Charles Dickens and social criticism. On the other hand, Oscar Wilde, Henry James, and Virginia Woolf complained of a lack of psychological depth, loose writing, and a vein of saccharine sentimentalism. The term "Dickensian" is used to describe something that is reminiscent of Dickens and his writings, such as poor social conditions or comically repulsive characters. Charles John Huffam Dickens was born on 7 February 1812, at 1 Mile End Terrace (now 393 Commercial Road), Landport in Portsea Island (Portsmouth), the second of eight children of Elizabeth Dickens (née Barrow; 1789–1863) and John Dickens (1785–1851). His father was a clerk in the
Dickens in America hymn, “For the Music of Creation.” Part Three - New England “These towns and cities of New England (many of which would be villages in Old England), are as favourable specimens of rural America, as their people are of rural Americans.” Like Dickens, Miriam takes a train from Boston to Lowell, Massachusetts. When Dickens visited Lowell, it was a recently built, planned company town a few miles outside of Boston. In its day it was the second largest city in New England. Today the city is a National Park, administered by the National Park Service. Miriam tours the city on