Charles Dickens, the famous Victorian novelist and the immortal writer of "David Copperfield', Oliver Twist, Christmas Carols, The Tale of two Cities, the list is endless; he was one of the eight children of John and Elizabeth Dickens.
As a young boy, he loved to read and was exposed to classics like "Arabian Nights,' 'Don Quixote' which opened up his imagination. He started writing at a tender age. He was twelve when his father went to the debt prison, and he was to live by himself. His mother could not understand a young boy's sensitive nature. He was depressed about working in the blackening factory. This inspired him to learn shorthand and wanted to be a journalist. When he was just eighteen, he met a young girl Maria Beadnell and fell in love at first sight; "wildly, passionately, devotedly and hopelessly" [Oscar Wilde]. Maria behaved coquettishly, sometimes she insulted him and sometimes encouraged him. At that time, Charles was working just as a stenographer, which her mother did not approve, she wanted a wealthy man for her daughter. She was sent to France by her father to complete her schooling, and when she returned after three years, her attraction for him was no more; he tried to court her but was rejected by insults. She was immortalized as Dora Spenlow in his novel, 'David Copperfield.'
Charles Dickens started working as a journalist, and he met Catherine Hogarth, daughter of his boss, of 'Morning Chronicle,' working for him in the 'Evening post.' He married her. She was the eldest of ten children. Initially, it seemed as if he loved her, but soon he lost interest in her. The younger sister of Catherine, Mary Hogarth, came to stay with them after their marriage, he liked the presence of this seventeen-year-old sister-in-law, and she was impressed by her brother-in-law's intelligence. This Scottish teenager had a significant influence on Dickens's writings. She was there in their house to nurse her elder sister during her first childbirth. Once, all three of them, Charles, Catherine, and Mary, went to the theater to watch one of his Farce [Play]. When they came home, Mary and Charles chatted till midnight, when she went to sleep, it was discovered she had high fever, the doctor was called, and Dickens had her comforting in his arms, she died in a couple of hours, leaving him tormented, he took out a ring from her finger which he wore the rest of his life, this was a platonic relationship, which could not be made physical as she died so young.
His periodical work "Pickwick Papers" and "Oliver Twist" stopped for a while, his wife Catherine could not compete with her younger sister, Charles lost all interest in her, he found her out of shape and constantly tired. But soon he had to resume his writings and became a famous writer, another younger sister of Catherine came to live with them, Georgina, who was a few years younger than Mary. She looked after the house when the couple left their home for their tours.
Catherine bore him ten children and got lost in rearing children. Charles blamed her for the birth of so many children, and they became more and more incompatible and in 1858, after 22 years of marriage decided to part. Except for one child Charles Dickens Jr, all the others chose to live with their father.
There was a rumor that Charles was into a secret relationship with an actress, Ellen Ternan, 18 years, slightly older than his elder daughter, and he was then 45 years old, but it remained undercovers as Charles was a famous author and his reputation in public mattered a lot. They lived together undisclosed until his death.
Then Ellen married George Robinson, an Oxford graduate, but his divorced wife Catherine remained loyal to her husband. Before her death, she gave all her husband's letters to the 'British Museum' to make the world know that he once really loved her.
Comments