The outstanding English writer Charles Dickens (1812-1870) remained a popular writer more than a hundred years after his death. Indeed, there was a renewed interest in Dickens in the second half of the 20th century. This is reflected not only in the extensive research of his writings by scholars, but also in the sales of his novels. It is estimated that his novels sell more than a million copies a year. Dickens continues to be loved because he created so many great characters and provided us with so many lively and interesting stories.
However, perhaps many people don’t know that Dickens’s own love experience in his youth is an excellent material for his novels.
Let’s start from the beginning. Dickens was the son of a profligate clerk. He had to break into society very early on and earn a living on his own. At first, he worked as a copywriter in a London law firm, and in order to make extra money, he also wrote for several London newspapers at the same time. He was busy all day; but no matter how long he worked the day, this energetic and jovial lad always made a detour through Lombard-Street Street, where his first love lived. Girlfriend’s name is Merry. Merry is the daughter of the banker Bidner. Whenever he walks by her house, although the whole family in the room is already asleep, the heart of our protagonist is still full of happiness, because he and the girl he loves live on the same land.
However, his relationship with Mei Li did not go well. Merry often scolds him for little things. Such as not kissing her hand, not helping her put on a coat, etc. And he didn’t understand the joke at all. For example, Dickens said that no one in the world can be as gentle as her “P” sound. In fact, Mei Li pronounced the unvoiced consonant “P” into the voiced consonant “B”, but she felt that it was too impersonal to say that. .
And Dickens still hoped to get Merry’s forgiveness. But Dickens did not know what to do with Merry’s mother, Mrs. Biednell. The old-fashioned banker’s wife was often skeptical, thinking that Dickens was more interested in Mr. Biednell’s money than he was going to marry Mellie. And all of Dickens’ behavior shows that he never had this idea. In order to prevent Dickens from misunderstanding her attitude, Mrs. Biednell would deliberately mistake his name every time, calling him “Mr. Jikey” and “Mr. Derinking”… He didn’t like her like that. First of all because he is poor and yes, he doesn’t earn much money now. He has only one dress in total, and only one plate for cutlery at home, but he is convinced that he will bring happiness to Mei Li.
When Dickens turned 21, he invited Merry and her friends to his birthday party. He had previously rented a set of cutlery and hired a waiter temporarily… At the dinner, when Dickens saw that Merry had entered the front room, people thought that it was time for her to clarify her relationship, and the answer was Dickens In other words, his brain was burned all of a sudden. It turned out that Merry had no objection to friendship with him, and it was superfluous to talk about love… When all the guests were gone, poor Dickens tried his best to forget everything in front of him. He broke several wine glasses. “Forget the past, but I do have a headache,” he wrote of the family dinner many years later. “But it didn’t last, and the next afternoon, in the sun, I lifted my heavy head again…and recalled the bitter experience that had made me sad and the glass of bitter wine that had caused my headache.” But he finally dismissed it. Suicidal thoughts. “…Sober reason reminded me that for the family of the person I am passionately in love with, there is no need to do that.”
Dickens decides to put an end to his relationship with Miss Merry. But the coquettish lady didn’t stop there. She thought the comma was the more suitable symbol for her, so Mellie invited Dickens to her house under various pretexts, such as asking him to help her choose a pair of gloves for her new blue coat. And Mrs. Biednell seemed to be receiving him warmly: “Merry, my dear Mr. Derianin has come to see you again for some reason!” The banker’s wife knew that the problem was not with the boy, but with her daughter, Melina Undecided. So Mr. Biednier decided to send his daughter to France to study, to keep her away from this unfortunate person, but Merry didn’t want to leave home, and she didn’t want to study at all…In England there is an occasional performance in memory of Dickens In one of the youth dramas, there is a scene in which Dickens had no idea that Mrs. Biednell intended to break up their relationship. One day, when Dickens came to the girl, he happened to meet her and wept bitterly.
CHARLES DICKENS (hereafter referred to as Cha): Merry!
Merry Biedner (hereafter referred to as May): (with a tremor) You startled me.
Cha: Are you crying?
Mei: No, it’s your illusion.
Cha: Mei Li, dear, what happened?
Mei: Family chores, nothing.
Cha: Why are you so sad?
May: No, everything will be fine.
Cha: I just wanted to say that I’m eagerly waiting for next week to come.
Mei: Next week? Why?
Cha: I want to hang out with you…
Mei: I’m afraid, I can’t come.
Cha: You can’t come? Why?
May: I feel as if this can’t tell you…
At this moment Mrs. Biedner appeared suddenly, and she said loudly, as the conductor announced the departure, “Mr. Delkin, I wish you all the best smoothly!”
It is hard to say how much sincerity Mrs. Biednell wished Dickens all the best, but it would be appropriate to say that her wish was entirely insincere. Because like a pool of water, it has long since bottomed out. She just used this method to finally drive Dickens out of the house.
However, Dickens’ career went very smoothly. He found many unique materials in the High Court, and began to write many brilliant features and excellent novels one after another, so he became famous as a famous British writer. He is now obsessed with writing day and night, just as obsessed as he used to find oblivion in alcohol. After a while, his books were published in the United States, Russia, and China, and his ability to describe life began to rival Shakespeare’s!
