Literary Analysis of Sketches by Boz

Literary Analysis of Sketches by Boz

-1

Literary Analysis of Sketches by Boz

Author Name

University Name

Literary Analysis of Sketches by Boz-2

Charles Dickens, probably the greatest observer and social

reformer of the Victorian England contributed enormously and

showed sympathy towards the disadvantaged segments of English

society. Victorian Age was distinguished by startling contrasts

of morality and hypocrisy, of splendour and squalor and of

prosperity and poverty. Princess Victoria became Queen Victoria

in 1837, she died in 1901, and that long span of 64 years is

called Victorian Era. The Reform Act of 1832 contributed a lot in

vast level political, social and economic disruption. Rapid

industrial revolution swept through whole Europe but originated

in England, making it the hub of change.

The transcendent aspect of Victorian Literature thus becomes

the ‘change’, or more precisely, the upheaval. Impoverished

working class started flocking in search of work, while


bourgeoisie took the benefit of surplus labour and kept the wages

low. Thus, the poor remained poor and lived in miserable

conditions, while rich flourished. This ultimately led the

mindset of writers in Victorian Era, as most of the themes of

Victorian novels are about morality and social guidance to

society, and feeling of empathy with poor and disadvantaged

people.

Sketches by Boz are the collection of Charles Dickens early

stories that were published periodically in Monthly Magazine and

other newspapers from 1833 to 1836. Boz is Dickens' pseudonym,

originated from his younger brother Augustus's through-the-nose

pronunciation of his own nickname, Moses. The sketches give

delightful glimpses into life of early Victorian London. In terms

of literary mastery, Dickens was still amateur writer when

writing Sketches by Boz, but these sketches laid the ground for

future artist that masterfully reflected his age. These sketches

offer us a glimpse into author’s themes and style in their

embryonic state. In later period, Dickens himself said about the

Sketches by Boz, "They comprise my first attempts at authorship. I am conscious


of their often being extremely crude and ill-considered, and bearing obvious marks of

haste and inexperience." (Perdue)

Although Dickens was in infancy when writing Sketches by

Boz, but he still managed to pull off great imagery, symbolism

and allegory in it. It is said that a great writer is the one who

touches all the five senses of readers. The senses of touch,

smell, taste, hearing and sight should be stirred in order to

fully involve the reader. Dickens was truly a master in reaching

out to his readers while provoking all the senses. The reason

that Sketches by Boz got instant popularity was Dickens approach

of writing. In sketches by Boz he simply pictured the different

places and scenes of London of Victorian Era, but his writing was

so overwhelming that reader always feel like being physically

present there. Through Sketches by Boz, we can still picture the

Victorian Era and be virtually present their in Dickensian scenes

and situations. Not only he provided the imagery, but also

allowed us to peek into the culture, human nature and morals of

the Victorian London.


Benjamin Disraeli a novelist and two times Prime Minister of

Queen Victoria, has quite perfectly described the England in

Victorian Era through one of his novel’s character. He referred

to England, as Two Nations- “The Privileged and The People”. In

other words, one nation is of wealth and the other is of grinding

poverty, and this can be seen clearly in Sketches by Boz. The

conditions of extreme poverty and child labour in Victorian era

can be imagined, as in1842 there was an official investigation in

working conditions of coalmines of England. One of the witnesses

testified in front of commission that he is 8 years old, work six

days a week, leave for mines at 4 o’clock in the morning and come

out at 5 o’clock in the evening and he never rest or sleep during

work. Just after 9 years, another witness spoke for England that

showed the other side of coin, it was no other than by a

building, which was vast and wonderful with structure of glass

and cast-iron erected in High Park in London, known as the

Crystal Palace. It depicted the vast progress of Britain in

trade, industry, science and technology. In between these two

sides of a single coin, lies the whole England. (Britannica)


It was an early age of Victorian Era from 1837 to 1870, when

Charles Dickens started writing. Charles Dickens (1812-1870)

started writing from early age but his first published story

appeared in 1833. He belonged to a poor family, despite his

parents’ best efforts, they never were able to live a good

peaceful life. When he was 12 years old, his family conditions

worsened when his father was sent in prison for debt. He was

forced to leave school and work at a boot-blacking factory.

