Dickens Hard Times Essay Example for Free

Dickens Hard Times Essay â€Å"Now, what I want is, Facts. Teach these boys and girls nothing but Facts. Facts alone are wanted in life.† (Dickens, 1854, p.1) With these beginning sentences of the novel â€Å"Hard Times†, Charles Dickens has made readers doubt whether it is true that facts alone are wanted in life. This question leads to the main theme of the story, fact against fancy, that author has never been written this kind of plot in his other stories before. In fact, Hard Times is considered as the unlike-the-rest of Dickens’ works (Collins, 1992, p. xi) because the plot is not involved the social problems in Victorian Age such as poverty or child labor, but it is an abstract that exalts instinct above reason. (Collins, 1992, p.xiii) Although it is not Dickensian, author still put his cliff-hanger characteristic on his work which makes the story enjoyable and worth reading for all-age-readers. Due to many interesting factors, this novel has been chosen to be the topic of this essay consisting of three parts that are the historical backgrounds, the facts about this novel and my critical reflections. To gain the comprehensive perspective of the story, we need to look back on historical backgrounds of the age that this novel took place which can be seen in three ways that are the economy, the social class and the education. Victorian Age is the period of economic progress that Industrial Revolution played important part in the British society. As a result, there were many factories located in town and it is imaginary described in a story that industrial Coketown is â€Å"where the piston of the steam-engine worked monotonously up and down, like the head of an elephant in a state of melancholy madness.† (Dickens, 1854, p.20). So, it shows that Hard Times is a realistic novel that author voiced a radically dissident attitude on Industrial Revolution in his story. (Lowy 2007 218) According to the growth of economy, there was the distinction found in social classes especially between labor and management (Cliffnote, n.d.) in this story that can be seen at Mr. Bounderby, a wealt hy manufacturer, considers himself as self-made man and later found that he is not, who is in upper class and has predominant power over Blackpool a hard working labor in Mr. Bounderby’s factory. However, the social class distinction is not raised as a serious problem in the story. Also, this economic progress has a great impact on the education system in which the schools are dominated with the Utilitarian spirit. From the plot, it shows that Dickens held a strong vision against the Utilitarianism, a theory that considers self-interest is maximum utility and denies on imagination (Diniejko, n.d.), that he ends the story with the tragic event caused by failure of the Utilitarian education system that teaches students only fact, but he oppositely admired hospitality of the Sleary’s circus that teaches the children with imagination. These are historical backgrounds that influenced the story and make it more understandable. As it is claimed at first that this novel is not like the other Dickens’ stories, it is contained some facts that makes the novel interesting which are its background, cliff-hanger plot and impressive critiques. Unlike Dickens’ usual shilling monthly numbers, Hard Times was a part in his two penny weekly edited magazine (Collin, 1992, p.xi), Household Words, which faced a shrinking circulation and falling profits (Enote editor, n.d.). Therefore, the story was written in form of serialization and finally titled Hard Times For These Times when it was gathered into fuller version. (Collin, 1992, p.xi) Although it is not a notably work, it has a Dickens’ famous cliff-hanger plot. The main theme is the conflict between fact and fancy in which Mr. Gradgrind teaches his students and his children to believe in fact, but the story turns out unexpected that two of his children have to live in misery; Louisa has a loveless marriage with Mr. Bounderby a friend of her father and a bank owner. Tom, Louisa’s brother, becomes a bank robber who almost cannot escape abroad. In order to help his son, Mr. Gradgrind eventually has to ask Sleary’s circus, who he never favour because they teaches children with imagination, for help and he comes to realize that his philosophy he has been teaching all along for his children is a failure. The story also contains many subplot stories such as an impossible love between Louisa and Mr. Harthouse, a secret life of Mr. Bounderby and a social class love. With his sharp and sarcastic writing skill, Hard Times receives impressive critiques from many admirers. The outstanding critique is one from Dr F. R. Leavis in 1948 that saysâ€Å"†¦ of all Dickens’ works the one that has all the strength of his genius, together with a strength no other of them can show—that of a completely serious work of art†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Collin, 1992, p.xii). These three facts of this novel even make it more astonishing. A good novel not only gives reader an appreciation but also provides some points that need to be analyzed through critical thinking process. So does the Hard Times, it is a valuable novel that I favor and have critical reflections on the Dickens’ satire, the well-rounded characters and the comparison on the different abstract ideas. I was hooked by this novel right from the first three sentences, claimed at the beginning of the essay, because it provokes readers’ brain to think until we find the answer that it is wrong to lean on facts alone in life and that is the first satire in a story. There is the using of repeated word to sarcastically equate the teacher and Mr. Gradgrind with the mechanic engine as shown â€Å"Fact, fact, fact!’ said the gentleman. And ‘Fact, fact, fact!’ repeated Thomas Gradgrind† (Dickens, 1854, p.6). Moreover, all the well-rounded characters are formed in satirist way. For example, there is the difference between Lou isa and Sissy which we see the development of these two characters. The first is Louisa who was born and raised in a wealthy family teaching her only facts are wanted in life, but she ends up living in mournful as it says â€Å"†¦any hoarded scrap of which, is a blessing and happiness to the wisest? Did Louisa see this? Such a thing was never to be.† (Dickens, 1854, p.283). On the other hand, the second is Sissy, was born in circus and taught her with imagination, who ends up living with happiness as it says â€Å"trying hard to know her humbler fellow-creatures, and to beautify their lives of machinery and reality with those imaginative graces and delights† (Dickens, 1854, p.283). Lastly, I am very appreciated with the comparison on the different abstract ideas especially one in this example; the different perspectives of horse that the student in Mr. Gradgrind’s school describes in scientific and arithmetic way as shown: â€Å"Quadruped. Graminivorous. Forty teeth, namely twenty-four grinders, four eye teeth, and twelve incisive†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Dickens, 1854, p.4), while the Sleary’s circus people describe it as beautiful imaginary way as shown: â€Å"The public house was the Pegasus’s Arms. The Pegasus’s legs might have been more to the purpose†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Dickens, 1854, p.25). It can be interpreted that students see no abstract from object, they have blunted mind, while circus people, who live in Victorian Era the golden age of circus, have something that students do not have which are morality and hospitality. These are my critical reflections that makes Hard Times become one of my favorite novels. All of these are the historical backgrounds, the facts about this novel and my critical reflections for the Dickens’ Hard Times. It is a story of wrong philosophy that facts which are actually not the only needful thing in life. This novel gives readers the way to approach history of Victorian Age, also , an appreciation. And the most importantly, it persuades readers to live their lives happily with imagination and hospitality to everyone that will come into life. References Collins, Philip (1992). Introduction. Charles Dickens Hard Times(p. xi,xii,xiii). Berwick Street, London: The Millennium Library. Dickens, Charles (1854). Hard Times For These Times. Charles Dickens Hard Times(p. 1,4,6,20,25,283). Berwick Street, London: The Millennium Library. Diniejko, Dr Andrzej.Charles Dickens as Social Commentator and Critic. The Victorian Web: An Overview. Retrieved January 10, 2013, from http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/dickens/diniejko.html Hard Times Critical Essay by Charles Dickens. Study Guides, Lesson Plans, Homework Help, Answers More enotes.com. Retrieved January 10, 2013, from http://www.enotes.com/hard-times-essays/dickens-charles-hard-times-these-times Hard Times: Critical Essays: Dickens Philosophy and Style CliffsNotes . Get Homework Help with CliffsNotes Study Guides . Retrieved January 10, 2013, from http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/literature/hard-times/critical-essays/dickens- philosophy-style.html Lowy, M. (2007). The Current of Critical Irrealism. A concise companion to realism(p. 218). Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell.

