биография чарльза диккенса на английском

The Biography of Charles Dickens (in English)

“People of England knew he was their sight”

Charles Dickens (1812 — 1870)

Charles (John Huffam) Dickens was born in Portsmouth in England on the7th of February in 1812, in the family of a poor clerk John Dickens. He was the second child. Altogether there were 8 children in the family and six of them survived till adulthood.

The family was not always poor. On the contrary, they used to be well-to-do but couldn’t manage the money properly. Their carelessness led to debts. Soon after the birth of Charles the family left for London (1822). Against all expectations John Dickens couldn’t find any work there and was finally taken to prison for debts. So, Charles was forced to leave school. He was nine at that time. Charles was sent to work in a factory to help his family. Those years full of loneliness and despair were never forgotten, he described that sad period of his life in the novel «David Copperfield».

His father came out of prison soon but mother made Charles continue working in the factory — for which he never forgave her. Fortunately, he was able to continue his education some time later. After that (in 1827) he started working as a clerk. Being bored with this monotonous work, he left it and began his career as a journalist in 1831. Since then writing became his passion. He worked for the newspaper by day and wrote his own stories by night.

His first book was a series of sketches (short stories) from London`s life which he published under the pseudonym ‘Boz’ (1835). The book «The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club» was a success.

The same year Charles met Catherine Hogarth (the daughter of the editor). They fell in love and soon got married (1836). The next few years of passionate activity resulted in much writing and many children. His books became more and more popular.

In 1842 he with his family travelled to America and then wrote “American Notes” (1842) where he described American bourgeois society, false American democracy and the corruption of American press.

His travels to Italy inspired him to write his unfinished last novel «The Mystery of Edwin Drood» (1870).

In his novels «Oliver Twist”, “Nicholas Nickeleby”, «David Copperfield» Charles Dickens described the hard life of homeless children at school and workhouses.

Theatre was one of Dickens`s passions. Since his childhood he loved reading stories to the family and their guests. He had a special talent for performing. His own stories read by him impressed the audience greatly. He could make people laugh, he could make people cry. Once he performed before Queen Victoria (1851).

In the year of 1958 he broke up with his wife and his family of ten children. His inexhaustible energy and passionate life led him to a stroke in 1870. Charles Dickens is buried at Westminster Abbey.

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Charles Dickens Info

The life and work of Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens Biography

Last Updated on August 23, 2021

Charles Dickens Biography

Charles Dickens (1812 – 1870) was a Victorian author whose novels include A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, and Great Expectations.

This short biography tells about his work and little-known aspects of his life.

The Childhood of Charles Dickens 1812 – 1824

Charles Dickens was born on February 7, 1812 in Portsmouth. The city is located in Hampshire, England and is about 70 miles southwest of London.

Birthplace of Charles Dickens located in Portsmouth, England

His father, John Dickens was a clerk in a payroll office of the navy. John Dickens was the inspiration for the character of Mr. Micawber in David Copperfield.

John Dickens, the father of Charles Dickens

His mother, Elizabeth (Barrow) Dickens inspired the characters of Mrs. Nickleby in Nicholas Nickleby and Mrs. Micawber in David Copperfield.

Elizabeth Dickens, the mother of Charles Dickens

Charles was the second of the couple’s eight children.

Finances were a constant concern for the family. John and Elizabeth were an outgoing, social couple. The costs of entertaining along with the expenses of having a large family were too much for John’s salary. When Charles was just four months old the family moved to a smaller home to cut costs.

Despite the family’s financial struggles, young Charles dreamed of becoming a gentleman. In 1824, when he was 12, it looked like his dreams would never come true.

That year, the family sent Charles to work in a blacking or shoe-polish factory. Charles was deeply marked by these experiences. He rarely spoke of that time of his life.

Illustration by Fred Bernard of young Charles Dickens at work in a shoe-blacking factory. (from the 1892 edition of Forster’s Life of Dickens)

Happily, John Dickens was able to come to an agreement with his creditors within a few months of his imprisonment. Shortly after that, he ended his son’s employment at the blacking factory and enrolled him in Wellington House Academy instead.

Learn more about the childhood of Charles Dickens including the influence of Mary Weller and the betrayal by his mother.

