A tale of one man: Dickens turns 200
Today marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens, the acclaimed English novelist who introduced immortal characters like Oliver Twist and Ebenezer Scrooge to the world.
Dickens' books – among them Great Expectations, Oliver Twist and A Christmas Carol - have proven to be enduring classics of English literature.
Macquarie University's Dr Shale Preston, who is also a member of the International Dickens Fellowship, describes Dickens as the "Mount Everest of literature".
"GK Chesterton called Dickens a 'human event in history' and 'a naked flame of natural genius'," she told ABC News Online.
"I'd describe him as a giant in terms of English literature. He's probably the most famous prose writer in the history of the English language and certainly the most famous novelist as well.
"He's such a complex and divided character. I find him such a conundrum in so many different ways. You can't really pin him down.
He's like a kaleidoscope - you look at him from one perspective and he will show you something, and then he'll morph into something else.Dr Shale Preston
"He's like a kaleidoscope - you look at him from one perspective and he will show you something, and then he'll morph into something else."
Dickens drew from his early personal experiences in his fiction, from his childhood in south-east England to his work in a factory, which inspired his famous novel David Copperfield.
"At the age of 12 his parents put him into a blacking factory, where they made shoe polish. He was in the blacking factory for about a year," Dr Preston said.
"They popped him in there as Dickens' father John Dickens got the family into an extreme amount of debt and the family ended up in prison. They kept Dickens out as a way of supporting the family.
"It was a rat-infested hole, basically. He was very distressed to be there. But he had a very early taste of what it was like to live in very unsanitary conditions and to experience the kind of poverty that a lot of Londoners knew.
"And that influenced his writing greatly. He was very much a social reformer and he was a great supporter of liberal social causes. He really wanted to make the lives of the urban poor richer."
As a teenager, Dickens went on to find work as an office assistant in a law firm and later as a journalist. The first instalment of his first novel, The Pickwick Papers, was published in 1836.
Dickens fathered 10 children with wife Catherine Hogarth before ending their 22-year marriage in 1858 to take up with a young actress - a move largely made away from the eyes of the adoring public.
"During the marriage I think probably Catherine was experiencing postnatal depression, she was constantly tired. Dickens got sick of her and he took up with this young actress called Ellen Ternan - she was about 21," Dr Preston said.
"Dickens separated from his wife and took out open letters in the newspapers saying that Catherine was an unfit mother and an unfit wife, which humiliated her.
"He cast her out into the darkness and banished her to the other side of London and only allowed her to take one of their children, and then had very little to do with her until he died.
"Dickens spent the rest of his life, about 13 years, with Ellen Ternan, albeit in a very discreet way. He wouldn't have been such a popular character if that had come to light."
Dickens also had a strained relationship with his mother - one Dr Preston describes as "vexed" - because of his year at the blacking factory.
Dr Preston says when his father received an inheritance Dickens was removed from the blacking factory – but the very next day, his mother Elizabeth tried to have him reinstated.
"She was worried about the fact that John Dickens would get the family into another state of debt ... she got the factory owner to agree to it but Dickens' father intervened," she said.
"And Dickens basically never forgave his mother. Dickens said he never could forget, he never would forget."
Dr Preston says Australia was important to Dickens - who reportedly disliked America - despite the fact that he never ventured Down Under.
Many of Dickens' most famous villains - including Great Expectations' Abel Magwitch - are sent to Australia in his novels.
"I suppose Australia was a very convenient place to pop these disreputable characters. He was living in a time where people were constantly being sent to Australia so it provided a handy plot device for him if he wanted to get rid of a character," she said.
But Australia did not just feature in Dickens' life in fiction.
"Dickens himself also worked very hard in terms of the redemption of fallen women. He set up a home called Urania Cottage and tried to help fallen women to redeem their lives," Dr Preston said.
He was very much a social reformer and he was a great supporter of liberal social causes. He really wanted to make the lives of the urban poor richer.Dr Shale Preston
"The women would go into the home for a year and learn useful skills. And at the end of the year they would be sent to Australia to hopefully live a better life.
"Australia was big in his life - a couple of his sons emigrated to Australia as well."
Dr Preston says Dickens' work continues to appeal to contemporary audiences - especially Great Expectations, which is currently being made into a feature film.
She struggles to think of a current author that compares to Dickens – but says there are plenty of Australian writers who are influenced by him.
"Peter Carey's novel Jack Maggs is heavily influenced by Great Expectations. Richard Flanagan's novel Wanting draws upon Dickens' articles and David Copperfield, and also aspects of his life - the liaison that he had with Ellen Ternan.
"Elizabeth Jolley's work Miss Peabody's Inheritance is heavily influenced by Great Expectations."
'Likened to Christ'
Unlike many great authors, Dickens was popular with readers in his own time.
"In our time Princess Diana was described as the people's princess. In Dickens' time I really feel that he was the people's writer," Dr Preston said.
In Dickens' time I really feel that he was the people's writer ... He was actually likened to Christ at the time of his death.Dr Shale Preston
"It had a lot to do with the fact that he published most of his novels in serial form. Every instalment ended with a cliff-hanger and everyone wanted to get the next instalment.
"He was actually likened to Christ at the time of his death [in June 1870, aged 58]. Thousands and thousands of people lined up to go to Westminster Abbey when he died. People were absolutely distraught."
There are celebrations in England and Australia today to mark Dickens' birthday, and Dr Preston has an idea of how he would feel about it.
"When you think about Dickens they credit him with single-handedly creating the modern idea of Christmas - like mince pies, carol singing, plum puddings, mistletoe, and revelry and merriment.
"So I think he would be absolutely delighted that people are seeing this as an occasion to celebrate.
"And he loved having a good time, so if his spirit is around, he'll be enjoying it."