...AUTHOR British author Charles Dickens was born Charles John Huffam Dickens on February 7, 1812, in Portsmouth, on the southern coast of England. He was the second of eight children. His father, John Dickens, was a naval clerk. Charles Dickens’ mother, Elizabeth Barrow, aspired to be a teacher and school director. Despite his parents’ best efforts, the family remained poor. In 1822, the Dickens family moved to Camden Town, By then the family’s financial situation had grown dire, as John Dickens had a dangerous habit of living beyond the family’s means. Eventually, John was sent to prison for debt in 1824, when Charles was just 12 years old. Following his father’s imprisonment, Charles Dickens was forced to leave school to work at a boot-blacking factory alongside the River Thames. At the rundown, rodent-ridden factory, Dickens earned six shillings a week labeling pots of “blacking,” a substance used to clean fireplaces. It was the best he could do to help support his family. The horrific conditions in the factory haunted him for the rest of his life. Apparently, Dickens never forgot the day when a more senior boy in the warehouse took it upon himself to instruct Dickens in how to do his work more efficiently. For Dickens, that instruction may have represented the first step toward his full integration into the misery and tedium of working-class life. The more senior boy’s name was Bob Fagin. Dickens’s residual resentment of him reached a fevered pitch in the characterization...
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...Charles Dickens by, Charlotte Toal “Whatever I have tried to do in life, I have tried with all my heart to do it well; whatever I have devoted myself to, I have devoted myself completely; in great aims and in small I have always thoroughly been in earnest.” These inspirational words spoken by Charles Dickens are not what come to mind when people think of this remarkably talented and widely appreciated author, but his great and timeless works are. As a man of compassion, insight, and aptitude, the English author had many thoughts, both those he incorporated into his books, and those he did not. As a young boy in England, Dickens got a generous taste of hardship and suffering. Many poor families—like his—worked in factories. The particular factory, in which he worked for several years, was a shoe polish factory. While his father was in debtors’ prison, Dickens’ family moved away from him to be close to the prison. The twelve-year-old boy was forced to live alone and work. Although the first years of his life were neither the most pleasant nor advantageous, it was not always that way for Dickens. Though most present-day authors, business men, or politicians don’t establish themselves in a particular working venue or business until later in life, Charles Dickens became an accomplished freelance reporter and stenographer, and by age twenty he had become a reporter for two newspapers. Shortly after beginning his writing career, Dickens began submitting—and publishing—sketches...
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...- From the biography, what incident changed Dickens' life and helped to shape him as a writer? From reading the biography of Charles Dickens the incident that changed Dickens' life and shaped him to the writer he became was the traumatic events that occurred in his childhood. Dickens was psychologically scarred because his family was imprisoned and his traumatic experience working at the Warren's Blacking Factory. - How old do you think Pip is? From the first chapter of '' Great Expectation'', I believe Pip is a young boy between the age of 9 and 11. - Quote the specific language in the selection that leads you to this conclusion. The quotes that lead me to that conclusion were: ''... my infant tongue could make of both names nothing longer or more explicit than Pip'' ''...I drew a childish conclusion that my mother was freckled and sickly.'' These two quote made me assume that Pip was a young boy. - Reread the sentence highlighted in orange. Notice the intense descriptive language Dickens uses. What do you think is the author's purpose for including such an extraordinarily long descriptive sentence? From rereading the orange highlighted sentence I believe Dickens was trying achieve sympathy for Pip because he lost both his mother and father; and he also never knew them. - List 10 words from this same sentence that produce a frightening tone. 1- bleak - unwelcoming 2- overgrown - overrun 3- parish - territory 4- dead - deceased 5- burried - suppressed 6- dark...
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...Charles dickens English novelist generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens's works are characterized by attacks on social evils, injustice, and hypocrisy. He had also experienced in his youth oppression, when he was forced to end school in early teens and work in a factory. Dickens's good, bad, and comic characters, such as the cruel miser Scrooge, the aspiring novelist David Copperfield, or the trusting and innocent Mr. Pickwick, have fascinated generations of readers. Charles Dickens was born in Landport, Hampshire, during the new industrial age, which gave birth to theories of Karl Marx. Dickens's father was a clerk in the navy pay office. He was well paid but often ended in financial troubles. In 1814 Dickens moved to London, and then to Chatham, where he received some education. The schoolmaster William Giles gave special attention to Dickens, who made rapid progress. In 1824, at the age of 12, Dickens was sent to work for some months at a blacking factory, Hungerford Market, London, while his father John was in Marshalea debtor's prison. "My father and mother were quite satisfied," Dickens later recalled bitterly. "They could hardly have been more so, if I had been twenty years of age, distinguished at a grammar-school, and going to Cambridge." Later this period found its way to the novel LITTLE DORRITT (1855-57). John Dickens paid his £40 debt with the money he inherited from his mother; she died at the age of seventy-nine when he was still...
