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Charles Dickens's expert eye for detail enabled him to describe many medical conditions in his writings. Dickens also suffered with a number of medical conditions which will be discussed in detail during the lecture.
'When well-appareled April on the heel / Of limping winter treads'. A calendar month cannot dress, nor can a season walk. This lecture will explore the magic of personification in Shakespeare's poetry.
Amongst all his astronomical allusions, Shakespeare demonstrates a deep knowledge of the night sky and its movements, including the new Copernican world-view. What can we learn of Elizabethan astronomy and Shakespeare's knowledge of it from the plays?
Dickens' use of exaggeration is key to his style. But its use has myriad effects from making a character's disposition unmissable, to adding whimsy and humour.
Queen Victoria was the first constitutional monarch. The Crown had become the symbol not only of British nationhood but also of Empire. How did this come about?