Charles Dickens, the greatest representative of English critical realism, was born in 1812 at Portsmouth. When he was four years old, his family moved to Chatham, where he spent his happy boyhood. In 1821 Dickens’s father was taken to the prison for debt. Shortly afterwards the 12-year-old Charles was sent to work in a factory. His miserable life in the factory left an ever-lasting, painful brand on the boy’s mind.
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 such as The Pickwick Papers, Bleak House,
David Copperfield, Oliver Twist, Christmas Carol
and hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles.
Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age. His characters were often so memorable that they took on a life of their own outside his books.
Dickens worked intensively on developing arresting names for his characters that would attract
his readers, and assist the development of themes in the
storyline, giving what one critic calls an "allegorical impetus" to the novels' meanings. For example, the
name Mr. Murdstone in David Copperfield indicated twin
allusions to "murder" and stony coldness. Dickens
literary style is also a mixture of fantasy and realism. His satires of British aristocrats—he calls one character the Noble Refrigerator—are often popular. He also
compared orphans to stocks and shares, people to tug boats, or dinner-party guests to furniture.
Dickens’s novels are set in realistic environment. His
characters represent all aspects of society from beggars,
criminals and orphans to factory owners. This critically realistic description of Victorian working class life is perhaps the very essence which makes Dickens one of the greatest authors of all time.
If you are interested in cd’s work, you can refer to the reading of mould 8 unit 1. thank you.
Charles Dickens, the greatest representative of English critical realism, was born in 1812 at Portsmouth. When he was four years old, his family moved to Chatham, where he spent his happy boyhood. In 1821 Dickens’s father was taken to the prison for debt. Shortly afterwards the 12-year-old Charles was sent to work in a factory. His miserable life in the factory left an ever-lasting, painful brand on the boy’s mind.
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 such as The Pickwick Papers, Bleak House,
David Copperfield, Oliver Twist, Christmas Carol
and hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles.
Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age. His characters were often so memorable that they took on a life of their own outside his books.
Dickens worked intensively on developing arresting names for his characters that would attract
his readers, and assist the development of themes in the
storyline, giving what one critic calls an "allegorical impetus" to the novels' meanings. For example, the
name Mr. Murdstone in David Copperfield indicated twin
allusions to "murder" and stony coldness. Dickens
literary style is also a mixture of fantasy and realism. His satires of British aristocrats—he calls one character the Noble Refrigerator—are often popular. He also
compared orphans to stocks and shares, people to tug boats, or dinner-party guests to furniture.
Dickens’s novels are set in realistic environment. His
characters represent all aspects of society from beggars,
criminals and orphans to factory owners. This critically realistic description of Victorian working class life is perhaps the very essence which makes Dickens one of the greatest authors of all time.
If you are interested in cd’s work, you can refer to the reading of mould 8 unit 1. thank you.