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...Dr. Taylor World Literature 14 April 2012 Charles Dickens Charles Dickens is one of the most known and famous authors from the 1800’s. He is better known as that guy who wrote A Christmas Carol . He is the most famous author born in the year 1812. He had a normal early childhood, but strange adolescence and young adulthood, and a strange adulthood. Charles John Huffam Dickens was born on February 7th, 1812. His parents were John and Elizabeth Dickens. Fred Kaplan says that even though Charles had the two middle names, he never used them and never forgave his parents for them (19). His father worked as a clerk in the payroll office for the Navy. He was born in No. 1 Mile End Terrace, Landport, Portsmouth England. “He was baptized on March 4th in St. Mary’s church near the modest, narrow house on the mile end terrace that his family rented” (Kaplan 19). His parents were not very good with money and had a lot of problems with debt. In fact, his father was sent to debtor’s prison when Charles was twelve years old. Even though Charles Dickens is a world famous author, he had very little formal education and was primarily self-taught. He did attend William Giles’ school in Chatham, Kent between the ages of nine and eleven. He loved to read and perform. In the fall of 1821 at the age of nine, he wrote a tragedy called Misnar, the Sultan of India and liked the attention he got for being an author (Kaplan 28). When he was twelve, Charles was forced to leave school and work...
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...At first, Dickens had started Great Expectations as a little humorous short story. Quoting Dickens himself from a accompanying note to the first installment: 'I have made the opening, I hope, in its general effect exceedingly droll. I have put a child and a good-natured foolish man, in relations that seem to me very funny.' This note does seem rather out of place - Admittedly, the beginning of the story is quite hilarious. But it seems awkward that he really intended for Joe to appear to the reader as a "foolish man." However, this sets the tone for a story which is at times funny, but equally sinister and often harrowing. One of the most striking things one encounters while reading the book, are the changes Pip goes through once he has moved to London to be raised a gentleman. He hardly writes to Joe or Biddy, the only two characters in the book who expressed their love for him, and also he only seems to care for money and status. I refuse to believe that this malice is inherent to Pip's character. As this story only focuses on Pip, I would like to think that something happened to him which made him in act in such a manner. This essay doesn't claim to know the story, or what Dickens' intended it to be. You, as a reader, do not have to agree on the theories found herein. All I ask of you is that you consider...
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...Charles John Huffam Dickens (/ˈtʃɑrlz ˈdɪkɪnz/; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's most memorable fictional characters and is generally regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian period.[1] During his life, his works enjoyed unprecedented fame, and by the twentieth century his literary genius was broadly acknowledged by critics and scholars. His novels and short stories continue to be widely popular.[2][3] Born in Portsmouth, England, Dickens was forced to leave school to work in a factory when his father was thrown into debtors' prison. Although he had little formal education, his early impoverishment drove him to succeed. Over his career he edited a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas and hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles, lectured and performed extensively, was an indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned vigorously for children's rights, education, and other social reforms. Dickens sprang to fame with the 1836 serial publication of The Pickwick Papers. Within a few years he had become an international literary celebrity, famous for his humour, satire, and keen observation of character and society. His novels, most published in monthly or weekly instalments, pioneered the serial publication of narrative fiction, which became the dominant Victorian mode for novel publication.[4][5] The instalment format allowed Dickens to evaluate his audience's reaction...
