Charles Dickens: A Sketch of His Life and WorksG. P. Putnam & sons, 1870 - 264 pages |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
admiration affectionate American appearance artist Barnaby Rudge believe character Charles Dickens Christian color critic David Copperfield delightful described Dick Dickens's Dombey Douglas Jerrold editor England English express fancy feeling friends Gad's Hill Gad's Hill Place Gamp genial genius George Sand give hand happiness heart Hogarth honor human humor imagination impression interest Irving Jerrold kind kiss me quick labor lady laugh letter literary literature living London manner Mark Lemon Martin Chuzzlewit master mind moral nature never newspaper Nicholas Nickleby novelist novels objects observation Oliver Twist painted paper passion Pecksniff perhaps personages Pickwick Pickwick Papers pleasure published qualities quick and go reader received respect romances satire says scenes sense sensibility sentiment Sketches society story success Thackeray things thought tion truth whole Wilkie Collins word write written young
Popular passages
Page 255 - Now, what I want is, Facts. Teach these boys and girls nothing but Facts. Facts alone are wanted in life. Plant nothing else, and root out everything else. You can only form the minds of reasoning animals upon Facts: nothing else will ever be of any service to them.
Page 16 - I walked down to Westminster Hall, and turned into it for half an hour, because my eyes •were so dimmed with joy and pride that they could not bear the street, and were not fit to be seen there.
Page 57 - I have yet to learn that a lesson of the purest good may not be drawn from the vilest evil. I have always believed this to be a recognized and established truth, laid down by the greatest men the world has ever seen, constantly acted upon by the best and wisest natures, and confirmed by the reason and experience of every thinking mind. I saw no reason, when I wrote this book, why the...
Page 21 - The idea propounded to me, was, that the monthly something should be a vehicle for certain plates to be executed by MR. SEYMOUR ; and there was a notion, either on the part of that admirable humorous artist, or of my visitor, that a
Page 112 - I have always striven in my writings to express veneration for the life and lessons of our Saviour ; because I feel it, and because I re-wrote that history for my children — every one of whom knew it from having it repeated to them, long before they could read, and almost as soon as they could speak. But I have never made proclamation of this from the housetops.
Page 116 - Mrs. Dickens and I have lived unhappily together for many years. Hardly any one who has known us intimately can fail to have known that we are, in all respects of character and temperament, wonderfully unsuited to each other. I suppose that no two people, not vicious in themselves, ever were joined together who had a greater difficulty in understanding one another, or who had less in common.
Page 21 - Club', the members of which were to go out shooting, fishing, and so forth, and getting themselves into difficulties through their want of dexterity, would be the best means of introducing these. I objected, on consideration, that although born and partly bred in the country I was no great sportsman, except in regard to all kinds of locomotion...
Page 151 - The last words he corrected in print, were, " And my heart throbbed with an exquisite bliss." God grant that on that Christmas Eve when he laid his head back on his pillow and threw up his arms as he had been wont to do when very weary, some consciousness of duty done and Christian hope throughout life humbly cherished, may have caused his own heart so to throb when he passed away to his Redeemer's rest ! He was found peacefully lying as above described, composed, undisturbed, and to all appearance...
Page 150 - That it would be very sad to any one — that it is inexpressibly so to a writer — in its evidences of matured designs never to be accomplished, of intentions begun to be executed and destined never to be completed, of careful preparation for long roads of thought that he was never to traverse, and for shining goals that he was never to reach, will be readily believed.
Page 194 - Such, he proceeded to say, was to be affirmed with confidence of De Foe's masterpiece ; he instanced the death of Friday, in that marvellous novel, as one of the least tender, and, in the true sense, least sentimental things ever written ; and he accounted for the prodigious effect which the book has had upon an unexampled number and variety of readers, though without tears in it, or laughter, or even any mention of love, by its mere homely force and intensity of truth. Not every schoolboy alone...