Nicholas Nickleby
Nicholas Nickleby is an 1839 novel by Charles Dickens, following a young man who supports his family after his father's death while battling his villainous uncle Ralph.
The full title is *The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby*.
The novel exposed abuses at Yorkshire boarding schools through the brutal Dotheboys Hall.
Nicholas Nickleby also names the protagonist himself—an earnest, hot-tempered hero who moves through Victorian society encountering cruelty and kindness.
- serializationEncoding objects for transmission
- Victorian literature1837-1901 British writing
- satireMockery exposing vice
- melodramaSensational, emotionally overwrought drama
picaresque · protagonist · antagonist · inheritance · debtors' prison · morality tale · bildungsroman · English literature
The eighteen hundreds
- EnglandLargest British country
- DickensianGrimly poor, socially unjust
- industrializationTransition to factory-based economy
- reformImprove by correcting faults
workhouse · gentility · class system · poverty · London · boarding school · theatre · social mobility
Travel from place to place
- questSeeking journey for something
- escapeFlight from captivity
- heroismExceptional courage under duress
- rescueSave from harm
courage · adversity · wandering · fortune · peril · encounter · itinerant · theatrical troupe
Process of becoming complete
- self-discoveryLearning one's true character
- youthState of being immature
- innocenceFreedom from wrongdoing
- experiencePractical knowledge from life
identity · responsibility · ambition · resilience · adversity · mentorship · naivety · independence
Charles Dickens
- serializationEncoding objects for transmission
- Victorian literature1837-1901 British writing
- satireMockery exposing vice
melodrama · picaresque · protagonist · antagonist · inheritance · debtors' prison · morality tale · bildungsroman · English literature
19th century
The eighteen hundreds
- EnglandLargest British country
- DickensianGrimly poor, socially unjust
- industrializationTransition to factory-based economy
reform · workhouse · gentility · class system · poverty · London · boarding school · theatre · social mobility · orphan
journey
Travel from place to place
- questSeeking journey for something
- escapeFlight from captivity
- heroismExceptional courage under duress
rescue · courage · adversity · wandering · fortune · peril · encounter · itinerant · theatrical troupe · Portsmouth
maturation
Process of becoming complete
- self-discoveryLearning one's true character
- youthState of being immature
- innocenceFreedom from wrongdoing
experience · identity · responsibility · ambition · resilience · adversity · mentorship · naivety · independence · adulthood