Dickens lost his youthful innocence at an early age and felt

abandoned and betrayed by the adults who were supposed to take

care of him. Later, he himself said, “How he could be so easily cast away

at such a young age.” These sentiments of Dickens later become

recurring theme in his writing. (Biography)

Charles Dickens, in his works showed sympathy towards the

disadvantaged segments of English society and his works majorly

concerned with social implication of the society. His characters

suffer not by the hands of nature but by fellow humans. Social

scenes witnessed in daily routine life inspire most of the images

in Dickens’ works, such as Sketches by Boz. Dickens is a


satirical writer and use satire to slap directly on the face but

with humour. A phrase normally used these days, “A spoonful of sugar

makes the medicine go down" can explain the way of Dickens. Because

of humorous nature, social critiques and audiences swallowed the

bitter pill easily, but the underlying message was grave.

Dickens’ satire, coated with humour show the pomp and excess of

the royal court and royal families, in contrast with the outside

world where thousands of men, women and children are heavily

taxed with starvation. (Baugh)

Dickens used urban life full of hustle and bustle, in which

Industrialism was at its peak with aristocratic atrocities. Weak

people were seen to be crushed like insects by the ruling class,

in wake of French revolution. Charles Dickens wanted to reform

his country in order to purge it from the fatal flaws and ills of

hypocrisy in Victorian age. He used different techniques to point

out social ills and deplorable flaws in society, and depicted the

moral and social degradation of human values and norms prevalent

at that time. Being a satirist, Dickens did not place his

metaphors delicately into readers’ hands, he shoved it down the


throats. Dickens tried to explain that revolution may be a great

idea theoretically, but it just intoxicates one like a strong

wine. (Shmoop)

Charles Dickens not only used satire, he also used irony to

portray the living conditions of the workers and the poor, the

corruption of the upper classes, the social injustice and failure

of social reforms. In almost all of the Dickens’ works, poverty,

misery, increase of crime, exploitation of workers and child

labour is portrayed with very strong colours. The main aim of

Dickens works is to illustrate the damages industrial revolution

has done and the horrible results of allowing human beings to

become machines, making them deprived of compassion, imagination

and feelings. Almost all characters in his novels are touched

with irony. The ever prevailing thing in Dickens writing is the

degradation of human morals through aristocracy, industrial

revolution, hypocrisy, shame and self-righteousness. (Sparknotes)

In sketches by Boz, we have late-night or early morning

strolls in London streets, boat cruising down the Thames to

northern Kent, lonely spinsters and bachelors looking for


marriage and love prospects and high social gatherings full of

pomp and disaster. Charles Dickens has great power to seize

everything he experiences and observes. His imaginative powers

turn observatory things into fiction full of irony, satire,

amusement and sympathetic characterization. Starting from the

beginning of the Sketches by Boz, we have “The Beadle, The Parish

Engine, and The Schoolmaster”. These people represent different

characters, as the Parish Beadle has a character of being

officious and grave. On the other hand, the schoolmaster is a

person who is well mannered and is living his life in a

compromising manner. He has accepted his misfortune and is living

satisfactorily.

The chapters of Sketches by Boz continue with “The Four

Sisters”, which is a story that narrates a plot involving four

sisters. After they took over a property, they promised each

other to live together for the rest of their lives, but one of

them got married with a man named Mr Robinson who seemed

interested in marrying all four sisters. This led to curiosity in

their neighbours as to know who actually his wife was. After the


birth of baby from the eldest sister, the mystery resolved. This

story was a micro picture Of the London and shows us that how

feeble were the promises and morals of the people of that era.

They are willing to let go of anything to get what they want.

