1. THE VICTORIAN ERA
19th Century Britain

2. BACKGROUND
Industrial Revolution changed England from agricultural nation to industry (replacing hand labor)
Steam engines
Power loom
Factory system introduced
Raw sewage, slums lining the Thames, child labor

3. LITERARY MOVEMENT No longer romanticizing the upper class
Written for the people
Magazines became popular
Allowed writers to write novels in month to month sections
Pressure of social problems created new awareness and interest in human beings
Characterization becomes dominant quality

4. THEMES Alienation and Loneliness Identity: Search for self
Victim/Victimization
Guilt and Innocence
Ambition
Crime & Responsibility
Parenthood/childhood

5. WORKS YOU MAY RECOGNIZE
The Adventures of Oliver Twist
Great Expectations
A Christmas Carol
Hard Times
A Tale of Two Cities
David Copperfield

6. THE MAN HIMSELF Born Feb. 7, 1812 in Portsmouth, England
Sickly child, so parents filled him with exciting stories
Forced to work in factory at 12, while sister studied at Royal Academy of Music (Misery)
Married Kate Hogarth in 1836, 10 children, separated in 1858
Mistress Ellen Ternan (actress 27 years younger), daughter made public after his death

7. STYLE Often reflects his own life and people around him Picturesque
Profuse linguistic creativity
Satire (British aristocratic snobbery)
Compares orphans to stocks and shares, dinner party guests to furniture
Mixture of fantasy and realism

8. ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
What do I need to know about individuals in order to understand them?
Why do people need to belong?
How do differences affect individuals and their relationships?
What factors create character, values, and personality?
How is social class depicted through characters and plot and how is social class depicted today?

9. LEARNING OBJECTIVES
What is the historical context and cultural context in which Dickens wrote?
How is Victorian England reflected in the novel?
How is social class depicted through characters and plot?
What commentary does Dickens provide concerning the 19th century English Education system?
What family structures are portrayed?