These Truths, Self-Evident :: Voting Personal Narrative Election Essays

These Truths, Self-Evident Yesterday†¦ Election Day†¦ Like many virtuous and civic-minded citizens I cast my ballot—our quirky little tradition, overthrowing the government every two years—yet despite my best efforts the Republican Party swept the House of Representatives and the United States Senate. I want to use a rude word right now. I don’t understand Republicans, and I don’t understand their policies; this isn’t to say that I don’t understand their aims and objectives—I do. However, I cannot stomach what they stand for. I cannot stomach those who would deny women control over their bodies, deny homosexuals the right to legally recognized love. I cannot fathom those who would cut taxes on the superrich, creating Jazz Age class divisions that separate citizens with insurmountable walls of money. But despite my disgust for most things conservatives stand for, I cannot bring myself to dismiss them. President Bush currently holds a 63 percent approval rating from the American public, and I do not choose to believe 63 percent of the citizens of my country are stupid. And despite the way I complain, I really sit down here to rant. My problem stems from the fact that everything these religious zealots hold sacred radically conflicts with every belief I hold sacred and dear. Salman Rushdie knows a little something of religious zealotry. After the publication of his 1988 novel The Satanic Verses, the Indian novelist got a bit more than the usual outcry from the extreme religious right. Objecting to the negative portrayal of the prophet Muhammad, the founder of Islam, and the Koran, Islam’s holy book, Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran called on all righteous Muslims to execute the writer as well as the publisher of the book. For more than ten years, Rushdie hid from publicity and assassination, all on account of his slander of so-called â€Å"sacred† texts. It is reasonable to surmise that Rushdie has a pretty strong opinion of that which is declared sacrosanct. In 1990, the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London invited the Booker Prize-winning novelist to deliver the prestigious Herbert Reed Memorial Lecture; those protecting him decided that he should not go in person. Perhaps not being â€Å"able to re-enter [his] old life, not even for such a moment† (Rushdie 340), fueled Rushdie’s rhetoric; for whatever the cause, the occasion birthed a lecture of rage: â€Å"Is Nothing Sacred?† In this discourse, Rushdie discusses his views on the vitality and importance of literature, and whether it is, supposedly like religion, inherently sacred.