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...Charles John Huffam Dickens was born on February 7, 1812 to John and Elizabeth Dickens. Charles was the second of eight children. Charles parents became debtor prisoners and during that time, at the age of twelve Charles went to live with a family friend Elizabeth Rylance. There Charles attended a private school for three years. In May 1827 Charles worked as a junior clerk for the law offices of Ellis and Blackmore. In 1832 at the age of 20 Charles submitted his first story A Dinner at Poplar Walk. As a young man Charles also mastered shorthand, and before long was employed as a Parliamentary reporter. In 1836 at the age of 25 he started working at Pickwick Papers. At Pickwick Papers he published many of his novels in monthly installment in the paper. The first of these installments were from the novel Oliver’s Twist, which would later be published in 1838. Some of Charles Dickens other novels include Nicholas Nickleby, The Old Curiosity Shop, A Christmas Story, David Copperfield, Bleak House, Hard Times, A Tale of Two Cities, Great Expectations, and Our Mutual Friend. Charles Dickens first love was a woman by the name of Maria Beadnell, after Maria’s parents disapproved of their courtship Maria was sent away to school in Paris. On April 2, 1836 after a one year engagement Charles married Catherine Thomson Hogarth. Together Charles and Catherine would have 10 children and be together for 18 years. In 1857 however Charles would hire Ellen Ternan to star in one of his plays and...
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...Charles Dickens Questions 1. From the biography, what incident changed Dickens' life and helped to shape him as a writer? · His father was imprisoned and he was forced to work at Warren’s Blacking Factory 2. How old do you think Pip is? · Seven 3. Quote the specific language in the selection that leads you to this conclusion. · “As I never saw my father or my mother, and never saw any likeness of either of them (for their days were long before the days of photographs), my first fancies regarding what they were like, were unreasonably derived from their tombstones.” “I drew a childish conclusion that my mother was freckled and sickly.” 4. Reread the sentence highlighted in orange. Notice the intense descriptive language Dickens uses. What do you think is the author's purpose for including such an extraordinarily long descriptive sentence? · He wanted the reader to be able to “see” the churchyard in which Pip was standing, as well as the man who was approaching him. 5. List 10 words from this same sentence that produce a frightening tone. Now choose synonyms to substitute for these words you have selected and rewrite the sentence with the words you have chosen. Is your new sentence as effective as Dickens'? Explain why you think it is or is not. · Bleak- dreary · Overgrown- overrun · Dead- deceased · Dark- gloomy · Flat- level · Leaden- grim · Savage- rugged · Lair- den · Rushing- surging · Shivers- tremors · At such a time I found out for certain, that this...
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...‘Hard times’ is a dawdling but captivating novel by Charles Dickens, first published in 1854. The book is a state-of-the-nation novel, which aimed to highlight the social and economic pressures that some people were experiencing. Unlike other such writings at the time, the novel is unusual in that it is not set in London (as was also Dickens' usual wont), but in the fictitious Victorian industrial town of Coke town, often claimed to be based on Preston. In ‘Hard Times’ Dickens shows his dislike for education in the Victorian age. He shows his dislike in many different ways through out the novel. Some examples of these are through Mr. M Gradgrind, the Schoolroom and also through the meaning of names. Dickens describes Mr. Gradgrind as a cold, machine like character. The only thing he taught was “Facts, facts and more facts”. Dickens uses Mr. M Gradgrind in this way to put across his message of how Young children are treated in the Victorian education system. In Hard times Dickens uses the meaning of names to describe how the Characters act and to get his point across. The name “Mr. M Choakumchild” Suggests that If the child does not do what do what they are told them he would Garrote them. Also the Name of the other Hard, Mean teacher “Mr. Gradgrind” Implies to the reader that the teacher will crush the student in to the ground if they do not do what they are told. Also, Dickens uses the setting of the School room to portray a certain message. He describes the Classroom as...
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...“No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another”, is a quote from one of the greatest authors of the 19th century, Charles Dickens. He was a famous novelist whose unique writing style is greatly praised by readers and still praised to this day. But how did Dickens come up with such a unique writing style? Simply, from his life events. Dickens’s early years of traumatizing debt and to his rise to fame for his weekly journals helped influence his writing style which contribute to his legacy as one of the greatest English novelist. Charles Dickens’s childhood was greatly spent outdoors. His family constantly moved around England, but the most influential location was London. In London, Dickens saw what city life was like...
