unsuccessful melodrama called Gold.The second section of this thesis makes a close comparison between the script of Gold (produced at Drury Lane in 1853), the novel (published 1856), the script of It Is Never Too Late To Mend (first produced in 1865), and a later version of the same script prepared for the 1874 production starring Ellen Terry. This comparison examines how Reade handled his material for the different forms of play and novel; it describes the public response to each version; notes the alterations he made as he tailored the work to suit changing interests and notes too the elements that remain constant in all versions, which are as significant as the alterations in a work which can be seen as a touchstone of Victorian taste.