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STUDYWORLD TUTORIAL HELP PROGRAM
This work is a good first attempt at
analyzing the life of Charles Dickens. It is written by a junior high school
student. Note that care was taken to create an introduction, middle portion, and
conclusion. This is good.
Where the essay shows weakness is in its poor
sentance structure. Take, for example, the sentance that we highlighted in red.
It is important to write strong sentances to
create a strong report.
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Charles Dickens
INTRODUCTION
This report will talk about the life of a famous author, Charles Dickens. It will tell
you about his early, middle, and later years of his life. It will also talk about one of
his great works of literature. In conclusion, this report will show a comparison of his
work to his life.
EARLY LIFE
Charles Dickens was born at Landport, in Portsea, on February 7, 1812. His father was a
clerk in the Navy Pay-Office, and was temporarily on duty in the neighborhood when Charles
was born. His name was John Dickens. He spent time in prison for debts. But, even when he
was free he lacked the money to support his family. Then, when Charles was two they moved
to London. 1 Just before he started to toddle, he stepped into the glare of footlights. He
never stepped out of it until he died. He was a good man, as men go in the bewildering
world of ours, brave, transparent, tender-hearted, and honorable. Dickens was always a
little too irritable because he was a little too happy. Like the over-wrought child in
society, he was splendidly sociable, and in and yet sometimes quarrelsome. In all the
practical relations of his life he was what the child is at a party, genuinely delighted,
delightful, affectionate and happy, and in some strange way fundamentally sad and
dangerously close to tears. 2 At the age of 12 Charles worked in a London factory pasting
labels on bottles of shoe polish. He held the job only for a few months, but the misery of
the experience remain with him all his life. 3
Dickens attended school off and on until he was 15, and then left for good. He enjoyed
reading and was especially fond of adventure stories, fairy tales, and novels. He was
influenced by such earlier English writers as William Shakespeare, Tobias Smollet, and
Henry Fielding. However, most of the knowledge he later used as an author came from his
environment around him. 4
MIDDLE LIFE
Dickens became a newspaper writer and reporter in the late 1820's. He specialized in
covering debates in Parliament, and also wrote feature articles. His work as a reporter
sharpened his naturally keen ear for conversation and helped develop his skill in
portraying his characters speach realistically. It also increased his ability to observe
and to write swiftly and clearly. Dickens' first book, Sketches by Boz (1836) consisted of
articles he wrote for the Monthly Magazine and the London Evening Chronicles.5 On April 2,
1836 he married Catherine Hogarth. This was just a few days before the anoucement that on
the 31st he would have his first work printed in The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick
Club. And this was the beginning of his career. 6
Then, at 24, Dickens became famous and was so until he died. He won his first literary
fame with The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club. Published in monthly parts in 1836
and 1837 the book describes the humorous adventure and misadventures of the English
Countryside. After a slow start, The Pickwick Papers as the book was usually called gained
a popularity seldom matched in the history of literature. 7 Then in 1837, Catherine's
sister Mary, died. Because of her death Dickens' suffered a lot of grief. This led some
scholars to believe that Dickens loved Mary more than Catherine. Catherine was a good
woman but she lacked intelligence. Dickens and Catherine had 10 children. Then later in
1858, the couple seperated. 8
LATER LIFE
His later years was basically consisting of two main additions to his previous
activites. The first was a series of public readings and lectures which he began giving it
systematically. And second, he was a successive editor. Dickens had been many things in
his life; he was a reporter , an actor, a conjurer, a poet, a lecturer, and a editor and
he enjoyed all of those things. 9 Dickens had a remarkable mental and physical energy. He
recorded all his activites in thousands of letter, many of which made delightful readings.
He spent much of his later life with crowded social friends from arts and literature. He
also went to the theater as often as he could, cause he loved drama. Dickens also produced
and acted in small theaters to give public readings of his work.10 Besides doing all this
after his retirement he got involved in various charities . These charities included
schools for poor children and a loan society to enable the poor to prove to Australia. 11
Then about 1865 his health started to decline and he died of a stroke on June 9, 1870. 12 Dicken's work The Great Expectations talks about a guy who is in love with
a girl. It is the theme of a youths discovery of the realities of life. An unknown
person provides the young hero, Pip, with money so that he can live as a gentleman. Pip's
pride is shattered when he learns that he loses Estella forever, the source of his
"great expectation". Only by painfully revising his values does Pip reestablish
his life on a foundation of sympathy, rather than on vanity, possesions, and social
position.
Conclusion
His work of Great Expectation is very related with his life. It deals with the same
problems he faced when he lost Catherine and how his life was before he became rich and
famous. He also created scenes and descriptions of places that have longed delighted
readers. Dickens was a keen observer of life and had a great understanding of humanity,
especially of young people. The warmth and humor of his personality appeared in all of his
works. Perhaps in no other large body of fiction does the reader receive so strong and
agreeable impression of the person behind the story.
Endnotes
1. G. K. Chesterton, Charles Dickens The Last of The Great Men, American Book-Stratford
Press, NY., 1942 pg.19
2. Ibid, pg. 21-22
3. Johnson, Edgar, His Tragedy and Triumph. Rev. ed. Viking, 1977, pg. 20
4. Ibid, pg. 27
5. World Book Encyclopedia, Random House, NY., 1990 pg. 193
6. G. K. Chesterton, Charles Dickens The Last of the Great Men, American Book-Stratford
Press, NY., 1942 pg. 50
7. World Book Encyclopedia, Random House, NY., 1990 pg. 193
8. Johnson, Edgar, His Tragedy and Triumph. Rev. ed. Viking, 1977, pg. 53
9. G. K. Chesterton, Charles Dickens The Last of the Great Men, American Book-Stratford
Press, NY., 1942 pg. 167
10. World Book Encyclopedia, Random House, NY., 1990 pg.195
11. Ibid
12. Ibid Bibliography Chesterton, G.K., "The Last of the Great Men" American
Book-Stratford Press, NY., 1942. Johnson, Edgar, "His Tragedy and Triumph" Rev.
ed. Viking, 1977. World Book Encyclopedia, Random House, NY., 1990
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