Dickens Enters the Workforce 1827 – 1831

In May of 1827 Dickens left Wellington House Academy and entered the workforce as a law clerk at the firm of Ellis and Blackmore. His duties included keeping the petty cash fund, delivering documents, running errands and other sundry tasks.

In 1829 he changed careers and became a court stenographer. To qualify for that position Dickens had to learn the Gurney system of shorthand writing.

Example of Gurney Shorthand

In 1831 he became a shorthand reporter with the Mirror of Parliament. The publication gave accounts of the activity in the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

During this time Dickens considered becoming an actor. He was so serious about the matter that he arranged for an audition at the Lyceum Theater. However, he was ill on the day of his audition and could not go.

Marriage and Fame 1833 – 1854

In December 1833 Charles Dickens’s first literary effort was published. It was a sketch or essay entitled A Dinner at Poplar Walk. Other sketches soon followed.

In 1834 Dickens met Catherine Hogarth, the woman who would become his wife. They became engaged in 1835 and were married in April of 1836. In January of 1837 the first of their ten children was born.

Learn more about the children of Charles Dickens. The eldest went bankrupt and was later hired by his father. “Chickenstalker” joined the Canadian Mounted Police. The youngest became a Member of Parliament in New South Wales.

The Pickwick Papers was the first novel of Charles Dickens. It was published in monthly installments from March of 1836 until November 1837.

Charles Dickens was the author of 15 novels. He also wrote short stories, essays, articles and novellas. See a list of work by Charles Dickens.

In June of 1837 something happened that only occurred once in Dickens’s career. He missed a deadline. He was writing two serialized novels at once, The Pickwick Papers and Oliver Twist. However in June of 1837 there was no Pickwick. There was no Oliver Twist. Instead there was a funeral.

At that time, Dickens’s sister-in-law, Mary Hogarth was living with Charles and Catherine. Mary was a favorite with the couple and was like a little sister to Charles. On the evening of May 6th Mary went with the couple to the St. James Theatre. Everything seemed fine. The group returned late in the evening and Mary retired for the night. Shortly after that Dickens heard a cry from Mary’s room. She was ill. Despite her doctor’s care Mary passed away in Dickens’s arms the next day.

Dickens would relive this sad incident in his life while writing The Old Curiosity Shop. He was traumatized by the death of Little Nell in that novel. Dickens wrote to a friend about Little Nell’s death, “Old wounds bleed afresh when I think of this sad story.”

Nicholas Nickleby, the third novel of Charles Dickens, was published in installments starting in 1838. One of Dickens’s goals in writing Nicholas Nickleby was to expose the ugly truth about Yorkshire boarding schools.

In 1841 Charles and Catherine traveled to Scotland and Barnaby Rudge was published.

Charles Dickens’s sister-in-law Georgina Hogarth in later years

Charles and Catherine traveled to America in 1842. While on tour Dickens often spoke of the need for an international copyright agreement. The lack of such an agreement enabled his books to be published in the United States without his permission and without any royalties being paid.

The United States left quite an impression on Dickens, a very unfavorable impression.

Dickens was horrified by slavery, appalled by the common use of spitting tobacco and indignant about his treatment by the press.

His feelings came out in American Notes and later in Martin Chuzzlewit.

As Washington may be called the head-quarters of tobacco-tinctured saliva, the time is come when I must confess, without any disguise, that the prevalence of those two odious practices of chewing and expectorating began about this time to be anything but agreeable, and soon became most offensive and sickening. In all the public places of America, this filthy custom is recognised. In the courts of law, the judge has his spittoon, the crier his, the witness his, and the prisoner his; while the jurymen and spectators are provided for, as so many men who in the course of nature must desire to spit incessantly.

American Notes by Charles Dickens

Sketch of Charles Dickens in 1842 (Small image on the bottom left is his sister, Fanny)

In 1842 Catherine’s sister, Georgina, came to live with the couple. Georgina helped with the children and the house. She remained part of the Dickens household until the death of her brother-in-law.

In September of 1843 Dickens visited the Field Lane Ragged School. In a letter to his friend, Miss Coutts, he described what he saw at the school:

I have very seldom seen, in all the strange and dreadful things I have seen in London and elsewhere anything so shocking as the dire neglect of soul and body exhibited in these children. And although I know; and am as sure as it is possible for one to be of anything which has not happened; that in the prodigious misery and ignorance of the swarming masses of mankind in England, the seeds of its certain ruin are sown.