Another story titled “Our Next Door Neighbour” revolves

around the plot to identify people’s characters based on their

appearances, especially through their door knockers. Dickens has

also highlighted few narrations such as a single gentleman who

used to entertain his friends every night; then a serious man who

disappeared mysteriously; and a widowed mother with his teenage

son who died after illness. Dickens remarks here “We are actuated, we

hope, by a higher feeling than mere curiosity", here we can find the

curiosity in Dickens about the human suffering.

From characters, dickens then moves on to the scenes of

London. We have “The Streets- Morning,” and “The Streets- Night.”

Both these chapters focus on the daily happenings of 24 hours in

the streets of London. In The Street- Morning, it narrates about

people’s involvement in daily routine activities that how they

begin their day every morning after waking up. The Streets- Night


narrates the activities in night, while focusing on late night

theatre goers, high class meetings and parties many characters

from fun loving to homeless people. The author, Dickens,

concludes the chapter in a theatrical manner by dropping the

curtain.

“Scenes” doesn’t prove to be any different than other

sections and hasn’t even focused on anything special as well.

Just for the purpose of sketching the life of characters, places

like Scotland Yard are presented. Also “Hackney Coach Stands”

follows a slow speed of hackney coaches. Contemporaries have

critiqued Boz for his sense of apartness from the scenes. In “The

River” Boz set a good example in which he objectively looked upon

people and boaters instead of participating in their amusements.

The River may describe some sketches as lively and anecdotes and

amusing which comes up from "London Recreations," "Astley's,"

"Greenwich Fair," or "Vauxhall by Day." Parliamentary Sketch is

more biting because it critiques parliamentary procedures as

boring and empty. On the other hand, "Public Dinners" and

"Criminal Courts" criticize people’s interest in performing


social roles and viewing others’ lives as a drama. With a

heartbreaking sketch entitled “A Visit to NewGate” this section

closes. It led us to put our statistics to narrate anecdotes

having sympathy of a criminal’s consciousness during his last

night.

This section narrates about “Thoughts about People” which

presents short anecdotes on various types of people. Such as a

clerk who is too assertive and precise, an angry hater who

doesn’t like anyone, and a group of young London interns who are

care free and easy going. "A Christmas Dinner" is one of the more

sentimental sketches in which Dickens describes that how

Christmas can turn people around. They sort out their differences

and celebrate this day together with warmth, love, affection. He

believes that Christmas brings everyone together and keeps

religion and spirituality as secondary sources for happiness.

"The Hospital Patient" and "The Prisoner's Van" are the two

stories, which narrate about the pain of the poor people.

Dickens tells these two dimensions of being poor by two examples,

one where there is a dying girl who clears an accusation on the


death bed, and the other case is about two criminal sisters are

in a prisoner’s van, which Dickens described as being united and

friendless upbringing. Dickens finds these scenes as very real

and dime frozen.

The section also includes cautionary tales against foolish

decisions. For example “The Misplaces Attachment of Mr, John

Dounce,” who is an old boy and has mistakenly attracted to a

young lady which Boz has directed this as a warning to all boys.

"The Mistaken Milliner" is a story in which it narrates about a

girl who sings for a wedding dinner and this resulted in the

disastrous revelation of her weaknesses. Also in “The Dancing

Academy,” Mr. Augustus Cooper is tricked out of his money by the

dancing instructor and his daughter. In “Making a night of it”

the story is humorous and revolves around two men who spend their

money to the fullest which led them to be kicked out of a theatre

for their drunken behaviour. All these tales signal a warning

that we should be cautious of our actions.

This section involves two chaptered lengthy stories. “The

Boarding House” revolves around a husband and a wife, Mrs. Tibbs


who bosses around her husband. This sketch indicates that despite

of being lengthy it is not a novel and that’s why consciously

speeds through the ending of each chapter in a concluding way. In

“Mr. Minns and his Cousin,” there are two persons: Mr Budden and

Mr Miins. Mr Budden enthusiastically tries to win affection of

his cousin Mr Minns so that Mr Minns could help prosper the

future of Mr Burden’s son. Mr Minns doesn’t like such acts and

therefore he excludes them from his will. Tales such as "The

Tuggses at Ramsgate," "The Dancing Academy," or "Making a Night

of It" all caution against the vanity of those who run after

money, as it is quickly earned and as easily it is spent.

