THE LIFE AND WORKS OF CHARLES DICKENS
According to Edgar Johnson, in the novels of British writer CharlesDickens (1817-1870) "there is evidence that his troubled childhood left itsmark upon the man and his works. The sense of power and the self-assertion,combined with an inadequacy for self-criticism, were perhaps compensationsfor the frustrations of his early years" (26). Generally considered as oneof the greatest writers of the Victorian era, Charles Dickens' novels "arecharacterized by attacks on social evils, injustice and hypocrisy" (Booksand Writers, Internet) which may be a reflection of his lower middle-classupbringing. In addition, Dickens is "probably the best known and mostpopular of British 19th century novelists," due to not only "the quality ofhis writing. . . but also to the widespread adaptation of his work for thestage and screen" (Catharton Authors, Internet). Though born on the South coast of England, Dickens was quite youngwhen his parents brought him to live on the outskirts of London. His fatherwas an ineffectual person with much debt that landed him in prison; hismother Elizabeth taught him to read early in life and some of the popularnovels which he read were Tom Jones, The Vicar of Wakefield, Don Quix
At this time, Dickens had his share of hardships andhumiliations but also small triumphs. But in 1859, Dickens, inspiredby the French Revolution, offered to his readers A Tale of Two Cities, hissecond effort in historical fiction. As Angus Wilsonpoints out, through the eyes of David Copperfield "we see the Murdstonesand Aunt Bessie Trotwood, the Micawbers, Dora and her family and UriahHeep, all of which are exemplary characters that cannot be found in anyother Dickens novel" (342). After a visit to the United States, Dickens published American Notes(1842) which was by no means altogether hostile but served as a foretasteof what followed in Martin Chuzzlewit (1843-44) in which Dickens painted apicture of American vulgarity, boastfulness and dishonesty that wounded andoffended his American admirers. In that year, he began hislast novel The Mystery of Edwin Drood which was interrupted with themystery unsolved by his death. In 1856, his marriage to Catherine ended and Dickensthen proceeded to his immediate success for all that is was worth, for "theliterary life of London was then opening up a vast market for fictionwritten exclusively for the cheap markets in monthly or serial parts inmagazines" (Peare, 167). In essence, Oliver Twist"reflects Dickens' attitude that the novel should be an instrument ofsocial reform" (Jackson, 189). Dickens' "impression of the world around him began to appearin periodicals in 1833 and in 1836 were gathered together as Sketches byBoz, Illustrative of Every-Day Life and Every-day People" (Watts, 153). Dickens then turned to the completion of Oliver Twist (1837-38) whichcontained "some of the effects of modernization and urbanization coupledwith Gothic devices borrowed from the melodrama of the popular stage"(Wilson, 214). An immense number of characters arewonderfully explored and never before or after did Dickens picture morevividly the London streets, the quiet of the law courts, the horrors of thecity graveyards and the gruesome and degraded atmosphere of old housestainted with old crimes. By avoiding the strainsassociated with original composition as a writer, Dickens underwent theeven worse strain of public readings into which he threw himself with allthe force of his emotional temperament. By 1833, Dickens' "first piece of original writing. and its acceptance gave him the keenest joy he had ever known"(Gissing, Internet).
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