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CHAPTER.II. Problems of childhood and education in Charles Dickens's novels.
2.1. Charles Dickens' novels.
With the exception of his plays, his writing during these productive years was astonishingly diverse and resourceful. The early works of Pickwick, like other early works, were obviously influenced by the contemporary theatre, the 18th-century English novelists, and a few foreign classics, most notably Don Quixote. Pickwick began as a high-spirited farce and contained many conventional comic butts and traditional jokes. In addition to revitalizing outdated stereotypes, Pickwick also showed, if occasionally in embryo, many of the elements that would be mixed in varying proportions throughout his fiction: satirical or denunciatory attacks on social ills and inadequate institutions; topical references; an extensive knowledge of London (always his main setting); pathos; a vein of the macabre; a delight in the demotic joys of Christmas; and an all-pervasive spirit of benevolence. Pickwick is an unsatisfactory whole and was hastily improvised, written only weeks or days before its serial publication. This is partly because Dickens was quickly honing his technique as a novelist while writing and publishing it. The fact that a first book, written under such pressure, not only established the author immediately and started a new tradition of popular literature, but also endured despite its flaws to become one of the most well-known books in history, is extraordinary. His confidence and artistic ambition were on display in Oliver Twist, when he resisted the urge to mimic the Pickwick formula's popularity. Although book still has a lot of humor, Oliver Twist is mostly focused on social and moral depravity (the workhouse and the underworld), and it ends in Bill Sikes killing Nancy and Fagin on their final night in the jail cell at Newgate. The latter incident was famously portrayed in an engraving by George Cruikshank; Dickens' original illustrators (Cruikshank for Sketches by "Boz" and Oliver Twist, "Phiz" [Hablot K. Browne] for the majority of the other novels until the 1860s]) are in fact responsible for the imaginative potency of his characters and settings. His works' popularity was also greatly influenced by how easily they could be transformed into powerful stage adaptations. His most recent story was occasionally being performed in 20 London theaters at once, exposing even nonreaders to condensed versions of his works. His writings frequently featured the theater, as in Nicholas Nickleby's Crummles group. Although the condemnation of the brutal Yorkshire schools (Dotheboys Hall) continued the significant shift in English fiction witnessed in Oliver Twist—the spectacle of the lost or oppressed youngster as an opportunity for pathos and social criticism—this book returned to the Pickwick shape and spirit. The death of Little Nell was believed to be particularly potent in The Old Curiosity Shop at the time, but a few decades later it came to symbolize what would be loosely referred to as "Victorian sentimentality." He made a try at a different genre—the historical novel—in Barnaby Rudge. It was set in the late 18th century and depicted the spectacle of widespread mob violence with considerable vigor and knowledge (as well as some ambivalence of attitude), similar to his later attempt of this kind, A Tale of Two Cities. Because Dickens wrote and serialized his books, it was much more challenging to meld the diverse range of moods and materials—often with multiple intricate stories involving dozens of characters—into an artistic whole. "To avoid the lure of the current Monthly Number, and to keep a sharper eye upon the general purpose and plan," he tried in Martin Chuzzlewit (1844 Preface). However, its American episodes had not been planned (he suddenly decided to boost the disappointing sales by some America-baiting and to revenge himself against insults and injuries from the American press). The following book, Dombey and Son (1846–48), benefited more from a focus on "the main purpose and design," even though the experience of penning the shorter, less-serialized Christmas stories had improved his coherence. The earliest of these Christmas books was A Christmas Carol, which was unexpectedly conceived and quickly written in a few weeks in late 1843. (a new literary genre thus created incidentally). However, there had been no planning for its American episodes (he suddenly decided to boost the disappointing sales by some America-baiting and to revenge himself against insults and injuries from the American press). Even though the experience of writing the shorter, less serialized Christmas stories had enhanced his coherence, the following book, Dombey and Son (1846–48), profited more from a focus on "the essential aim and design." A Christmas Carol, which was suddenly inspired and hastily written in a few weeks in late 1843, was the first of these holiday books (a new literary genre thus created incidentally). Will Father Christmas pass away after that? —a nod to his connection to Christmas as well as to the legend around him and his creative output. The Carol quickly became well-known; William Makepeace Thackeray described it as "a national good, and to every man and woman who reads it a personal kindness" in a review from the time. Through 1867, additional Christmas novels, articles, and stories were published yearly (with the exception of 1847). None had the same power as the Carol, though a few were quite well-liked right away. Collectively, they represent a Christmas celebration that no other great novelist has ever tried. Dombey and Son (1846-48) was a pivotal book in his development; it was the result of more careful planning and mature thought, and it was the first work in which, in the words of scholar Kathleen Tillotson, "a pervasive uneasiness about contemporary society takes the place of an intermittent concern with specific social wrongs." Though the questions posed contained such enduring moral and religious difficulties as are illustrated by the little kid Paul's first words in the novel, "Papa, what's money?" it was quite up to date and made effective use of trains. Virtue and human decency are frequently found (as in other Dickens works) among the poor, modest, and simple, while some of the corruptions of money, pride of place, and "respectable" principles are explored. Dickens provided another well-known sorrowful scene with Paul's untimely passing, and in Mr. Dombey he made a more valiant effort than previously at serious and internal characterization.
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