Charles John Huffam Dickens he created some of the world's most
memorable fictional characters and is generally regarded as the greatest novelist
of the victorian period. During his life, his works
enjoyed unprecedented fame, and by the twentieth century his literary genius
was broadly acknowledged by critics and scholars. His novels and short stories
continue to be widely popular, Born in Portsmouth, England, Dickens left school
to work in a factory after his father was thrown into debtors' prison. Although
he had little formal education, his early impoverishment drove him to succeed.
Over his career he edited a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote 15 novels, 5
novellas and hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles, lectured and
performed extensively, was an indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned
vigorously for children's rights, education, and other social reforms.
Dickens sprang to fame with the 1836 serial publication of The Pickick Papers. Within a few years he
had become an international literary celebrity, famous for his humour, satire,
and keen observation of character and society. His novels, most published in
monthly or weekly instalments, pioneered the serial publication of narrative fiction, which
became the dominant Victorian mode for novel publication.[4][5]
The instalment format allowed Dickens to evaluate his audience's reaction, and
he often modified his plot and character development based on such feedback.[5]
For example, when his wife's chiropodist expressed distress at the way Miss
Mowcher in David Copperfield seemed to reflect her
disabilities.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpdLc020QFk
