Harrison Ainsworth Rookwood :: essays research papers

In the early nineteenth century, an interest in criminals and the common highwayman arose in Europe. Many magazines in London, such as Bentley’s Miscellany, Fraser’s Magazine, and The Athenaeum featured sections that were reserved for stories about highwayman and their numerous adventures. The growing interest in the subject inspired many authors to write about the various exploits of popular criminals and highwayman. Some prominent examples of this type of novel were Edward Bulwer’s Paul Clifford (1830) and Eugene Aram (1832); Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist (1838-39) and Barnaby Rudge (1841); and William Harrison Ainsworth Rookwood (1834) and Jack Sheppard (1839-40). Several of these novels were based upon famous crimes and criminal careers of the past (Eugene Aram, Dick Turpin in Rookwood, and Jack Sheppard); others derived from contemporary crime (Altick, 1970, p. 72). Although many authors chose to base their stories on criminals, William Harrison Ainsworth’s Rookwood and Jack Sheppard are two of the best examples of the theme of ‘crime and punishment’ in the nineteenth century.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ainsworth started his writing career as a writer of Gothic stories for various magazines. Gothic elements are included in Ainsworth’s novel: the ancient hall, the family vaults, macabre burial vaults, secret marriage, and so forth (John, 1998, p. 30). Rookwood is a story about two half-brothers in a conflict over the family inheritance. The English criminal who Ainsworth decides to entangle in Rookwood was Dick Turpin, a highwayman executed in 1739. However, echoing Bulwer, Ainsworth’s explanation for his interest in Dick Turpin (like Bulwer’s explanation in his choice of Eugene Aram as a subject) is personal and familial (John, 1998, p. 31). Though the basis of the novels seem similar, Ainsworth treated Dick Turpin in a different way than Bulwer treated Eugene Aram. Ainsworth romanticizes history, but basically sticks to the facts (as far as he knew them). Perhaps more importantly, Ainsworth does not pretend that the Turpin he invents is the real Dick Turpin, nor does he attempt to elevate Turpin’s social class status (John, 1998, p. 32). Ainsworth recalls lying in bed listening to the exploits of ‘Dauntless Dick’, as narrated by his father. Despite Ainsworth’s infatuation with the criminal, the real Turpin was no more interesting a character than an ordinary cat burglar. Besides highway robbery, his affairs included stealing sheep and breaking into farmer’ houses, sometimes with the aid of confederates; and he took a turn at smuggling (Hollingsworth, 1963, p. 99). Although Turpin appears in a considerable part of the novel, he really has no effect on the plot. He stole a marriage certificate, but the incident was not important