The Black Veil is a very light hearted story which tells the

story of a woman who tells a mysterious story. She weirdly

appealed to the doctor that someone dear to her is about to die.

In the end both find out that it was his son who during the

course of the narrative been executed. This section concludes

with a serious story “The Drunkard’s Death” which is a grim story

about how poverty led a man to neglect his children and later

those children blame him for their misfortune. This caused the


father to commit suicide. This is one of the many serious and sad

stories on poverty, which Boz had pointed out. (Oneyearinbooks)

Now moving to the four sketches, which are focus of our paper.

In the scene The Streets Morning, Charles Dickens has portrayed

immaculate picture of London streets in the morning. In this

scene, Dickens starts from an hour before sunrise to the

afternoon. Apparently, it seems that the general depiction of

London streets is presented, but the underlying meaning is of

heavy essence. He describes the solitary desolation of the

streets that we are accustomed to be busy with eager crowd are

quite and closely shut. We can see that drinking was very regular

in London in Victorian age. Even at the early hours of the

morning, some drunken men are staggering for their home, while

hunger and poverty can be seen all over the city as homeless

people lying on corners dreaming of food and warmth that they are

never going to get. Occasional policeman can also be seen gazing

on the prospects. Bribery was at its peak while policemen always

on the look for looting someone. The protectors of the city have

gone so corrupt that people fear policemen instead of thieves.


Besides the partially opened windows speak of uneasy slumbers,

people are not even in peace when they are asleep because of too

much turmoil.

Sketches by Boz can be stated as one of the best

representations of Victorian London. Through inspiring and

magical words, Dickens gives us vivid characterisation of every

human being living in London. In Streets Morning, he describes

that as the hours pass by, slow and steady movements start all

over the London. Women are seen to be subject of utter hard work,

as more women are seen carrying heavy baskets on their heads than

men. The morning turned into very loud with horses neighing,

carts rolling, men shouting, women talking and boys fighting.

Around 7 o’clock, the streets are full of people of all kinds,

starting their work hastily but still in slumber.

Due to industrial revolution, the number of salaried

individuals has increased. These middle-aged salaried persons are

shown to be without any sign of real life. Their families have

increased a lot through time, but their salaries are still quite

low. The tensions of providing food and shelter to their families


have overburdened them. As to stopping to shake hands, or to take

the friend’s arm, they seem to think that as it is not included

in their salary, they have no right to do it. The utilitarian

approach in people can be easily seen, as earning money was their

motto of living. Child labour can be seen everywhere as poor boys

and girls work hardest, paid worst and always treated and used as

the worst class of community. The best feature of Charles

Dickens’ writing is that he perfectly portrays and characterizes

everything he observes. He enables us to be virtually present

there through his characterization and the description of the

physical world.

In second chapter of scenes, Dickens portrays the London seen

and experienced at night. London being the hub of trade,

commerce, lifestyle and modernism, shines best in the dark.

Especially, the winter nights when all the people at home try to

be as comfortable as possible. At night the streets of London

glow with cheerful hustle and bustle, with dinning parlour

curtains drawn and kitchen fires blazing. As discussed earlier

that Dickens had speciality in characterization and


personification. He had very strong senses as he could very

easily paint the entire scenic details as he physically was

present and with his brush making master strokes to portray size,

colours and shapes.

Dickens sense of perception was so sharp that he recalled

every minute detail. When reading Charles Dickens’ Sketches by

Boz, one feels like being present on the scene and perceiving

everything through sight, smell, touch, hear and taste. For

instance, he says “In the larger and better kind of streets,

dining parlour curtains are closely drawn, kitchen fires blaze

brightly up, and savoury steams of hot dinners salute the

nostrils of the hungry wayfarer, as he plods wearily by the area

railings.” In this short sentence, Dickens provoked all the

sensory elements available in humans. Not only senses, he also

portrayed the inner feelings and emotions of people, when he

says, “plods wearily”.

