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The Life of Charles Dickens. Dickens was born in London, England on February 7, 1812. He lived in poverty and suffered greatly. When he was 12, his father, a gambler who liked to live beyond his means, was jailed for debt. Charles had to go to work . How is this similar/different from today?
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The Life of Charles Dickens Dickens was born in London, England on February 7, 1812. He lived in poverty and suffered greatly. When he was 12, his father, a gambler who liked to live beyond his means, was jailed for debt. Charles had to go to work. How is this similar/different from today? What are current child labor laws? Charles worked long hours in a shoe polish factory. He worked 40-60 hours per week putting labels on bottles of shoe polish. He was paid poorly for this.
This experience was so influential on Dickens that his literary work reflects how it effected him. This experience was also enough to make Charles take the side of the underdog (the person not expected to win, for example, the poor). Many of his characters are children who suffer from poverty. Some famous Dickens’ works are: Oliver Twist (orphan) A Christmas Carol (Scrooge) A Tale of Two Cities Great Expectations Oliver Twist asking the orphanage governor for more food.
These works all relate to a deteriorating human condition. Dickens realistically portrays people and the city of London. Young boys working in the coal mines. A political cartoon depicting how unsanitary the drinking water was for the poor.It came directly from the Thames River, where raw sewage was dumped. Many died from drinking it.
Dickens’ London: was a London of rapid change. Important transportation and manufacturing advancements were made each year. Products could be made faster and people could travel farther and more quickly. This had its problems! -mostly women and children were laborers in factories -pollution began to choke the city -the government and other people became corrupt by greed Working and living conditions deteriorated in London. The judicial system was corrupt, sanitation was not widely practiced, and members of the lower class were treated poorly. This picture shows typical housing for the poor-many people crammed into small quarters where disease and fires were devastating.
Dickens became angered with these changes. His later novels are laced with satire about education, government, greed, sanitation, and the treatment of children and the poor. Because Dickens works criticize the treatment of women, children and the poor. He helped to change he way they were treated. He is now known as an important social reformer. This picture of “street boys” was a common sight. These boys, as young as 4, lived on the streets and begged for food (and tried to steal it).