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...Throughout Charles Dickens’ book “Oliver Twist” the author elaborates on one main theme, the failure of charity. The first part of Oliver Twist takes into account the charity organizations run by the church and the government. The system Dickens describes in his book, explains that the poor could only receive government help if they moved and worked in government workhouses. Residents of those workhouses were compared to inmates whose rights were taken away for the price of food and shelter. Labor was required, and rations of food and clothing were slim. The workhouses operated on the principle that poverty was the equivalent to laziness and that the awful conditions in the workhouse would inspire the poor to better their own lives. The economic situation of the Industrial Revolution made it impossible for many to do so, and the workhouses did not provide to help with the social and economical adjustment upward. As Dickens points out, the government agencies who ran the workhouses violated the values they spoke of to the poor. Dickens describes with a sarcastic tone that of the greed, laziness, and arrogance of charitable workers like Mr. Bumble and Mrs. Mann. Charitable institutions only played on the awful conditions in which the poor would live anyway. Making orphan children like Oliver Twist start work at a very young age. Never giving him a chance to move up in the world. The book first opens with a look on how the poor must live and the conditions of the work houses...
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...Sketches by Boz “The Streets - Morning” The Victorian London streets is a familiar setting of Dicken's works with “Oliver Twist” and “A Christmas Carol” being some his most memorable works. In this passage Dickens offers the reader an alternative London, one without the energetic crowds but instead a much more disquieting place where the streets are dull and lifeless. We are met with a silent neighbourhood before the sun has risen and through the use of characters, setting and comparisons the reader receives a rich picture of the sunless streets. The passage begins with the introduction of the Victorian London scene on a summer morning. The reader is taken by surprise by the opening sentence where “The streets of London on a summer's morning” are described to be “most striking”. Dickens' interesting choice of words places the pre-dawn London scene in the summer, a time of warmth and sun, however we are offered a nineteenth century London that is typically portrayed with a bleak, grey backdrop. Few people roam this neighbourhood apart from those “whose unfortunate pursuits of pleasure, or scarcely less unfortunate pursuits of business, cause them to be well acquainted with the scene.” This leads to the belief that each summer's morning starts off like this, colourless and melancholy; the people who happen to be awake at this dreary hour are the rogues who remain. Each just as depressed as the other, and both's search for something more than the blind acceptance of a morose...
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...Charles Dickens In Charles Dickens’s Oliver Twist Nancy prepares to escape from the torment of Bill Sikes, not realizing she is being followed by a subordinate of Sikes. She meets Mr. Brownlow and provides details about Monks, letting him know that she intends to help Oliver escape. This information is relayed to Sikes and shortly thereafter, Nancy is beaten to death. Nancy is a morally ambiguous character who wrestles with making the right decisions. She serves as a common Dickens character who tries to do right but gets crushed by a cruel world. In Dickens’s world, people grow and change over time and can be easily influenced by the world’s vices. People enter the world innocent and rational, but as they age, society seeks to break them. Still, Dickens believes that some, like Nancy, can free themselves from society’s influence and become more compassionate. Dickens lauds those who reflect the created order by showing concern for the needs of others, regardless of social standing or background; he also believes that humans can become corrupted by the world, so discovering inherent goodness is a struggle. People enter the world innocent and rational, and society quickly preys on them. Society strives to form each person into what it wants, changing how people grow over their lives. Scrooge of A Christmas Carol was once compassionate towards others and becomes hard-hearted after tragic events. He lost a sister and grew stingier, driving those in his life away. He comes to...
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...Great Expectations, like the majority of Charles Dickens' fiction, contains several autobiographical connotations that demonstrate the author's keen observational talents. Pip, the novel's protagonist, reflects Dickens' painful childhood memories of poverty and an imprisoned father. According to Robert Coles, "there was in this greatest of storytellers an unyielding attachment of sorts to his early social and moral experiences" (566). Complementing Dickens' childhood memories of crime and poverty was his legal training, reflected in the characterizations of lawyers and the abundance of criminal activity that hovers around the world of Great Expectations. Charles Dickens' father, John, made little money working as a clerk in England's Navy Pay Office (Coles 564). John's low salary, combined with a severe spending problem, would eventually land him in debt. As a consequence, John was placed into debtors' prison. As was the custom of the time, John was forced to bring his family along with him (Coles 564). It was 1824 and young Dickens was only 12 years old (Coles 564). To help his father out of debt, Charles worked under the horrible conditions of a blacking factory (Collins 15). According to Edmund Spenser, quoted in Phillip Collins' Dickens and Crime, these events "lie behind the loneliness, disgrace, and outlawry which pervade all his novels" (15). Collins concurs: It is a commonplace that his sympathy for suffering and neglected children, which lies at the root...
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