When a passenger is walking from quite a while to back home

after hard day’s labour work in winter and he passes by dinning

parlour seated by rich and elite class people, and he smells of


delicious food and feels the overwhelming warmth of fire and

everything cosy in there, he feels desperate about it. He is so

tired both physically and mentally due to the poverty and family

problems that it is difficult to resist the in-satiated urge to

eat and drink. This also suggests that industrial revolution was

in the wake and capitalistic attitude was being adopted,

aristocracy and hypocrisy was at its peak while poor men were

subjected to extreme hard labour with low wages.

The night goes on with friendly little chats among women,

until their men came home. Women are shown to be among

unprivileged class, where men dominate and rule. It is clear that

although London was ruled by a women, Queen Victoria, but still

London depicts a patriarchal society. On one side, Dickens

portrayed the upper class streets in London, where wealth and

comfort can be seen everywhere. On the other hand, Dickens had

put more stress on the streets in the vicinity of Marsh Gate and

Victoria theatre. Nothing can be really found there at night

except dirt and discomfort. There are apparent signs of poverty

and hunger, the food and grocery shops are gloomy and in ragged


condition. Vendors of fruit, fish and oyster, wander aimlessly,

making in vain efforts to attract customers. Ragged boys also

wander here and there to play and kill the time with their petty

jokes.

When clock strikes 11 o’clock, the sellers, passengers and

boys make their way to home, while policeman still on guard in

cold winter night remain standing on duty. Dickens time and again

tries to tell us the conditions of poverty in London. On one side

London beholds the most modern and rich places and people, while

on the other side we have extreme poverty. After 11 o’clock when

all people have returned home or on their way to home, a wretched

women holding infant in her arms, singing ballad to earn some

money from passersby. It’s quite a horrible scene, as Dickens

says, “Disease, neglect, and starvation, faintly articulating the

words of the joyous ditty,” in chilling winter night, mother and

baby both are wailing and moaning out loud in streets of London

and might die of cold and hunger, while other people enjoying

comfort and warmth in their homes.


After miserable condition of people living in London, we are

brought to one o’clock when people return from parties. These

people live life in full pleasure and luxury without giving

slightest darn to people in streets dying of cold and hunger. The

musical portion of the play-going community betakes themselves to

some harmonic meeting and, Dickens has depicted his most dominant

way of writing, which is to be seen in all of his later work. It

is his comic element. He personifies his characters in comic way

by making their nose big, slim black face, fat baldhead and funny

voices. He makes fun of his characters, while debating on various

serious issues of the society.

Dickens being a satirical writer did not place his satire or

metaphors delicately into readers’ hands, he shoved it down the

throats, but with comic and humorous element. These days we

commonly say, if one cannot take the bitter medicine one can be

given a sugar coated pill. This explains the way Dickens makes

his readers swallow the most biting and pungent realities of the

Victorian days. It is said that dickens smiles through tears and

in a very acute and effective manner criticize the most


undesirable strata of the society. He, like a ruthless and

extremely callous surgeon operates the cancerous and malignant

sores of society caused by the industrialization and bourgeois

capital class.

In streets nights, dickens described the late night meeting

scenario of elite and aristocratic people. The pomp and excess of

the royal court and royal families are coated in humour while in

contrast with the outside world where thousands of men, women and

children are heavily taxed into starvation. Dickens always tried

to explain that these capitalistic people are funny little

creatures and far dumber than common people. They are very greedy

and rotten from inside, like a porcelain jar, which is beautiful

and shinny from outside, but house of dirt and cobwebs from

inside. Cruelty seems to be inborn in them as their wrongdoings

and damage has to paid by poor waiters and servants.