Well, he finally made his debut, what should our protagonist do?
Look, he used I bought a decent house with my own royalties, bought a set of beautiful furniture, and also had all kinds of tableware. The main thing is that he is married, to the publisher’s daughter, Caitlin, but it’s a little strange to marry so quickly, and there’s an additional condition that makes it even more puzzling. It requires a marriage contract: if a husband or wife falls in love with someone in the future, they must inform each other (one of his biographers wryly says that this condition seems to say that if a person is Christian, he can transfer at any time by telling the priest beforehand) into other teachings). At the same time as fast as marriage, Dickens soon discovered that Caitlyn, despite her outward appearance as an amiable woman, was in fact a true “scholar” with a complete lack of imagination and sense of humor. She’s lazy and doesn’t seem to be doing anything in life other than having a baby every year. Every word of hers, every gesture of hers, annoyed Dickens. So, he tried not to appear in public with her.
An unhappy marriage is worse than drunkenness. It would turn two not-so-bad people into psychopaths, fortunately Dickens didn’t. He is kind and intelligent by nature, although he often loses self-control. But what was it that stopped him and Caitlin from breaking up? Some thought it might be a lack of confidence, even though he was finally divorced after 22 years of marriage.
Long-term inconveniences in personal life were not without a trace in Dickens, and indeed he was quick to think. Seeing the thick shaggy hair and untidy portraits we all know, it’s hard to believe that Dickens was a handsome and charming man in his youth. A man who knew almost the writer’s life described his appearance this way: “Dickens’ eyes were dark brown, shining like a flat-horned deer…but then his face became a beautiful bronze, like a sailor in the open air. I’ve never seen such an amazing change in a person’s appearance…” According to other friends, Dickens was very laughable and infectious in his youth. It seemed to laugh as usual as he breathed. He also laughed as an adult, but only in books. And this laughter is joybut also distressed—an annoying laugh.
Now back to the scene our protagonist’s life originally expected: One day Dickens was about to go to Paris, and he began to go through the piles of mail he had accumulated. Suddenly, a letter called Ms. Winter came into view. It was her! Ms. Winter was called Biednell Meryl Biednell before she got married. It turned out that she had been paying attention to the great achievements of her friends in her youth, but she didn’t want the world-famous writer to recall her, and finally couldn’t stand it anymore. There was something like love between them at some point anyway. Wasn’t she? She would be very pleased and proud to have Mr. Dickens’ letter, and she would be sure to show herself off to Mr. Winter and the children.
Dickens went to Paris that very same day, but as soon as he arrived in Paris he could not wait to send her a letter, and then another letter, which rekindled (as is the nature of a writer) old enthusiasm. Mei Li finally came to the correct conclusion about him, although it was a late conclusion, but better than ever. Why is it a late conclusion? Because Dickens is 43 years old, no longer in his prime, but not in his old age… No matter what the writer is doing in Paris, the image of Merry always appears in front of him, a gentle, Naughty girl. The most charming thing is that she always pronounces “P” as “B”.
Dickens seems to have completely forgotten about Mr. Winter and his wife, Caitlin, and can’t wait to tell Meryl Winter Biednier his heartbreaking story. “From then until the last breath of life, I am convinced that the world has never seen such a faithful, so infatuated, and always failing unfortunate person as I am.” He wrote in the first person in his letter to Mei Li, Use the third person when arriving at Merry. “I have all the fantasy, passion, energy. For me, what is always cut is the love for a ruthless little woman. I have prepared for her a thousand times, and at the same time with great joy, give My own life!” “I have an infinite nostalgia for you, and the tenderness shown in those difficult times makes me feel scared and warm in recollection, and has left a deep imprint on my soul. Learning to restrain is not me at all. Inherent character…” “You were my sun on the most humble, passionate, and purest days of my life! I have never experienced anything more unfortunate than because of your favor and my extreme misfortune. Good times…”
Mrs Winter also kept writing back to Dickens. Among them was a letter, which she said inadvertently, which she now felt seemed to have caused them to break up by a misunderstanding in those days. And the great and unfortunate Dickens was so overwhelmed that he almost suffocated, and he cried out at once: “Alas, it is too late to write these words in this familiar hand! I never had the opportunity to read such words before, and now I read it and still feel it with the deep feeling, with the tenderness of the past…” In the last letter, Maylie cautiously asked the writer if she wanted to meet her (by this time Dickens had returned to London ). In this case, she seems to want to correct the original impression of her youth friends.
She predicts that she has changed drastically: “She has become an old-fashioned, toothless, fat, ugly old woman.” After that, the correspondence between them decreased sharply, and then Dickens (he felt that he was running out of time again) asked the female secretary to reply to Mrs. Winter’s letter on her behalf… What’s the matter? Probably, as in Greek mythology, When Orpheus brought his wife Eurydice out of hell, the Queen of Hades warned him that if he looked back, he would lose her forever. Judging by all accounts, Dickens would, like Orpheus, be impatient and look back. Regrettably, he did, much to his disappointment…
Postscript: Of course, it would be unfair for anyone to condemn Meryl Biednell blindly. In her youth she succumbed to her mother’s pressure and rejected Dickens’ love. But everything in the world is often interconnected. If she returned passion with passion back then, perhaps we would not have this great writer today!
