Dickens

1/7/10


I've been reading Oliver Twist. Its my second or third try so far and I'm about halfway through. The last time i tried was a few years ago, i didn't get past the first chapter. (: As I'm reading it inevitably the same question arises in my mind... What does Charles Dickens think of religion, specifically Christianity? What sparked the thought was just a few sentences early on in the book, (isn't it amazing how that happens, imagine the writer, he's just writing interesting bits for his book, but to different people, it will spark completely different thoughts in their heads) Mr. Dickens is quoting the evil, supposedly Christian people that are "taking care" of Oliver in the work house. They say,
"And i hope that you pray for those who protect, feed and shelter you every night, like a good Christian?"
and then Mr. Dickens says this interesting statement,
"And Oliver would have been a very, very good Christian indeed if he prayed for such miserable losers as these" (paraphrased of course...)
So i thought, i could say,
"he's obviously against Christianity, those who he portrays as some of the worst people in the book profess to be Christians."
Or i could say, "He is obviously positive towards Christianity, he implies that good Christians should pray for their enemies."
Which stand shall i take? Neither.
I am going to google "was Charles Dickens a Christian" I'll let you know what i find.
Well apparently chacha says this, "Yes. Dickens was a Christian. He often showed his Christian spirit in his writings."
Do i believe chacha? Not entirely.
Here's what Christian Today Library says, "Dickens was a critic of aristocratic, high church elitism."
Do i believe that that means he was not a Christian? hah... No.
This is what i believe. Its a lot to write... I'll post the link. http://www25.uua.org/uuhs/duub/articles/charlesdickens.html

This is what i think is true. It seems to fit with his writings best. Do i have much evidence. No, unless you think that article is 100% true. I'm a little wary of online posts being completely fact. But it probably is correct. (: