Charles Dickens: Inspiration Through Poverty
London's Darker Side of Debt and Imprisonment: 1800's
Nov 18, 2008
The second floor of a rat infested building overlooking the Thames River, was the work station of author-to-be, Charles Dickens. His father's debts had forced the family to move into Marshalsea debtors' prison, except for Charles, who resided in the home of a Mrs. Roylance--four miles from his employment.
Shoe Polish or Blacking
To carve out a living for himself and his family, the boy was responsible for preparing bottles of black shoe polish for market. He earned six shillings a week.
"...he would cover the pots with oiled paper and blue paper, tying them neatly, clipping the edges; then he would stick on his labels." [1].
After working for 12 hours a day, young Dickens would be forced to walk to his lodging, then partake in a meager evening meal of bread and cheese. Come morning the boring ritual repeated itself--six days a week. On the seventh day, Charles visited his family.
This two year stint branded Dickens internally. Despite the horror of this phase of his life, he would turn these painful days into creative fuel for his famous characters and novels. He would later write, "...the sense I had of being utterly neglected and hopeless, of the shame I felt in my position...cannot be written." [2].
Dickens' Family
Charles' father, John, had been a clerk in the navy-pay office, and for a time the family lived in Portsmouth, England. Charles was the second born of eight children. Eventually, the family moved to London.
For a time the family knew some modest comfort. In a small room John Dickens stored several novels which Charles delighted in. He immersed himself in the characters of these stories to include: Roderick Random, Peregrine Pickle, Humphry Clinker, Tom Jones, The Vicar of Wakefield, Don Quixote, and Robinson Crusoe. [3]. The boy would often visit his father's work and perform and entertain before his father's fellow employees.
Debt
His father's debtors were not compassionate, forcing the Dickens family to forsake their humble hearth.
John Dickens moved into Marshalsea debtors' prison and the family, save for Charles, followed. Were it not for an inheritance which saved the family from languishing within the Marshalsea, Charles Dickens may not have been able to secure some amount of education.
At age 15 he worked as a clerk in an attorney's office. His short-hand ability which he learned from night study, moved him forward into a reporter's position. After a time, he began writing short stories and serials under the name of "Boz".
Humanitarian
The wretched status of the poor was a focus of many Dickens' novels. His writings helped to work changes in the degenerate living and working conditions of the Industrial Age, Victorian England.
Writing Accomplishments
Perhaps the most beloved of his stories is the transformation of the miserly Scrooge, with the help of three Christmas spirits in, A Christmas Carol. A partial list of his works include:
- Great Expectations;
- Nicholas Nickleby;
- Oliver Twist;
- The Pickwick Papers; and,
- David Copperfield.
Dickens was born February 7, 1812 in Portsmouth, England. He died June 9, 1870, a short time after resigning from a reading tour of, A Christmas Carol in America. He is buried at Westminster Abbey near many other once notable personalities.
Sources
[1,2]. Charles Dickens, Stories for Christmas (Introduction), Platinum Press, Inc. New York, 2003.
 |
 |