”I am Australian” by Bruce Woodley Essay

Poem Analysis – I am Australian by Bruce Woodley and My Country by Dorothea Mackellar The two poems that I have chosen to analyse are â€Å"I am Australian Written by Bruce Woodley and Dobe Newton and â€Å"My country† written by Dorothea Mackellar. Both poems portray the love for the country and the sense of belonging as both of these writers are Australian born bush poets. The poem â€Å"I am Australian† relates to the concept of belonging to and national identity. Repetition of ‘I Am Australian’ reinforces this, imagery of the environment and creates a link between the nation and the self, and thus the person is intimately connected to the country. The Poem is about celebrating diversity in Australia, between the people and the land. The second poem â€Å"My Country† by Dorothea Mackellar portrays the beauty of the Australian outback landscape and she declares her love of the country. It was written in order to inform people about the beauty and the wilderness of this country. Both of these poems relate to the theme of belonging t o the country Australia. The techniques I will be using for analysis are rhyme, language, imagery and form. In the ‘I am Australian’ song which goes – â€Å"we are one, but we are many† it can be seen as an expression of cultural inclusion. It tells us the story of a nation of immigrants .The first stanza is like an extended metaphor for example, I came from the dreamtime From the dusty red-soil plains I am the ancient Heart All of these create a visual representation in the readers mind about the country. Repetition of â€Å"I am Australian† reinforces this, imagery of the environment and creates a link between the nation and the person thus one feels connected to the country. I believe the song is about celebrating diversity in Australia, between the people and the land. It describes the people as being an aborigine, a digger’s daughter, a battler, a bushy and so on. It describes the land as being as diverse as the people, but one common thing they all have in common is they are Australian. The verses of the song speak with pride of the values, traditions and accomplishments of the Australia, including our proud indigenous history. In the second poem ‘My Country’, Dorothea Mackellar portrays the beauty of her country; Australia. Dorothea Mackellar uses imagery technique like alliteration, for example, â€Å"for flood and fire and famine to characterise rural Australian Life and  repetition of words or phrases like â€Å"core of my heart, my country!† to show a sense of belonging. The poem is full of metaphors, for example â€Å"an opal-hearted country†. Some metaphors include personification. For instance, she uses â€Å"her† for nature and regards nature as a mother or woman. Moreover, this illustrates her love of Australia. Australia is not just a piece of land to this poet; she has a relationship with this land, and that is why she refers to it as if it were a person. In her poem Dorothea personifies Australia.† She portrays Australia as beautiful because of this wildness. This is conveyed in the phrase â€Å"my love is otherwise† that concludes the stanza on England, and the phrase â€Å"I love a sunburnt country† that introduces the following stanza on Australia. This illustrates her love of Australia. Australia is not just a piece of land to this poet; she has a relationship with this land, and that is why she refers to it as if it were a person. Dorothea’s poem uses language in a way that differs from our ordinary expression whereas Woodley and Newton use free verse and there is chorus. In â€Å"I am Australian, there is more focus on outback whereas â€Å"my country† is more about Mother Nature. Dorothy uses more personification than Woodley and Newton. Moreover, Woodley and Newton have made reference to real life Australian life identity such as Ned Kelly, Matilda, Clancy and Albert Namajera which alludes to Australian Identity Whereas Dorothea mostly uses personification. In conclusion, I have found that both of these poems refer to typical Australian lifestyles such as, being free, living around native Australian icons and having an Australian Identity and have a sense of belonging to Australia. This key point is to be proud of being an Australian which will help to have a positive Australian identity. Both writers show their pride of belonging to Australian.

The Spell of Sensibility - 654 Words

The Spell of Sensibility Although the Romantic Eras general perspective regarding a womans sensibility may seem distasteful to most contemporary readers, the viewpoint was commonplace during the period. To be clear, this was mainly the assumption that women were dominated by their ‘specially configured’ and ‘delicate’ senses, rather than reason and intellect. Authors like Edmund Burke passively promoted these fragilities in his verbosely titled piece A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful. While this point of view retained popularity, there were thankfully those who sought to tear it to shreds. The author Mary Wollstonecraft, widely lauded as the first Feminist, actively addressed sensibility and more in her political and polemic treatise â€Å"Vindication of the Rights of Woman†. She cites deprivation of quality education for women, as well as their condescending treatment in society as reasons for this sort of behavior. But to bett er understand why women were seen this way in the first place, it will help to briefly to define what Romanticism really is, in a cultural and literary context. And while it is no longer as potent as it once was, the spell which tricks society into believing women are a secondary and frail sex, is one that still has power today, and it is a spell which should be permanently broken. Regarding women and their so-called sensibility, Edmund Burke writes: Among animals, the greyhound [dog] is moreShow MoreRelatedEssay on Jane Austen Novels: Success After Death1679 Words   |  7 PagesSense and Sensibility, and it seemed to not bring in as much success as it would later on in life. But the dry spell would eventually end. Two hundred years after Jane Austens death, her books gained a lot of attention (Leddy). 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