Головна

CHARLES DICKENS

  1. James I and Charles I: FATHER AND SON
  2. Make a list of questions which the writer, Charles Harvey, would have asked to get his information for the whole article. Re-enact the interview in pairs afterwards.
  3. Read and translate the last Charles's speech. What do you think about it? Was the King right? Discuss it.
  4. Чарльз Ледбитер (Charles Leadbeater)
  5. Чарльз Тарт (Charles Tart)

1812-1870

Charles Dickens was the greatest critical realist in the 19th century English literature. Dickens was born in the family of a poor clerk in Portsmouth. There were eight children in the family and Charles was the second. In 1821 the family moved to London. Life was hard for the poor people in the capital of Great Britain. Charles' father could not get any work there for a long time and was taken to prison for debts. Little Charles at ten had to go to work in a factory. The boy washed bottles and worked from early morning till late at night.

Dickens described this period of his childhood in the novel "David Copperfield'". When his father came out of prison, Charles was sent to school and stayed there for three years. He learned foreign languages and studied literature. At fifteen Charles left school and worked in a lawyer's office. He studied shorthand at that time and soon took up the work of a parliamentary reporter to a London newspaper. This work led to journalism, and journalism to novel writing.

In 1836 he published his first book "Sketches by Boz", a collection of short stories from London life. Then followed "The Pickwick Papers", published in 1837, which made the author famous

The Pickwick Club was an organization founded by Mr. Pickwick, a rich old gentleman, who had retired from business. The aim of the club was to study life and people. The members of the club were rich men who spent their time in travelling and looking for little adventures. In this way Dickens told the readers many interesting facts and showed a realistic picture of London life. The novel consists of sketches describing the travels of the members of the Pickwick Club.[36]

In his following novels. "Oliver Twist" (1838) and "Nicholas Nickleby" (1839) Dickens described the hard life at schools and workhouses for homeless children. "David Copperfield" (1850) is an autobiographical novel. In the character of David Copperfield, Dickens disclosed many features of his own life.

In 1842 Dickens visited America and then wrote "American Notes'" where he gave a realistic picture of American bourgeois society. He showed false American democracy and the corruption of the American press.

During the following years Dickens published "The Cricket of the Hearth", "Dombey and Son", "Bleak House" and other novels. The writer was greatly influenced by the struggle of the Chartists against capitalist exploitation but he did not understand the revolutionary role of the working class. In his novel "Hard Times'' Dickens showed that period in the working-class movement. Dickens' genius has created novels and tales, which have won a standing in the treasury of world literature. His knowledge and portrait of humanity born and reared in poverty and disease, his appealing stories of helpless childhood reach the heart of any reader.

In his novels Charles Dickens touched upon the most important social problems, and always took the side of poor people. His books are translated into many languages and are read all over the world.

 



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