The critical realism

Critical realism flourished in the 40-50s of the 19th century. The cr realists set themselves at a task of criticizing capitalist society exposing the crying social contradictions. Their strong point was their true reflection of life andthier sharp disregard for the existing injustice. The merit of English realism lies in its profound humanism its sympathy for the working people is boundless and earnest. The greatest english realist of the time was Charles Dickens with striking force and truthfulness he described the sufferings of common people another critical realist prominent for his creative activity was William Makepeace Thackery. His novels contain a satirical portrayal of the upper straighter of society. Here also belong Charlotte and Emily Brontë. Elisabeth Gaskell and George Eliot. All these writers showed a realistic picture of their contemporary written. Their portrayed every day life with a little man as a central character.

Charles Dickens (1812-1870) was born at Landport where his father held clerkship in the navi pay office. He spent his youth at Chatham and London where he had to submit to alive of great hardship. His father being imprisoned for debt. The boy worked as a packer in a warehouse. Later he was placed in a solicitor's office where he acquired the knowledge of legal affairs afterwards displayed in his novels. Dickens' education was mainly achieved by extensive reading and keen observation of people and things around him. In 1831 Dickens obtained an engagement as parliamentary reporter. His literary career began in 1833. First he wrote short descriptive essays on the London scenes familiar to him as a worker under the general title "Scetches by Boz". His next publication "Posthumous (посмертный) Papers of the Pickwick club" (1837) spread his fame all over Europe. The "Papers" is a humorous description of funny adventures and misadventures of the members of the Pickwick club which was founded by mister Pickwick. The purpose of the club was "to observe characters and manners". Dickens created a series of novels notable for critical and comic talent.

The first is "Oliver Twist" (1838). This novel deals with social problems. It is a history of a little boy born in a workhouse and left an orphan. The kind and honest boy by nature finds himself in the environment of thieves, liars and has to live through terrible hardships as Dickens still believes in the inevitable (неизбежный) of good over evil, it is natural that a greater part o Dickens' worked d's happily so "Oliver Twist" does.

His next novel was "Nicholas Nickelby" (1839). This book deals with burning question: education of children in private schools. NN becomes a teacher of a typical english boarding school where half starved children are used by the master of the school and his wife for domestic work.

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Then came “The old Curiosity Shop” (лавка древности) (1841). It is a story of sufferings and hardships of an old man called Trent and his grandaughter Neil who lived in London. They have to overcome a lot of difficulties because of their having lack of money, along with high moral standards.

In 1844 Charles Dickens spend some time in the USA and published his famous satire on the American way of life called Chuzzlewit. Between 1843-1848 he published a series of Christmas Tales called “Christmas Books” and in 1846 he began one of his last novels the most prominent for its deep social ground Dombey and Son. The autobiographical novel “David Copperfield” (1850) based on a story of a young man who lives through hardships . Dickens tried to express all his reflexions on the general social situation in England and the ways of obtaining personal happiness in difficult life situations. Through this book how compassionate the author is to the hardships of common people and how strongly he believes in the necessity, and virtues of social justice and financial security.

Dickens is also interested for his attention to the development of human character (especially child's one) when it faces some kinds of problems. “Little Dorrit” (1857) is the most interesting. It is a story of a little girl whose parents are thrown into the debtors prison.

Dickens also tried his hand in historical novels which were also talented and literary perfect. The most important are “Barnaby Rudge” (1841) and “The Tale of Two Cities”.

Dickens is mostly bent on correcting public grievances like the defects of the new outrageous Poor Law and the workhouse system. Dickens was also infuriated by the clumsiness and deep injustice of the governmental and legal systems.

William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863)

This author was born in Calcutta, where his father was employed in the East India company. When he was 6, he was sent to England and was educated at Charter-house school. Then he studied at Trinity College Ireland and then at Cambridge. He spent some month in Weimar studying art. In search of a career he began to read for the bar (jurisdiction). But he didnt find law much to his taste. Later he studied drawing and became an able droughts-man (шаржист). He even published a collection of satirical drawings "Zephyr" (1836).

Thackeray started his literary career as a journalist writing stories, reviews and art criticism. The first major book attracted attention was “The Book of Snobs”, which deals with the upper classes and their ardent (passionate) followers in the middle classes. The book draws a gallery of English snobs of different circles of English society. A snob according to Thackeray is a person who bows down to and flatters his social superior and looks down with contempt (презирать) on his social inferior. In the book the author declares war on snobbery, vanity and selfishness. It is no surprise that the book of snobs was follower by and even sharper devoted to the same thing

“The Vanity Fair” (Ярмарка тщеславия). A Novel without a Hero - considered to be the pick of social realism.

The novel tells of the fates of 2 girls with sharply contrasting characters, Becky Sharp and Amelia Sedley. Amelia is a sweet honest, naive young girl, representing virtue without wit. Her friend Rebecca Sharp is clever, talented, charming, energetic girl, representing wit without virtue. Neither of the girls can be regarded as a heroine of the novel. Becky has neither real feeling nor honest aims. Amelia is too intelligent naive and simple hearted to understand qualities of the people surrounding her.

Vanity Fair was followed by “The History of Pendennis” (1848) and “The Newcomers” (1855). The novels of the later period of Thackerays creative activity are “Henry Esmond” and “The Virginians”, displaying his preoccupation with the social problems of that time.