In the beginning

• Born in 7 February 1812 in Portsmouth, England • Mother was a teacher; father a naval clerk with lofty dreams • Boyhood experiences in Chatham (Rochester Castle) greatly influenced writing Young Dickens

• In 1822, Dickens’ family moved to Camden Town, London • Father often lived beyond means – sent to prison in 1824 • Started working at boot-blacking factory at age 12 for six-shillings a week  feelings of abandonment • “How I could be so easily cast away at such a young age” • Family inheritance allowed Charles to return to school, but forced to quit again at age 15 to begin work for a solicitor

Young Dickens video Forging a future

• Known for being “lively” with vast knowledge of London, as well as a skilled mimic • Studied shorthand • Obtained work as a freelance law reporter in 1829 • Permitted access to the British Museum Library in 1830 • Employed as a parliamentary reporter in 1831 • Eye for detail Early writing

• Early writings comprised mostly of sketches, or essays • First literary effort is A Dinner at Poplar Walk in 1833 • Publishes first book, Sketches by Boz in 1836, adopting the pseudonym from a favorite character in The Vicar of Wakefield • Also publishes The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club as a series of monthly installments; sketches are more popular than the illustrations • Takes position as the publisher of Bentley’s Miscellany around same time Continuing work

• Begins publishing Oliver Twist in Bentley’s Miscellany as a monthly serial • Incorporated many of Dickens’ now standard motifs • Success in both Europe and America • Struggles to match level of excellence with follow-up novels: Nicholas Nickleby, The Old Curiosity Shop and Barnaby Rudge Other major novels

• Great Expectations • A Christmas Carol • David Copperfield • A Tale of Two Cities

The Mystery of Edwin Drood First modern celebrity

• Completed first US tour in 1842 • Vocal opponent of slavery; called for social reform • Penned sarcastic piece on American culture and materialism entitled American Notes for General Circulation • Earned approximately $95,000 in the Victorian era ($1.5 million today)

“They flock around me as if I were an idol.” - Charles Dickens on Americans The Dark Period

• Daughter and father died in 1850s • Separated from wife, Kate Hogarth • Began affair with actress Ellen “Nelly” Ternan • Started writing about hypocrisy, brutality, shortcomings of employers • Bleak House • Little Dorrit • Hard Times Writing style

• Love of words • Figurative language • Powerful adjectives • “A pretty piece of writing” • Detail • Strong characterizations • Lists • Rhythm • Designed to be read aloud • Wanted to make audiences laugh or weep • Stressed dialect (master) • Famous for exaggeration • Your new bff

“One Last Chance” video Writing style continued

• “Not only does he describe scenes in vivid detail, but the very sentences he writes mimic the way the scenes themselves come to life.” • When emphasizing boring court speeches, he uses long sentences (five pages!) • Switches to short/choppy sentences when describing the chaos and violence of the French streets • Repetition stresses importance A Tale of Two Cities

• Only novel that takes place in dual cities – meant to be a comparative study • Explores similarities, but points out major differences as well • Centered around the French Revolution, 60 years prior • Tone tends toward satirical when featuring England (over-the-top courtroom scenes, spousal abuse); journalistic/matter-of-fact when featuring France (mystery, violence) • A few moral lessons here and there Warning

A Tale of Two Cities is a challenging novel. It is a “mystery” in that the first and second parts may be confusing, but all secrets come together at the end. You will be responsible for annotating half the 304-page novel in about six weeks, so you must stay on top of the reading! If something confuses you, note it in your annotations so you can discuss it with your peers (who are probably confused too!).

This novel is meant to be a sarcastic and critical commentary on the French revolution, as well as a suspenseful drama. It is filled with quirky characters who have much to hide... French Revolution

• France’s economy was declining • Peasant farmers taxed the most • Bread prices skyrocketed: the average worker spent half his daily wage on bread • King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette lavished money on themselves (Versailles) • Enlightenment philosophes questioned the divine right of monarchs The Three Estates

• In 1786, the monarchy proposed a universal land tax that would effect all, even the privileged classes • Estates-General: delegates of the three estates would compile lists of grievances to present to the king • The Third Estate represented 98% of the people but could still be outvoted by the other two bodies because status mattered more than numbers • Third Estate became the National Assembly: met in a nearby indoor tennis court and took the Tennis Court Oath, vowing not to disperse until constitutional reform had been achieved Storming the Bastille

• Bastille was a prison for political and upper-class offenders • Prisoners were jailed without trial, on order of the king • Start of the Revolution: rioters stormed the Bastille prison, searching for weapons and gunpowder • 100 rioters were killed • Seven prisoners freed • Symbolized end of the ancien regime (absolutism) • Peasants – tired of being exploited and starved – looted and burned the homes of the nobles, landlords and tax collectors Reign of Terror

• Jacobins – extreme radicals – believed French emigrants were forming alliances in other countries • Guillotined (beheaded) thousands of suspected criminals during the Reign of Terror • Arrested the king in 1792; sent him and his wife to the guillotine in 1793 • Led by Maximilien Robespierre and the Committee of Public Safety Napoleon Emerges

• In 1795, the National Convention met to establish a new constitution under Napoleon Bonaparte, a successful general • Napoleon overthrew this new form of government four years later, declaring himself first consul, ending the French Revolution and establishing the Napoleonic Era