charles dickens a biography… quick stats born on february 7, 1812 born in english seaport town of...
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Quick StatsQuick Stats
Born on February 7, 1812Born in English seaport town of PortsmouthMarried Catherine (Kate) Hogarth in 1836He and his wife had 10 childrenDivorced Catherine (Kate) Hogarth in 1858Died June 9, 1870
Family History- FatherFamily History- Father
John Dickens had numerous jobs, including Naval Pay Officer when Charles was born
– “an optimist—he was like a cork—if he was pushed under water in one place, he always ‘bobbed up to time’ cheerfully in another and felt none the worse for the dip”
Never a good provider for the family Arrested for debt on February 20, 1824, which put
the whole family in jail except for Charles and his older sister Fanny
Inspired character- Mr. Micawber of David Copperfield
Family History- MotherFamily History- Mother
Elizabeth Dickens- gifted with “an extraordinary sense of the ludicrous”
At one point, tried to start a school to help out with family financial troubles…it failed
Deeply hurt Charles when he was young and she saw no problem in him working 12 hour shifts at work.
Inspired character- Mrs. Nickleby in Nicolas Nickleby
The Younger YearsThe Younger Years
Was one of 8 childrenFamily moved oftenBest time of young life was five years
(1817-1822) spent in Chatham, England– Gad’s Hill Place
Moved to London in 1822Forced to work pasting labels onto bottles
in 1824 once his father was put in jail
Younger Years Continued…Younger Years Continued…
When working as a child, he would work 12 hour shifts for very little pay– This time in his life would prove to haunt him
for the rest of his days– “No words can express the secret agony of my
soul…even now, famous and happy, I…wander desolately back to that time of my life.”
Formal education ended at age 15
Teenage-20’sTeenage-20’s
Began working as a clerk at the office of Ellis and Blackmore at the age of 15– Hated this job– Began learning shorthand
Became freelance court reporter and was considered one of the best
Began publishing stories in his early twenties, collected as Sketches by Boz in 1836
Publishing samplesPublishing samples
The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club (first story March 31, 1836)
Oliver Twist (1837-1839, 1838) Nicholas Nickleby (1838-39, 1839) A Christmas Carol (Dec. 17, 1843) Dombey and Son (1846-48, 1848) David Copperfield (1849-50, 1850) Hard Times (1854) Tale of Two Cities (1859) Great Expectations (1860-61, 1861)
Random FactsRandom Facts
He was shocked by the rude manners of Americans on his visits…he hated spitting
Friends with great men like Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Forster
He made his fortune through “readings” of his work– The public would come together to listen to him read
his work– He was known as a brilliant speaker/actor
His DeathHis Death
Suffered a massive stroke three months after his final reading at St. James’ Hall
Died the following day, June 9, 1870 Half way through with his final work Edwin
Drood Longfellow wrote: “I never knew an author’s
death to cause such general mourning. It is no exaggeration to say that this whole country is stricken with grief”
Buried in Poet’s Corner, Westminster Abbey
Victorian LondonVictorian LondonExplosive
growth led to filth
SanitationTravel and
the streetsThe poor
Dickens’ EnglandDickens’ England
- The setting of the novel begins in 1775
- 1780’s England was Peaceful and prosperous
Political and literary radicals imported ideals of French Revolution.
Social inequalities Fear of revolution
persisted in Dickens' day
Industrial Revolution
Dickens’ EnglandDickens’ EnglandUnderclass:
– Ignored by society– No rights– Could not vote in
elections– Could not form
unionsUpperclass
– Feared educating the poor
– Liked the cheap labor
English tradition was peaceful protest
Progression of 19th century brought riots and property destruction.
Revolution never arrived
– Reform parties– 1832 Reform Bill– 1867 helped smother
fears
A Tale of Two CitiesA Tale of Two Cities
Dickens' 12th novel
Serialized in All the Year Round in weekly parts from April 30 to November 26, 1859
The NovelThe NovelDickens writes his novel to
address contemporary issues by comparing it to the French Revolutions which took place 70 years before Dickens writes his novel.
The NovelThe NovelTOTC is set in both London and Paris,
beginning in 1775 and covering a period of 18 years
French Revolution lasted from 1789-1799
Novel setting starts in 1775—14 years before the fall of the Bastille
The French RevolutionThe French Revolution
Louis XVI (France 1774) and Marie Antoinette
Estates-General–First Estate (clergy)–Second Estate (nobility)–Third Estate (commoners and
emerging middle class)
The French RevolutionThe French Revolution
– July 14, 1789 – Bastille Day– September Massacre (Sept. 2-6,
1792)– “Reign of Terror” – Napoleon Bonaparte
Albert Hutter says that “the overt and seemingly relentless subtext of this novel is to give meaning to
death or to the past, to disinter the historical movement and make it come alive. The French Revolution is depicted as a natural effect of the
injustices of the past; and the excesses of the revolution are a result of the carelessness and
indifference broadcast by the aristocracy of the past. The warning to England was obvious: “It was much too much the way of native British orthodoxy, to talk of this terrible Revolution as if it were the one only
harvest ever known under the skies that had not been sown” But the savagery had been sown—even as it
was being sown in England, Dickens feared, in 1859.