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Hard Times (version 2 dramatic reading)

by Charles DICKENS (1812 - 1870)

Book 1, Chapter 05, The Keynote

Charles Dickens' 1854 novel opens with the philosophy of education espoused by the eminently practical Mr. Gradgrind, who prizes "facts and calculations." He raises his children, most prominently Louisa and Tom, to eschew imagination and emotion and embrace order and reason. The results are disastrous: Louisa marries out of duty to the supposed self-made man Mr. Bounderby, while Tom grows up dissolute, ultimately commits theft and blames it on an unfortunate laborer, Stephen Blackpool. Set in the fictional Coketown, a mill town in the north of England, Dickens' novel satirizes capitalism, social mobility, class stratification, and Utilitarianism. This dramatic reading of the novel features a full cast of LibriVox volunteers, who lend their voices to Dickens' vibrant comic characters. (Summary by Elizabeth Klett)CastNarrator: Bob NeufeldMr. Gradgrind: Marty KrisSissy Jupe: J L RaimundoBitzer: mbGentleman: Tom CrawfordLouisa Gradgrind: Arielle LipshawMr. Bounderby: Andy MinterMrs. Gradgrind: Beth ThomasTom Gradgrind: Max KorlingeMr. E. W. B. Childers: David LawrenceMaster Kidderminster: Elizabeth KlettMr. Sleary: Ron AltmanMrs. Sparsit: Elizabeth KlettStephen Blackpool: Nigel BoydellRachael: Karen SavageMrs. Blackpool: Bev J. StevensMrs. Pegler: Sally McConnellJames Harthouse: Algy PugSlackbridge: John SteigerwaldVoice 1: syllyVoice 2: J L RaimundoJane Gradgrind: GoldfishWaiter: Nigel BoydellMan: Algy PugClown: Bev J. StevensText prepared by Arielle Lipshaw and Elizabeth KlettAudio edited by Elizabeth Klett

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Listen next episodes of Hard Times (version 2 dramatic reading):
Book 1, Chapter 06, Sleary's Horsemanship , Book 1, Chapter 07, Mrs. Sparsit , Book 1, Chapter 08, Never Wonder , Book 1, Chapter 09, Sissy's Progress , Book 1, Chapter 10, Stephen Blackpool , Book 1, Chapter 11, No Way Out , Book 1, Chapter 12, The Old Woman , Book 1, Chapter 13, Rachael , Book 1, Chapter 14, The Great Manufacturer , Book 1, Chapter 15, Father and Daughter , Book 1, Chapter 16, Husband and Wife , Book 2, Chapter 01, Effects in the Bank , Book 2, Chapter 02, Mr. James Harthouse , Book 2, Chapter 03, The Whelp , Book 2, Chapter 04, Men and Brothers , Book 2, Chapter 05, Men and Masters , Book 2, Chapter 06, Fading Away , Book 2, Chapter 07, Gunpowder , Book 2, Chapter 08, Explosion , Book 2, Chapter 09, Hearing the Last of It , Book 2, Chapter 10, Mrs. Sparsit's Staircase , Book 2, Chapter 11, Lower and Lower , Book 2, Chapter 12, Down , Book 3, Chapter 01, Another Thing Needful , Book 3, Chapter 02, Very Ridiculous , Book 3, Chapter 03, Very Decided , Book 3, Chapter 04, Lost , Book 3, Chapter 05, Found , Book 3, Chapter 06, The Starlight , Book 3, Chapter 07, Whelp-Hunting , Book 3, Chapter 08, Philosophical , Book 3, Chapter 09, Final