Hard times, a novel written by Charles Dickens in 1854 during the Victorian era of London. A work of “fiction” that describes events during the dawn of industrial revolution. Dickens emphasized the importance of reality in his works of fiction, hoping to enlighten others about the changes brought about by the rise of utilitarianism and to shed light on the neglected ghosts of the society. Only a ghost can perceive another; “Charles started working at a London warehouse, he worked daily for twelve hours at a stretch in a shoe factory where shoes were manufactured, cleaned and packed and the small wages which he got was just enough to support his family at this difficult time. This period of hardship played a significant role in his life as he has faced the ample unpleasant experiences as a growing young man which he portrayed in many of his works.” In this work, Dickens informs his audience a detail of the issues that confide in the 19th Century ranging from; mechanization of society, economic crisis and the philosophy of utilitarianism which are still relevant to the world today.

In an industrialized town like Coketown, it is the inhumanity of industrialists like Bounderby, who is accountable for the state of things, in these hard times Bounderby refers to his factory workers as “Hands” which inculcates the idea that they are the physical extension of himself and are only there to do his bidding; for this reason alone, he is exempted from doing anything and only exists to overseer others. Dickens also describes the poor working conditions of the workers with phrases like “swarthy visages.”, “whole town seemed to be frying in oil.” and “the dresses of the Hands were soiled with it.” Despite all of this “The bank offered no violence to the wholesome monotony of the town.” This resulted in a social divide between the rich “owners of society.” and the impoverished monotonous workers: who only existed for their work alone. Bounderby who saw this as a threat to his business and capitalism as a whole; conjured up a lie that he was born impoverished and flourished only as a “self-made man.” through hard work which instilled the idea to the workers that they could also achieve success by giving them hope, however unaware that they were only being exploited for his own benefit. The social divide would only emerge more with time which was also clearly evident by the difference in language portrayed by the writer with characters like Stephen Blackwood, for example “I ha’ coom to ask yo, sir, how I am to be ridded o’ this woman.” There are also rights only the prerogative individuals have access to in this crisis driven era; like divorcing one’s own wife – restrictions on even human relationships. Most would just exploit the poor for their own benefit while others would have no connexion with the improvident classes. Bounderby only respected his “eminently practical.” friend Gradgrind, who just like him was a firm believer of the philosophy of rational self-interest. Instilling only facts on the mind of young individuals – The fact that the rich are rich, and the poor are poor which would further widen the gap and invoke the economic crisis. The hands even created an alliance to fight this injustice and create a labour dispute. Tom surrendered to the doctrine of his father and with his hedonist state of mind he tricked Stephen for his own self-interest; by informing him to stay at the bank for the night while Tom robbed the bank, meanwhile Stephen had been labelled as the suspect due to him being told to stroll the bank at night.

Now I arrive at the conclusion that Charles Dickens’s Hard Times is a great social novel and it has exposed the hollowness of the Victorian society. Dickens wants to support an idea by presenting his characters in opposite situations and meeting with failures and frustrations in life. Reprimanding the misapplied utilitarian philosophy approach by considering the consequences brought upon the others affected by it and to represent the clashing contrast between greedy capitalism for the wealthy and the deplorable economic crisis for the impoverished.