Charles Dickens Hard Times - Book Report/Review Example

Download file to see previous pages... In addition to presenting a highly engaging narrative, with elements of love and sensation, the novel also functions as a compelling satire on the nature of Victorian England in the immediate wake of the Industrial Revolution. This essay considers Hard Times within contextual elements of its composition, examines major and characters and themes in the novel, and finally explains why the novel has continued relevance for the contemporary world.
In contextualizing the social environment Charles Dickens wrote Hard Times, as well as the author's personal background, in its clear that the novel functions along with a number of notable levels. One of the pervasive aspects of the novel is the clear connection it holds with Dickens personal background and existence. Born in 1812 Dickens experienced many of the same challenges that individuals in Hard Times experienced and to some degree, one could read aspects of Dickens in both the characters of Tom and Stephen. Both in the novel and in Dickens personal life existed a tenuous relationship between the characters and their father. While Dickens father John Dickens has been described as gregarious, and not astringent rationalist as the characterization of Thomas Gradgrind, he was imprisoned for not paying debts, causing Charles Dickens to move in with a friend of the family in Camden Town. This was a significant occurrence in Dickens existence as it would later influence a great amount of his work. One sees the influence Dickens early life had in the novel when one understands that during this period Dickens had to take on a long and strenuous job at Warrens Blacking Warehouse. This period of Dickens life brought him into direct contact with the social hardships that were pervasive elements of 19th century English working culture. In Hard Times there is a regular thematic recurrence of the challenges of living a life of poverty. ...Download file to see next pagesRead More