Oliver Twist The alternative title, "The Parish Boy's Progress", alludes to Bunyan's "The Pilgrim's Progress", as well as the 18th-century caricature series by William Hogarth, "A Rake's Progress" and "A Harlot's Progress". In this early example of the social novel, Dickens satirises the hypocrisies of his time, including child labour, the recruitment of children as criminals, and the presence of street children. The novel may have been inspired by the story of Robert Blincoe, an orphan whose account of working as a child labourer in a cotton mill was widely read in the 1830s. It is likely that Dickens's own youthful experiences
Dickens Heath Dickens Heath Only three miles from Solihull town centre, Dickens Heath new village, when complete, will consist of 1672 dwellings and be home to a population of about 4,000 people. The actual population as taken at the 2011 census was 3,992. The name Dickens Heath is believed to be associated with Thomas Dykens, who lived in the district in 1524.Dickens Heath was one of the several areas of open common land in Solihull parish. It was described as being of 10 acres in the 1632 Manorial Survey of Solihull. At the time of the 1841 census, Dickens Heath was a