In October of that year Dickens began work on A Christmas Carol. It was published on December 19, 1843.

Publication of Dombey and Son began in 1846. It was Dickens’s seventh novel.

1851 was a difficult year. John Dickens, the father of Charles Dickens, died in March. Catherine Dickens suffered a nervous collapse. Later Dora Dickens, the youngest daughter of Charles and Catherine, died when she was only eight months old.

There were also bright spots in 1851. It was the year that Dickens moved into Tavistock House. It was there that he wrote Bleak House, Hard Times and Little Dorrit.

The Later Years 1856 – 1870

Dickens bought Gad’s Hill Place in 1856. He would own the home for the rest of his life.

The above photo shows Dickens at Gad’s Hill in 1862. The back row from left to right is; H.F. Chorley, Kate Dickens, Mamie Dickens and Charles Dickens. Seated are C.A. Collins and Georgina Hogarth.

In 1857 Dickens met the woman who was to be his companion until his death, Ellen Ternan.

Dickens had already become disenchanted with his wife. He wrote to a friend, “Poor Catherine and I are not made for each other, and there is no help for it. It is not only that she makes me uneasy and unhappy, but that I make her so too—and much more so.”

Meeting Ellen stressed the differences between the marriage Dickens had and the relationship that he wanted. Later in 1857 Charles and Catherine took separate bedrooms. In 1858 they legally separated.

In 1858 Charles Dickens began giving professional readings. The readings were a combination of oratory and passionate acting. They were very popular and Dickens continued to give them throughout his life.

“Charles Dickens as he appears when reading.” Illustration in Harper’s Weekly, December 1867.

Charles Dickens founded the weekly publication All the Year Round. The first issue was printed in April of 1859. Dickens served as editor and publisher. One feature of the publication was its serialization of novels. The first novel serialized in All the Year Round was A Tale of Two Cities.

Publication of Great Expectations began in 1860. It was also serialized in All the Year Round.

In June of 1865 Charles Dickens had a brush with death. Dickens, Ellen Ternan and her mother were involved in the Staplehurst railway accident. The train’s first seven carriages went off a bridge that was being repaired.

Dickens was uninjured and helped people that were hurt in the accident. When help finally arrived and the accident scene was being evacuated Dickens remembered something. He made his way back into the wrecked train one last time to retrieve the latest installment of Our Mutual Friend, the novel he was writing at the time.

It would be the last novel he ever completed.

Dickens returned to America in 1867 for an extensive reading tour.

In 1869 Dickens’s doctor advised him against giving further public readings. The events were popular, but the strain to his system was too great.

In October of 1869, at Gad’s Hill Place, Dickens began work on The Mystery of Edwin Drood. He would never finish it.

Dickens arranged a farewell tour and gave his last reading in March of 1870. It is thought that the effects of the readings was one of the factors leading to his death.

On June 9, 1870 Dickens died at Gad’s Hill Place.

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Биография Чарльза Диккенса / The Biography of Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens was a prolific and highly influential 19th century British author, who penned such acclaimed works as ‘Oliver Twist,’ ‘A Christmas Carol,’ ‘David Copperfield’ and ‘Great Expectations.’

The Biography of Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world’s most memorable fictional characters and is considered to be one of the greatest novelists.

He was born on February 7th, 1812 in Portsmouth, England. His father was an office man, who worked hard to provide for his family. Charles had many brother and sisters. When he was 10, his family moved to London, where his father got into debtor’s prison. After that, Charles left school to work in a factory. For two years he worked in a dirty room pasting labels on bottles. Then he went to school for three more years. He had little formal education but still succeeded in life.

Over his career he wrote 15 novels, 5 novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles. He also worked for 20 years as an editor in a weekly journal. Dickens’ other merits include campaigns for children’s rights, education and other social reforms. He obtained international attention and fame in 1836 with a series of publications called “Pickwick Papers”. He used to be a young and poor reporter at that time, who immediately became a famous writer.

Dickens published many other novels later. Among them “Oliver Twist”, “Dombey and Son”, “David Copperfield” and many others. His books are rather interesting to read. He mostly wrote about the hard life of poor people in Victorian England.

Even though he lived more than a hundred years ago, people still read his books with pleasure. One of his most influential works ever written was “A Christmas Carol” novella. His fellow writers of that time highly praised his literary genius. Leo Tolstoy, George Orwell, Chesterton were among them.

