Charles Dickens: An Influence of Reform in Victorian England - Research Paper Example

CHARLES DICKENS: An Influence of Reform in Victorian England Due INTRODUCTION When most of us think of Charles Dickens we immediately recall the tale of Ebenezer Scrooge in the “Christmas Carol” or the sound of a small, British, orphan, in “Oliver Twist,” asking. “... please sir can I have some more?” However, Dickens wrote many novels the majority of which were all written in the time that he lived. He was known to be a strong critic of the Victorian era that surrounded him. Dickens reflected his strongest social criticisms into the characters in his many novels. A prime example of this is seen in his 1854 novel “Hard Times,” which worked to show the failings of Victorian society, which he saw as, “…dominated by materialism, acquisitiveness, and ruthlessly competitive capitalist economics.” (Kailish 1). The novel, “Hard Times (1854), focused on the British working class of the era, it, also, drew attention to two areas that Dickens felt were in need of serious reform, the nature of traditional Victorian education and the condition of factories and the people, both adults and children, who work there (De Laureal 1). He may not have directly reformed British society but his works had a tangible effect upon its readers that inspired greater change than even Dickens’s himself might have ever hoped. HISTORY Charles Dickens (1812-1870) grew up in the world that he wrote about. He saw storytelling as a means to share his dissatisfaction with economic and the social condition of Britain in the Victorian Age. All the same Dickens himself remains something of an enigma politically. Many call him a Marxist, an extreme socialist, and even a Catholic conservative (Teachout 1-76). However, regardless of the title he was given this gifted writer and classic author used words, scenarios, and characters to inspire the minds of people to make change. “Hard Times” tells the tale of a number of characters living in the Victorian era industrial world. Gradgrinder is a wealthy politician and has two children. His children are raised to do what they are expected to do and gave little consideration to their concerns or feelings. He essentially “sells” his daughter Louisa into marriage to a man she finds repulsive and his son goes awry. If they had had their way their lives might have been different, but their utilitarian upbringing left no room for their personal opinions (Dickens). The city of Coketown is not described by Dickens in a favorable light. In Chapter 28 he describes the city as ugly, dark, dark smoke in the sky, and stark brick buildings it is not at all particularly welcoming. It is described as loud and smelled bad. It was everything that an industrialized city does not wish to be. However, this is how Dickens perceived the word he lived in. He even males references to the serpentine and snake-like qualities of city elements; this, of course, to the religious minds of the time, is a direct reference to the Christian Devil often represented by a snake (Diniejko1). In other words Coketown is a city corrupted by literally “evil” DISCUSSION One of the greatest issues that Dickens had with Victorian society that plays an essential part in the story of the characters in “Hard Times” is the need for educational reform. Tom and Louisa, the children of Gradgrinder, were raised in the robotic, emotionless mentality of utilitarian education, where facts and cold realties are relevant, while creativity and imagination has no place. Dickens used “Hard Times” as a means to reflect the consequences of children raised in this ideology. The ultimate outcome leaves Louisa sad, unmarried, and childless. Tom goes down a dark path and essentially leaves and never returns. Neither knew how to metabolize their feelings or have any understanding of how to tackle emotional issues, and their lives conclude in the novel not on a high-point. While Dickens was a strong critic of education he did not necessarily have any specific suggestions as what reforms should be made. In the year of his death, 1870, Britain passed the Elementary Education Act, which would strengthen enforcement for teacher training and enacted legislation that requires children a certain level of public education (Litvak 1). The second specific area that Dickens focuses upon in “Hard Times,” that he felt was in need of reform, was the condition of Victorian factories and the environment that worker, both adult workers and child labor, was forced to endure. This negative impression of the factory owners through Josiah Bounderby, the arrogant, pompous, self-proclaimed “self made man,” not to mention the husband that Louisa finds repulsive. He does not treat his workers well and mistreats and takes advantage of the workers. He proves to be fraud, a liar, a man who gained his wealth through family inheritances from cousins. Dishonesty, deception, and fraudulent fakes, is what can be expected from factory owners and other wealthy elite. That is a serious statement and criticism upon society. The poor, factory worker, Stephen Blackpool, who comes to the bleak reality that society benefits and laws are designed to favor the wealthy, not in the interests of real justice (De Laureal 1). This provided epiphany says a great deal about the negative perspectives that Dickens held about Victorian factories. “Hard Times” tells a tale that is difficult for many modern readers to really comprehend. Forced marriages, archaic educational practices, and labor conditions no one today for ever tolerate. However, Victorian England was a very different place; a place where workers were mistreated and disadvantaged and education was limited and utilitarian, leaving little room for the individual, the creative, or imaginative. (De Laureal 1).While Dickens, and his contemporaries that made similar efforts, may not have directly affected the needed reforms in Victorian England they did speak out and bring attention to the problems of others, those who the middle-classes and the wealthy often forgot. “Hard Times” allows a microscope and forced perspective on the darker vision of the world experienced by those who do not sit at the top of it. It is through the, albeit, indirect criticism and commentaries of Charles Dickens that helped to create reforms in the areas of education and labor industries and helped developed England into the progressive country it became and is today. CONCLUSION Charles Dickens made incredible contributions to literature, but also to the history of his homeland of Britain through endorsing the needed social, educational, economic, and legal reforms through his characters and the Victorian era that they are living. Again, when most people think of Charles Dickens they think of the whimsical characters like Scrooge and his 3 visiting ghosts and the orphan tale of “Oliver Twist.” However, Dickens work served more than just purpose of entertainment, but as a window to the flaws and failings of the society around him. He effectively lent to incredible change, through his works, like “Hard Times,” that regardless of whether directly or indirectly, contributed to literature, but, also, to the fabric of his society. WORK CITED De Laurel, Martin. “Hard Times (1854).” Washington and Lee university. (2001) 1. Web 30 May 2014. . Dickens , Charles. Hard Times. Page by Page Books, 1854. eBook. . Diniejko, Andrzej. "Charles Dickens as Social Commentator and Critic." Victorian Web Warsaw University. (2012): 1. Web. 30 May. 2014. . Kailish, S. "Charles Dickens as a Social Critic." International Journal of Research in Earth and Environmental Sciences. 2.8 (2012): 1-6. Web. 30 May. 2014. . Litvak, Leon. “Charles Dickens and Victorian Education.” The Oxford Readers Guide to Dickens. (2012). 1. Web. 30 May 2014. . Teachout, Jeffrey Frank. "The Importance of Charles Dickens in Victorian Social Reform." Wichita State University. (2006): 1-76. Web. 30 May. 2014. . Read More