Introduction

Written for publication as a serial, "The Pickwick Papers" is a sequence of loosely-related adventures. The action is given as occurring 1827–28.

Main Character

The novel's main character, Samuel Pickwick, Esquire, is a kind and wealthy old gentleman, and the founder and perpetual president of the Pickwick Club.

Plot and Themes

To extend his researches into the quaint and curious phenomena of life, he suggests that he and three other "Pickwickians" (Mr Nathaniel Winkle, Mr Augustus Snodgrass, and Mr Tracy Tupman) should make journeys to remote places from London and report on their findings to the other members of the club. Their travels throughout the English countryside by coach provide the chief theme of the novel.

Features of the Work

A distinctive and valuable feature of the work is the generally accurate descriptions of the old coaching inns of England… (Excerpt from Wikipedia)