Charles Dickens died on June 9th, 1870 and he was buried in Poet’s Corner in Westminster Abbey.

Биография Чарльза Диккенса

Чарльз Диккенс был английским писателем и общественным критиком. Он создал некоторые из самых запоминающихся в мире вымышленных персонажей и считается одним из величайших романистов.

Он родился 7 февраля 1812 года в Портсмуте, в Англии. Его отец был офисным работником, который упорно трудился, чтобы обеспечить свою семью. У Чарльза было много братьев и сестер. Когда ему было 10, его семья переехала в Лондон, где его отец попал в долговую тюрьму. После этого, Чарльз оставил школу, чтобы работать на фабрике. В течение двух лет он работал в грязной комнате, наклеивая этикетки на бутылки. Затем он снова ходил в школу в течение трех лет. В действительности образования у него было мало, но ему все удавалось в жизни.

Позже Диккенс опубликовал много других романов. Среди них «Оливер Твист», «Домби и сын», «Дэвид Копперфильд» и многие другие. Его книги довольно интересно читать. В основном, он писал о тяжелой жизни бедных людей в викторианской Англии.

Несмотря на то, что он жил более ста лет тому назад, люди все еще с удовольствием читают его книги. Одной из его самых влиятельных работ, когда-либо написанных им, была повесть «Рождественская песнь». Его собратья по перу того времени высоко ценили его гениальность в литературе. К ним относятся Лев Толстой, Джордж Оруэлл, Честертон.

Чарльз Диккенс умер 9 июня 1870 году и был похоронен в Уголке поэтов в Вестминстерском аббатстве.

The Biography of Charles Dickens

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Charles Dickens — топик с переводом

Рубрика: Биографии

Charles Dickens was a very popular and talented English novelist of the Victorian Era. He was born in 1812 in a poor English family. Charles had many brothers and sisters but he preferred reading to playing with children. His father had many books so young Dickens learned to read very early and spent most of his time reading them.

When Charles was 10 years old, his family moved to London where his father got into debt. Soon his father was put into prison that’s why Charles had to start working. He worked at a small factory in London, pasting labels on bottles. The boy had to work in dreadful conditions for 2 years.

Then Dickens managed to go to school for some time, however he didn’t learn much there. He liked studying at home by his own or with the help of his father. Later Charles worked as a clerk in a lawyer’s office and at the age of 25 he wrote his first sketch which was soon published by a magazine. Then the magazine published nine other sketches all of which had a great success. The sketches became Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club.

Since then Charles Dickens devoted himself entirely to literature. He wrote such famous novels as Oliver Twist, Dombey and Son, David Copperfield and Great Expectations. All of his books are interesting and humourous even if they often describe the hard life of poor people.

Charles Dickens died in 1870. He was one of the greatest English novelists whose books are still read all over the world.

Перевод:

Чарльз Диккенс был известным и талантливым английским романистом Викторианской Эпохи. Он родился в 1812 году в бедной английской семье. У Чарльза было много братьев и сестер, но он предпочитал чтение играм с детьми. У его отца было много книг, поэтому юный Диккенс рано научился читать и проводил большую часть своего времени за книгами.

Когда Чарльзу было 10 лет, его семья переехала в Лондон, где его отец вскоре влез в долги и был посажен в тюрьму. Поэтому Чарльзу пришлось работать. Он работал на маленькой фабрике в Лондоне, где приклеивал этикетки на бутылки. Мальчик был вынужден работать в ужасных условиях на протяжении двух лет.

Затем Диккенсу удалось попасть в школу на некоторое время, однако многому он там не выучился. Ему нравилось учиться дома, самостоятельно или с помощью отца. Позднее Чарльз стал работать служащим в адвокатской конторе, а в 25 лет написал свой первый отрывок, вскоре опубликованный одним из журналов. Затем журнал выпустил и 9 других отрывков, которые имели большой успех. Эти заметки стали позже называться «Заметками Пиквикского клуба».

С тех пор Чарльз Диккенс всецело посвятил себя литературе. Он написал такие известные романы, как «Оливер Твист», «Домби и его сын», «Дэвид Копперфильд» и «Большие Надежды». Все его книги интересны и комичны, хотя часто в них описывается тяжелая жизнь бедных людей.

