Concetti Chiave
- Charles Dickens is a significant figure in English literature, known for portraying the industrial towns of the 19th century, with exceptions like "The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club" and "Martin Chuzzlewit".
- His novels often focus on the lower-middle class, appealing to both lower-middle class readers and the upper class with humanitarian feelings.
- Serialization required Dickens to create memorable characters with distinct physical traits, enhancing the appeal of his works.
- Childhood is a central theme in Dickens's novels, reflecting his personal experiences and societal issues like child labor during the industrial revolution.
- Social Criticism in Dickens's works evolves from condemning institutions like orphanages to critiquing utilitarianism and the negative aspects of capitalism.
Charles Dickens is one of the most important author of English literature his works even today are expecially appreciated by an English public:because only who knows all the English story and have a good knowledge of English vocabulary can well understand all the themes he faces . in general Dickens is known as a children's writer and most of his works are set in the industrial towns of the first half of the 19th century with the exception of "The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick club" which tells about the travels of a group of men through England by a coach and who see the last examples of the happiness of the Great Britan before the process of industrialization.
another exception is "Martin Chuzzlwit" which is partly set in America. Dickens is the first novelist who choices as protagonists of his novel the members of the lower-middle classes The plot of the novels feels the effect of having to comply both the readers's taste and the requirement of the serialization. Dickens's readers belong to two social classes : on one hand we could find low middle class readers who enjoyed seeing them as protagonists of stories which followed patterns similar to their own life and whose happy endings gave them the possibility to escape from reality. on the other hand there were aristocrats or people belonging to the upper classes who had humanitarian feelings towards the less fortunate and and it soothed their guilt and the assurance of the happy ending pushed them to leave things as they were.Serialization obliged Dickens to choice extraordinary and unforgettable characters who are usually remembered for particular physical traits The two most important themes contained in his novels are Childhood and Social Criticism. Children occupies a central role in Dickens novels and this is due to several reasons; first of all some protagonists are followed since their infancy until their maturity like in the case of David Copperfield. Then we have to say that children working for 15-16 hours per day was a contemporary problem in the English society during the second industrial revolution. Finally the writer's interest for children was a consequence of his personal experience ,infact as the protagonists of his novels he worked in factories and mines. Parents appear only interested in money or they are unable to provide for what their families need at times because they are imprisoned for debts and it often means that childreen are obliged to work until their death.The second central theme in Dickens's novels is Social Criticism , it can be divided into two phases linked by David Copperfield.Before its publication the writer denounces specific institutions accusing them of taking no account of the needs of individuals . He attacks especially the orphanages considering them as places where adults can let loose their sadistic tendencies in the second phase of this kind of novels including " Hard times" or " Bleak house" Dickens attacks utilitarianism which is a social and economic doctrine connected to Jeremy Bentham which considers the material satisfaction as the only value which is based on the concept according to which just what gives pleasure to a large number of people is good in other words in this second part he condemned the essence of capitalism which is considered as the root of all evils and which is founded on money and individualism .
Domande da interrogazione
- Quali sono i temi principali affrontati nei romanzi di Charles Dickens?
- Perché Dickens è considerato uno scrittore per bambini?
- Come la serializzazione ha influenzato i romanzi di Dickens?
- Quali classi sociali componevano il pubblico di Dickens e come reagivano ai suoi romanzi?
- In che modo Dickens critica il capitalismo nei suoi romanzi?
I temi principali nei romanzi di Dickens sono l'infanzia e la critica sociale. L'infanzia è centrale, con protagonisti seguiti dalla giovinezza alla maturità, mentre la critica sociale si divide in due fasi, attaccando istituzioni specifiche e il capitalismo.
Dickens è considerato uno scrittore per bambini perché molti dei suoi protagonisti sono giovani e le sue storie spesso trattano delle difficoltà che i bambini affrontano, riflettendo anche la sua esperienza personale di lavoro in fabbriche e miniere.
La serializzazione ha obbligato Dickens a creare personaggi straordinari e indimenticabili, spesso ricordati per tratti fisici particolari, per mantenere l'interesse dei lettori nel tempo.
Il pubblico di Dickens era composto dalla classe medio-bassa, che si identificava con i protagonisti, e dalle classi aristocratiche, che trovavano conforto nei finali felici e nei sentimenti umanitari verso i meno fortunati.
Dickens critica il capitalismo nei suoi romanzi, specialmente nella seconda fase della sua critica sociale, condannando l'utilitarismo e il materialismo come radici di tutti i mali, basati sul denaro e sull'individualismo.
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