Hard Times by Charles Dickens essay

The author discusses the novel “Hard Times” in the context of the historical epoch when this literary work was created. In fact, the article represents the analysis of several major works created by Charles Dickens which are viewed as the reflection of the epoch described by the writer. It is worthy of mention that “Hard Times” as well as some novels by Charles Dickens perfectly reflect the major problems and the complexity of socio-economic relations of the epoch. Moreover, the author underlines that Dickens has managed to emphasize the potential danger of the current social relations which threaten to the future prosperity of society not in material but rather in spiritual domain. At the same time, the author underlines that Dickens conveys not only the major problems of the epoch but also he emphasizes the great power of the novelist to convey the sentimental atmosphere in which his characters live and act. It is necessary to underline that Hulsman reveals the correlation between different novels of Dickens that indicate at the particular style of the writer and the fact that the problems raised in “Hard Times” always disturbed the author who always attempted to understand the causes of the socio-economic and cultural degradation of modern society that may be seen in other novels by Dickens.

Icoz, N. “Evil Intentions are Evil Person’s Own Undoing”. 6^th METU British Novelist Seminar. Retrieved July 24, 2007 from <http://victorian.lang.nagoya-u.ac.jp/victorianweb/authors/dickens/turkey/turlit11.html#c>

The author of the article focuses on the problems raised by Charles Dickens and his searches for the causes of the existing social problems. To put it more precisely, the author underlines that Charles Dickens skillfully depicted the difficult socio-economic situation ofGreat Britainat the epoch depicted in his novel. At the same time, according to Icoz, the writer argues that society produces a profound impact on the development of an individual. In this respect, it should be said that the author of the article underlines the innovative approach of the novelist to social conditioning of an individual and argues that his views ere quite progressive for that epoch. On the other hand, they were in a way formed by the epoch at which Charles Dickens lived and worked. The article is also quite noteworthy since it does not fully concentrates solely on “Hard Times” but also analyzes the social problems and Dickens’s efforts to find causes of social and individual evils on the basis of different works of the writer revealing the common trend in his views and beliefs.

Ito, H. “The Lexicon in Dickens”, Studia Anglica Posnaniensia: international review of English Studies, January 1, 2004. Retrieved July 24, 2007 from <http://www.thefreelibrary.com/The+Lexicon+in+Dickens-a0125953299>

Basically, the article represents the profound analysis of the language used by Charles Dickens in his literary works, namely in “Hard Times”. It should be pointed out that this analysis is really important since it provides a reader with essential information concerning the peculiarities of the writer’s style. To put it more precisely, Ito pays a lot of attention to stylistic devices and artistic details used in his work. In this respect, the author underlines that the language of the novel is stylistically rich and, what is more, with the help of the language and stylistic devices used, the novelist makes his “Hard Times” very realistic and true to life work. Also, the language of the novel helps better understand the internal world of its characters.

Sexton, J. Dickens Hard Times and Dyspotia. Retrieved July 24, 2007 from <http://victorian.lang.nagoya-u.ac.jp/victorianweb/authors/dickens/sexton1.html>

The author of the article researches the correlation between the concept of dyspotia and the novel by Charles Dickens. To put it more precisely, he attempts to demonstrate the fact that the novel may be viewed as a perfect example illustrating the concept of dyspotia in the true to life situations depicted in the book.  It should be pointed out that Sexton provides a profound analysis of the book in the context of its correlation to dyspotia and attempts to give a moral and ethical assessment of this concept, to a significant extent, on the basis of its presentation by Charles Dickens in his novel “Hard Times”.

Shelston, A. Charles Dickens. Retrieved July 24, 2007 from <http://lang.nagoya-u.ac.jp/~matsuoka/CD-Shelston.html>

The author provides a detailed description and analysis of the life and work of Charles Dickens that helps better understand the historical background of the novel. In other words, the analysis conducted by Shelston gives excellent opportunities to understand what actually influenced and, probably, forced Charles Dickens to write his novel, “Hard Times”. In such a way, it is possible to clearly define the extent to which socio-economic relations and historical context of his epoch influenced the novelist in his creative work on the book. At the same time, it is also obvious that the detailed and precise depiction of the life of people inBritainat that epoch by Charles Dickens basically meets the general situation in society and, therefore, may be viewed as evidence of high level of realism of Dickens’s novel.