Hard Times – For These Times 

(commonly known as Hard Times) is the tenth novel by Charles

Dickens, first published in 1854. The book surveys English society and satirises the social and
economic conditions of the era.

Hard Times is unusual in several respects. It is by far the shortest of Dickens' novels, barely a
quarter of the length of those written immediately before and after it.[1] Also, unlike all but one of his
other novels, Hard Times has neither a preface nor illustrations. Moreover, it is his only novel not to
have scenes set in London.[2] Instead the story is set in the fictitious Victorian industrial Coketown, a
generic Northern English mill-town, in some ways similar to Manchester, though smaller. Coketown
may be partially based on 19th-century Preston ,

Superintendent Mr. Gradgrind opens the novel at his school in Coketown stating, "Now, what I want
is, Facts", and interrogates one of his pupils, Sissy, whose father works at a circus. Because her
father works with horses, Gradgrind demands the definition of 'horse'. When she is scolded for her
inability to factually define a horse, her classmate Bitzer gives a zoological profile; and Sissy is
censured for suggesting that she would carpet a floor with pictures of flowers.
 .

Charles John Huffam Dickens (/ˈdɪkɪnz/; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer
and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by
many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era.[1] His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity
during his lifetime, and by the 20th century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary
genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity.[2][3]
Born in Portsmouth, Dickens left school to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in
a debtors' prison. Despite his lack of formal education, he edited a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote
15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles, lectured and
performed readings extensively, was an indefatigable letter writer, and campaigned vigorously for
children's rights, education, and other social reforms.

Dickens was regarded as the literary colossus of his age.[10] His 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol,
remains popular and continues to inspire adaptations in every artistic genre. Oliver Twist and Great
Expectations are also frequently adapted, and, like many of his novels, evoke images of early
Victorian London. His 1859 novel, A Tale of Two Cities, set in London and Paris, is his best-known
work of historical fiction.

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 

Dickens favoured the style of the 18th century picaresque novels that he found in abundance on his
father's shelves. According to Ackroyd, other than these, perhaps the most important literary
influence on him was derived from the fables of The Arabian Nights.[126]

Dickens's Dream by Robert William Buss, portraying Dickens at his desk at Gads Hill Place surrounded by
many of his characters

His writing style is marked by a profuse linguistic creativity.[127] Satire, flourishing in his gift for
caricature, is his forte. An early reviewer compared him to Hogarth for his keen practical sense of the
ludicrous side of life, though his acclaimed mastery of varieties of class idiom may in fact mirror the
conventions of contemporary popular theatre

Museums and festivals celebrating Dickens's life and works exist in many places with which Dickens
was associated. These include the Charles Dickens Museum in London, the historic home where he
wrote Oliver Twist, The Pickwick Papers and Nicholas Nickleby; and the Charles Dickens Birthplace
Museum in Portsmouth, the house in which he was born. The original manuscripts of many of his
novels, as well as printers' proofs, first editions, and illustrations from the collection of Dickens's
friend John Forster are held at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Died 9 June 1870 (aged 58)

Higham, Kent, England

Resting place Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey

One of Dickens's reasons for writing Hard Times was that sales of his weekly periodical, Household
Words, were low, and it was hoped the novel's publication in instalments would boost circulation – as
indeed proved to be the case. Since publication it has received a mixed response from critics. Critics
such as George Bernard Shaw and Thomas Macaulayhave mainly focused on Dickens's treatment
of trade unions and his post–Industrial Revolution pessimism regarding the divide between capitalist
mill owners and undervalued workers during the Victorian era. Hard Times is unusual in several
respects. It is by far the shortest of Dickens' novels, barely a quarter of the length of those written
immediately before and after it.[1] Also, unlike all but one of his other novels, Hard Times has neither
a preface nor illustrations. Moreover, it is his only novel not to have scenes set in London.[2] Instead
the story is set in the fictitious Victorian industrial Coketown, a generic Northern English mill-town, in
some ways similar to Manchester, though smaller. Coketown may be partially based on 19th-
century Preston.
One of Dickens's reasons for writing Hard Times was that sales of his weekly periodical, Household
Words, were low, and it was hoped

Dickens was appalled by what he saw as a selfish philosophy, which was combined with
materialist laissez-faire capitalism in the education of some children at the time, as well as in
industrial practices. In Dickens's interpretation, the prevalence of utilitarian values in educational
institutions promoted contempt between mill owners and workers, creating young adults whose
imaginations had been neglected, due to an over-emphasis on facts at the expense of more
imaginative pursuits.
Dickens wished to satirise radical Utilitarians whom he described in a letter to Charles Knight as
"see[ing] figures and averages, and nothing else." He also wished to campaign for reform of working
conditions. Dickens had visited factories in Manchester as early as 1839, and was appalled by the
environment in which workers toiled. Drawing upon his own childhood experiences, Dickens
resolved to "strike the heaviest blow in my power" for those who laboured in horrific conditions.
John Stuart Mill had a similar, rigorous education to that of Louisa Gradgrind, consisting of
analytical,