Чарльз Диккенс умер в 1870 году. Он является одним из величайших английских писателей, чьи книги по сей день читаются по всему миру.

Полезные выражения и слова:

to get into debt – влезать в долги

to put into prison – посадить в тюрьму

to paste labels – приклеивать этикетки

clerk – секретарь, конторский служащий

sketch – отрывок, набросок

to devote oneself to – посвятить себя чему-либо

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Charles Dickens

Who Was Charles Dickens?

Charles Dickens was a British novelist, journalist, editor, illustrator and social commentator who wrote such beloved classic novels as Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol, Nicholas Nickleby, David Copperfield, A Tale of Two Cities and Great Expectations.

Dickens is remembered as one of the most important and influential writers of the 19th century. Among his accomplishments, he has been lauded for providing a stark portrait of the Victorian-era underclass, helping to bring about social change.

Early life and Education

Dickens was born Charles John Huffam Dickens on February 7, 1812, in Portsmouth, on the southern coast of England.

The famed British author was the second of eight children. His father, John Dickens, was a naval clerk who dreamed of striking it rich. Charles’ mother, Elizabeth Barrow, aspired to be a teacher and school director.

Despite his parents’ best efforts, the family remained poor. Nevertheless, they were happy in the early days. In 1816, they moved to Chatham, Kent, where young Dickens and his siblings were free to roam the countryside and explore the old castle at Rochester.

In 1822, the Dickens family moved to Camden Town, a poor neighborhood in London. By then the family’s financial situation had grown dire, as John Dickens had a dangerous habit of living beyond the family’s means. Eventually, John was sent to prison for debt in 1824, when Charles was just 12 years old.

Following his father’s imprisonment, Dickens was forced to leave school to work at a boot-blacking factory alongside the River Thames. At the run-down, rodent-ridden factory, Dickens earned six shillings a week labeling pots of “blacking,” a substance used to clean fireplaces. It was the best he could do to help support his family.

Looking back on the experience, Dickens saw it as the moment he said goodbye to his youthful innocence, stating that he wondered “how [he] could be so easily cast away at such a young age.”

He felt abandoned and betrayed by the adults who were supposed to take care of him. These sentiments would later become a recurring theme in his writing.

Much to his relief, Dickens was permitted to go back to school when his father received a family inheritance and used it to pay off his debts.

But when Dickens was 15, his education was pulled out from under him once again. In 1827, he had to drop out of school and work as an office boy to contribute to his family’s income. As it turned out, the job became a launching point for his writing career.

Journalist, Editor and Illustrator

Within a year of being hired, Dickens began freelance reporting at the law courts of London. Just a few years later, he was reporting for two major London newspapers.

In 1833, he began submitting sketches to various magazines and newspapers under the pseudonym “Boz.” In 1836, his clippings were published in his first book, Sketches by Boz.

In the same year, Dickens started publishing The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club. His series, originally written as captions for artist Robert Seymour’s humorous sports-themed illustrations, took the form of monthly serial installments.

The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club was wildly popular with readers. In fact, Dickens’ captions were even more popular than the illustrations they were meant to accompany.

He later edited magazines including Household Words and All the Year Round, the latter of which he founded.

Children

Dickens married Catherine Hogarth soon after his first book, Sketches by Boz, was published. The couple had a brood of 10 children.

During the 1850s, Dickens suffered two devastating losses: the deaths of his daughter and father. He also separated from his wife in 1858. Dickens slandered Catherine publicly, and struck up an intimate relationship with a young actress named Ellen «Nelly» Ternan.

Sources differ on whether the two started seeing each other before or after Dickens’ marital separation; it is also believed that he went to great lengths to erase any documentation alluding to Ternan’s presence in his life.

Charles Dickens’ Books

Throughout his career, Dickens published a total of 15 novels. His most well-known works include:

‘Oliver Twist’ (1837-1838)

Oliver Twist, Dickens first novel, follows the life of an orphan living in the streets. The book was inspired by how Dickens felt as an impoverished child forced to get by on his wits and earn his own keep.

As publisher of a magazine called Bentley’s Miscellany, Dickens began publishing Oliver Twist in installments between February 1837 and April 1838, with the full book edition published in November 1838.

Dickens continued showcasing Oliver Twist in the magazines he later edited, including Household Words and All the Year Round. The novel was extremely well-received in both England and America. Dedicated readers of Oliver Twist eagerly anticipated the next monthly installment.

