One of Britain's greatest ever writers, Charles Dickens is most associated with Victorian London
and in particular the misery and poverty we call Dickensian, so he has not — up until now — been
much used as a literary brand. Now on an industrial estate in the rather run down town of
Chatham in Kent where the writer grew up, Dickens World is opening, a theme park dedicated, so
it says, to giving a flavour of life in Dickens's England.
The centrepiece is a boat ride through an elaborate interactive stage set of picturesque slums
and their associated smells, to bring back an illusion of real Victorian life — and misery. It has
caused a familiar debate of entertainment versus education. While critics have attacked the
trivialisation of Dickens's legacy, the organizers reply that the writer was a great popular
entertainer who would have heartily approved of such a theme park.
The critics say the real Dickens experience is in the books — and trips down fake Victorian
sewers won't get people reading. But it is of course ultimately a business proposition, investing
120 million dollars, and predicting 300,000 visitors a year. That shows a lot of confidence in both
the pulling power of Dickens and of theme park versions of misery and poverty.
A5. Dickens's World shows the life of people in Dickens's England.
1) True 2) False 3) Not stated
А6. The theme park doesn't reproduce the real life described in Dickens's books.
1) True 2) False 3) Not stated
A7. The critics say that people don't like reading Dickens's books.
1)True 2) False 3) Not stated
A8. The organizers predict that a lot of visitors will come to the theme park.
1) True 2) False 3) Not stated