Charles Dickens

"David Copperfield," which contains scenes set in debtors' prison, is Dickens's most autobiographical novel. What does that mean?

• It was Dickens's most popular novel

• Dickens drew on his own experiences in writing it

• It has very little in common with Dickens's other novels

• It contains dreamlike imagery

Which of the following would be a likely subject for a Dickens novel?

• The lives of Britain's wealthiest people

• The lives of soldiers during a war

• The lives of people in Ancient Rome

• The lives of working-class Londoners

What caused young Charles Dickens to go to work in a boot polish factory?

• He was a poor student, and he dropped out of school

• His parents wanted to teach him the value of work

• He had to support his family

• His writing had been rejected by publishers, and he had no other options

What social problems did Dickens address in his novels?

• Pollution of the environment

• Urban poverty and child labor

• Unsafe roads and bridges

• Political misdoings

Place the following events in sequence:

• Dickens publishes "A Christmas Carol"

• Dickens publishes "The Pickwick Papers"

• Dickens becomes a journalist

What did Dickens have in common with the protagonists of many of his novels?

• He was extremely wealthy

• He was a popular author

• He came from a poor background

• He traveled frequently

How were Dickens's novels originally published?

• In monthly installments

• In cheap paperback editions

• In deluxe, leather-bound editions

• As columns in daily newspapers

What do the protagonists of "Oliver Twist" and "Great Expectations" have in common?

• They're orphans

• They're forced to work in factories

• They spend time in prison

• They marry rich women

Which of the following is an opinion about Charles Dickens?

• His childhood influenced his later writings

• He was among the most popular authors of his day

• He was the most important novelist of the 19th century

• His books are still widely read today

What effect did "The Pickwick Papers" have on Dickens's career?

• It won him several prestigious awards

• It made him into a celebrity

• It forced him to become a journalist

• It prevented him from writing further novels