The Life of the Famous Author Charles Dickens

Charles John Huffman Dickens was born on February 7, 1812 to John and Elizabeth Dickens. Dickens went through a difficult childhood that contained a jar full of worries that far transcended of an average boy due to unstable family conditions. (biography.com). As a young child, it didn’t stop him from anything, Dickens found peace and comfort through the use of his imagination. In 1822, the Dickens family moved to a poor neighborhood in Camden Town, London.

Charles Dickens own experiences of growing up in poverty in Victorian Era London, are likely to have pushed him to pursue the themes in his novel A Christmas Carol. His father was sent to prison for not paying his debts, which left Dickens the job of producing the family income at the age of 12, giving him a firsthand view of poverty and the struggles that come with it. These events seemingly effected Dickens greatly, and Dickens novels were likely his form of charitable work, as the messages scribed within, brought to light the vast disparity between the rich and poor in this era. Dickens shows clearly that there is a definite class distinction between the poor and the rich through the uses of his characters and their characteristic throughout

“The range of his creative activity is, in the first place, limited to the world of his youth” (Cecil 169). This quote explains many people. What has previously happened to a person has a tremendous impact on them. It can affect their decisions, emotions, and life. The life of a person can sometimes be seen quite easily through what they do. Artists often reveal what their life has been like through the works that they create. The same can be said about writers. Events in authors past often show up in his works. The above quote is, in fact, made in regard to Charles Dickens.

Many writers are famous for showing how life was like in that specific era. Much like To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee shows how life was in the south, and the racism going on. For Charles Dickens he shows the life of England in the Victorian Era. Especially showing the poverty, and ridiculing the government about not focusing on it. This style of writing represents this unique Victorian era the best of its kind, and gives the reader a better knowledge of the subject when reading Dickens. So if a school would like to learn about England in the 1800’s they should read his novels. This reason is why Dickens had so much popularity, Collins, Philip. “Charles Dickens: British Novelist.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., 29 Aug. 2017,

Charles Dickens was an avid and influential writer from the 19th century and continues to stay alive within classrooms presently. He was exposed to all types of art which allowed him to grow as a future legend in the literature world. Dickens and his ideas, characters and famous quotes have helped mold present day literature. He was born on February 7, 1812 in the city of Portsmouth, England. His favorite works of literature were Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes, Arabian Nights and Tom Jones by Henry Fielding. These novels all dealt with adventurous plots playing more into Dickens’ internal character. Dickens first worked in a blacking warehouse and later continued his education at the Wellington House Academy. Dickens grew up with a rough

Charles Dickens’ classic novella A Christmas Carol, focuses on the social responsibility of the wealthy to help the poor and less fortunate. Dickens, having lived in poverty as a child, knew of the many struggles of the lower class of London. As an author, he made it his goal to reform England as best he could. Many of his works ran in his weekly journal, Household Words, including "Christmas Stories" and Great Expectations. In a Christmas Carol, Dickens stresses the point that the writers of that time carried a special burden to speak out for those who lived in poverty and couldn't speak out for themselves.

First of all, Dickens wrote the book during the 1840s. During this time many Londoners were in poverty. He worried especially for the health and well-being of children. By writing a novel that promoted the need to help others, Dickens could raise awareness for this dilemma. So, that is exactly what he did. To Dickens, it was important to watch over other people, especially during Christmas time. In fact, he had a taste of living in poverty, himself. Perhaps that is why he cared about child labour so much. Although his childhood was not as difficult as others, his family still had to overcome hardships of their own. His father was unable to pay his debts and was sentenced to prison. Without their father working, their family had to no income. This forced Dickens to stop going to school,

London. His parents were John Dickens, a naval clerk, who always lived beyond his means.

Charles John Huffam Dickens, known commonly as Charles Dickens was born on February 7, 1812 in Portsmouth England to his parents, John and Elizabeth. Aside from his parents, Charles had seven other siblings. By 1822, the family was located in a poor area of London called Camden-Town. Charles father was constantly in debts, so in 1824 he was put in the Marshalsea debtor's prison when Charles was just 12. Charles was soon taken out of school and forced to polish shoes to support the family. This is where Charles first experienced poverty and vigorous labor, possibly contributing to some of the themes in the novel Tale of Two Cities. After his father was released from prison, Charles went on to study shorthand. Soon after, he worked as a newspaper

Charles Dickens is one of the most renowned British writers with well-known and widespread work. Dickens was born in England in 1812 and died in 1870. During this time, Victorian England experienced an Industrial Revolution, which impacted his life tremendously. New factories and industrial machinery changed many lives of the lower class citizens. The family grew up impoverished and struggled to maintain a good lifestyle. The family’s financial situation was strained as John Dickens, Charles’s father, spent money that the family didn’t have. These societal factors were influential in Charles Dickens’s life, and the same themes present themselves in his works. When an author creates a work, frequently themes of their life events are incorporated into the theme of the book, consciously or unconsciously. Victorian Age industrial-influenced strife was a common theme in Dickens’s life and presented itself throughout Dickens’s books.

recollections of early life were centered in Kent and he often regarded himself as a member of that region (Kaste 9). Dickens was sent to work at the age of twelve in Worren's Blacking Warehouse. After his father's release he went back to school.. When school was complete he went to work in an attorney's office. He spent much of his time exploring the busy and varied life of London and decided to become a journalist. He mastered a difficult system of shorthand and by March 1832, at the age of twenty, he was a general and

The oldest of eight children, Charles Dickens was born in Portsmouth in 1812. Dickens experienced a very traumatic childhood which included the ordeal of seeing two of his brother pass away. John Dickens, his father, worked as a clerk in the Navy Pay Office, due to his occupation, the Dickens family had to move a lot. Financial problems led to the imprisonment of John Dickens, who couldn't afford to look after all his family. The whole of Charles Dickens' family soon followed in suite, except for Charles himself though. Instead Charles was taken out of school and made to work in a filthy warehouse, sticking labels on bottles of boot-black for long

Charles Dickens is one of the most influential writers in history and was “born in Landport, now part of Portsmouth, on February 7th, 1812”(Priestly 5). Despite being the successful writer that he was in life, Dickens had very humble beginnings and because his Father, John Huffman Dickens, “lacked the money to support his family adequetly” , Dickens lived in poverty through out most of his childhood (Collins). Matters only got worse, however, when Dickens’s Father had to “spen[d] time in prison for debt” causing Dickens to have to “work in a London factory pasting labels on bottles of shoe polish” (Collins). It was a horrible experience for him, but it also helped him to no doubt feel pity for the poor, which is

In Hard Times, Dickens presents life philosophies of three men that directly contradict each other. James Harthouse sees one’s actions in life as meaningless since life is so short. Mr. Gradgrind emphasizes the importance of fact and discourages fantasy since life is exactly as it was designed to be. Mr. Slearly exhibits that “all work and no play” will make very dull people out of all of us. He also proclaims that one should never look back on one’s life and regret past actions. Dickens is certainly advocating Sleary’s life philosophy because the subjects of the other two philosophies led depressing and unhappy lives. This is made clear when Louisa realises her childhood of fact without fancy has ruined her, when Tom’s life falls apart after leaving his father’s home in rejection of his strict parenting, and when Mr. Gradgrind himself realises the faults in his own philosophy and devotes the rest of his life to virtue and charity.

Charles Dickens came from a working class background and was taken away from his family to work in a dirty, filthy warehouse. Some of his brothers and sisters died when they were young. He did not have a good childhood. All his work, his novels were based on the main characters being poor, working class, uneducated with some sort of disability.