Continuing with Sketches of Boz, we are then taken to

Scotland-yard and being told that how it was accidently

discovered and how settlement established there. Most

importantly, we are told that how the simplicity and innocence of


people turned into modern and materialistic approach. First, it

was a small group of people but gradually they swell with more

settlers. Even after becoming a full town, people of Scotland-

yard kept their simplicity and innocence with them until the old

London-bridge was replaced by the new one. People were skeptic

about it and feared it until they found that London-bridge was

for their own betterment. The sudden change of improvement

spread in the whole Scotland-yard. Different eating-house keepers

started using tablecloth, artistic paintings and different unique

ideas to attract customers, gradually becoming competitors of

each other. They flourished, but their friendship and joyous

shouts ended as deadly feud sprung among them. Same thing goes

all around the Scotland-yard, having its old customs changed and

old habits being faded away.

The whole look and feel of Scotland-yard changes with old

tottering public-house converted into a spacious and lofty wine

vaults. New products and items started getting introduced in

city, which were previously unknown to it. With change and

innovation, the city started to get restless and followed the


path of London. In the end, only one old man was left unchanged,

and his description speaks volumes on the flaws of modernity and

innovation that how humans instantly leave their modesty,

simplicity and innocence for pomp, excess of modernism, greed and

lust.

To Dickens, Greenwich Fair is the lungs of London, showing

the importance of its presence in London. It is a three days

fair, in which all of the Londoners participate and enjoy.

Through Dickens, we are showed that Greenwich Fair was induced by

the ultimate craze as it represented various shows and events.

The fair was considered as the fame of London as various guests

and people from abroad also visit to see London and its great

Greenwich Fair. In critical terms, Greenwich Fair is sort of

shame and pretence that people hold. Vast majority of poor people

suffer daily for food and live life in miserable conditions,

while the three days fair evaporate all the frustration and

presents the model of London as being rich and modern where all

people live happily. In the craze of the event people spent too


much money and repent the other day about their foolish

activities.

One might feel difficulty in characterization of the

sketches by Boz. Most of the time we are confused that whether it

is fiction or journalism. Literary critics have viewed Dickens’

sketches as an early precursors of realist novels. J. Hillis

Miller is of the view that Dickens’ work shows progression to

tale from a journalistic sketch, which indicates a development on

realist, metonymic mode of storytelling in Dickens. More

recently, Amanpal Garcha recalls Sketches by Boz as one of its

own genre and moment. On the other hand, Danielle Coriale

emphasizes Dickens's anxious, retroactive privileging of

narrative design in his volume reorganization.

Sketches should be given deep consideration in their

original publications by focusing on its purpose. They may be

viewed as “Literary Journalism,” a hybrid genre capturing both

aspects: storytelling and reporting. As said by Dickens himself

that Sketches by Boz are his first attempts of authorship, thus

these Sketches are not considered as popular works of Dickens.


However, no other writing gives us this much of minute details of

London in Victorian Era. Sketches of Boz bring us nearer to the

Dickens’ Victorian London and allow us to analyse it from

omnipresence.

References

Charles Dickens. Sketches by Boz. Penguin Classics, ISBN

9780140433456. Oct 26 1995

Clive Baugh. “Charles Dickens: Sketches by Boz”. 29 Jan 2012. Web. 20 Jan

2014.

One Year In Books. “Sketches by Boz, by Charles Dickens”. 8 July 2010.

Web. 20 Jan 2014.

Biography. “Charles Dickens”. The Biography Channel website.

Biography.com. 2014, Web. 20 Jan 2014.

David Cody. “Dickens: A brief biography”. VictorianWeb.com. March 2004,

Web. 20 Jan 2014.


George H. Ford. Charles Dickens in Victorian Fiction: A Second Guide to Research,

pp. 34–113 (1978)

Britannica. “Charles Dickens”. Britannica.com. 2014. Web. 20 Jan

2014.

David Perdue. “Sketches by Boz.” Charlesdickenspage.com. Oct 17

2013. Web. 20 Jan 2014.

SparkNotes Editors. “SparkNote on A Tale of Two Cities.” SparkNotes.com.

SparkNotes LLC. 2002. Web. 20 Jan 2014.

Shmoop Editorial Team. Wine/Blood in A Tale of Two Cities. Shmoop.com.

2008. Web. 20 Jan 2014.

Literary Analysis of Sketches by Boz

Documents

Transcript of Literary Analysis of Sketches by Boz