Trying to Be Funny Again (Great Expectations, Part 1)

The Norton Library Podcast

The Norton Library Podcast
Trying to Be Funny Again (Great Expectations, Part 1)
Apr 06, 2026 Season 4 Episode 14
The Norton Library

In Part 1 of our discussion on Charles Dickens's Great Expectations, we welcome editor Daniel Wright to discuss the author's busy and eventful life, the historical context and social issues behind his creation of Great Expectations, and the three entangled plots of which readers should be aware when first encountering this text. 

Daniel Wright is an associate professor of English at the University of Toronto. He is the author of The Grounds of the Novel (Stanford, 2024) and Bad Logic (Johns Hopkins, 2018).

To learn more or purchase a copy of the Norton Library edition of Great Expectations, go to https://wwnorton.com/books/9781324046721

Learn more about the Norton Library series at https://wwnorton.com/norton-library.

Have questions or suggestions for the podcast? Email us at nortonlibrary@wwnorton.com or find us on Twitter at @TNL_WWN and Bluesky at @nortonlibrary.bsky.social

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