‘A Christmas Carol’ (1843)

On December 19, 1843, Dickens published A Christmas Carol. The book features the timeless protagonist Ebenezer Scrooge, a curmudgeonly old miser, who, with the help of ghosts, finds the Christmas spirit.

Dickens penned the book in just six weeks, beginning in October and finishing just in time for the holiday celebrations. The novel was intended as a social criticism, to bring attention to the hardships faced by England’s poorer classes.

The book was a roaring success, selling more than 6,000 copies upon publication. Readers in England and America were touched by the book’s empathetic emotional depth; one American entrepreneur reportedly gave his employees an extra day’s holiday after reading it. Despite literary criticism, the book remains one of Dickens’ most well-known and beloved works.

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‘Dealings with the Firm of Dombey and Son’ (1846 to 1848)

From October 1846 to April 1848, Dickens published, in monthly installments, Dealings with the Firm of Dombey and Son. The novel, which was published in book form in 1848, centers on the theme of how business tactics affect a family’s personal finances.

Taking a dark view of England, it is considered pivotal to Dickens’ body of work in that it set the tone for his other novels.

‘David Copperfield’ (1849 to 1850)

David Copperfield was the first work of its kind: No one had ever written a novel that simply followed a character through his everyday life. From May 1849 to November 1850, Dickens published the book in monthly installations, with the full novel form published in November 1850.

In writing it, Dickens tapped into his own personal experiences, from his difficult childhood to his work as a journalist. Although David Copperfield is not considered Dickens’ best work, it was his personal favorite. It also helped define the public’s expectations of a Dickensian novel.

‘Bleak House’ (1852 to 1853)

Following the death of his father and daughter and separation from his wife, Dickens’ novels began to express a darkened worldview.

In Bleak House, published in installments from 1852 to 1853, he deals with the hypocrisy of British society. It was considered his most complex novel to date.

‘Hard Times’ (1854)

Hard Times takes place in an industrial town at the peak of economic expansion. Published in 1854, the book focuses on the shortcomings of employers as well as those who seek change.

‘A Tale of Two Cities’ (1859)

Coming out of his “dark novel” period, in 1859 Dickens published A Tale of Two Cities, a historical novel that takes place during the French Revolution in Paris and London. He published it in a periodical he founded, All the Year Round.

The story focuses on themes of the need for sacrifice, the struggle between the evils inherent in oppression and revolution, and the possibility of resurrection and rebirth.

‘Great Expectations’ (1861)

Great Expectations, published in serial form between December 1860 to August 1861 and in novel form in October 1861, is widely considered Dickens’ greatest literary accomplishment.

The story, Dickens’ second to be narrated in the first person, focuses on the lifelong journey of moral development for the novel’s protagonist, an orphan named Pip. With extreme imagery and colorful characters, the well-received novel’s themes include wealth and poverty, love and rejection, and good versus evil.

Other Novels

After the publication of Oliver Twist, Dickens struggled to match the level of its success. From 1838 to 1841, he published The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, The Old Curiosity Shop and Barnaby Rudge.

Another novel from Dickens’ darker period is Little Dorrit (1857), a fictional study of how human values come in conflict with the world’s brutality. Dickens’ novel Our Mutual Friend, published in serial form between 1864 to 1865 before being published as a book in 1865, analyzes the psychological impact of wealth on London society.

Travels to the United States and Italy

In 1842, Dickens and his wife, Catherine, embarked on a five-month lecture tour of the United States. Upon their return, Dickens penned American Notes for General Circulation, a sarcastic travelogue criticizing American culture and materialism.

Around this time he also wrote The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit, a story about a man’s struggle to survive on the ruthless American frontier.

During his first U.S. tour, in 1842, Dickens spoke of his opposition to slavery and expressed his support for additional reform. His lectures, which began in Virginia and ended in Missouri, were so widely attended that ticket scalpers gathered outside his events. Biographer J.B. Priestley wrote that during the tour, Dickens enjoyed «the greatest welcome that probably any visitor to America has ever had.”

“They flock around me as if I were an idol,” bragged Dickens, a known show-off. Although he enjoyed the attention at first, he eventually resented the invasion of privacy. He was also annoyed by what he viewed as Americans’ gregariousness and crude habits, as he later expressed in American Notes.

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