during the unsympathetic Victorian era, when there was no mercy for the poor and the dichotomy of social class was prevalent
Were child labour and abuse common?
yes, Dickens worked age 12 in a shoe-blacking factory after his father was imprisoned in Marshalsea Debtors‘ Prison - acted as a turning point in his life
How did Dickens have 1st hand experience of the flaws of the judicial system?
Dickens worked as a court journalist and became a social reformer advocating for improved education and prisons.
