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Conclusion.

To conclude, after researching the ways Dickens’ use of food within his work I have discovered that he frequently employs food as a representation of the social class of characters; food as status is a major theme which can be seen throughout many of his novels. He also uses food as a setting, if multiple character’s attend a meal it gives a valid excuse for as to why characters may be seen in the same location at the same time. Thus opening up the narrative for action; for example, the degradation of Pip during Christmas dinner, or Scrooge witnessing the impoverish representation of the Cratchit’s family meal. Further still, Dicken’s tends to use food to embody a character; for example, Peggotty’s body is compared to apples which represents her status as a cook (the provider of food) and even sheds light on how the character’s physical appearance may be (red and plump). Dicken’s utilizes food as a physical descriptor, social status and emotive exploration. Every r...
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Great Expectations.

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To begin the novel Dicken’s employs food as a function to narrate Dickens’ critique of untoward familial relationships. Under the Gargery’s roof, Pip receives enough food to sustain him, however, the food fails to be given with love. Food serves the clinical purpose of physical sustenance and neglects the emotional nourishment which most times go hand in hand. Dickens creates a contrast between Mrs. Joe’s pincushion breast and the way she aggressively provides Pip with food: ‘jammed the loaf hard and fast’, ‘using both sides of the knife with a slapping dexterity’.   This stark juxtaposition of a soft texture to the hostile preparation of food intensifies the indication of a lack of love and care put into the creation of the meal. In this way, the food serves as an object to satiate the physical feeling of hunger rather than nurturing the emotional, maternal warmth that comes with a carer feeding a child. Dicken’s also employs the function of food and meals as a to present t...
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David Copperfield

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The Dickens' novel makes a continued metaphorical comparison between character and food. Hillis Miller illustrated how David tends to associate people with food, as shown in his description of Peggotty's arms being so "hard and red" that he "wondered why birds didn't peck her in preference to apples". Dickens integrates the notion that food embodies character from the start, alongside enforcing ideas of class stereotypes. Peggotty, the house servant and cook is instantly paralleled with the image of apples which later tie into the apple pastries we (the reader) learns she bakes. It is interesting to note how David describes Peggotty through the lens of food, however, fails to do so when thinking of his mother who is described in very human terms: "pretty hair and youthful shape". It could be inferred that it is implied that David views Peggotty as a mothering figure in that she nurtures him and provides him with sustenance. Dickens goes...
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Please Sir can i have some more?

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Oliver's life should have begun like any other child. However, the natural bond between mother and child was perverted by materialism. As baby Oliver was "farmed" to a woman who valued money over feeding the children under her care by reducing their food. This is again seen in the Work House where the boys are starved to cut back on costs. Food represents a metaphoric depiction of what is withheld from Oliver - physical and emotional sustenance. Dickens often depicts malnourished children juxtaposed by fat gluttonous adults to illustrate the unjust divide between classes.  The mere image of Oliver Twist asking the cruel workhouse master described as a "fat healthy man" for more watered down gruel paints the stark picture that the suffering lower classes are sometimes those that are the most innocent. By presenting the protagonist as a starving young boy conjures the notion of innocence and vulnerability; he stands as a symbol for all workhouse boys, all chil...
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How Dickens shaped Christmas through food.

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A Christmas Carol - How Dickens shaped Christmas. 'A Christmas Carol' by Charles Dickens has integrated itself into every Christmas British home. The tale of how a rich but selfish man named Scrooge discovers compassion after three spirits show him the poor conditions the lower classes survive in. Repeatedly Dickens employs the topic of food as a catalyst to depict power (or lack thereof). The Cratchits' dinner is famously used as a symbol of poor status. The family's expression of positive energy is brought to the readers attention as "the two smaller Cratchits'" come "tearing in screaming" as they prepare to eat their meal, starkly juxtaposing the actual description of the "eked out" portions; in this way, it is obvious that they scarcely indulge in a sit-down meal, a rare occasion to perhaps even have hot food. Scrooge witnesses Bob Cratchit give a toast to him, " I'll give you Mr. Scrooge, the Founder of the Feast...
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An Introduction.

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  English writer and social critic Charles Dickens composed, arguably, some of the world’s greatest pieces of fiction literature of the Victorian period. Rest assured the majority of British book worms will have found their nose firmly buried into a Dickens novel at some point of their life. At the heart of every home library, Dickens has brought comfort and joy to many households for generations. But what made Dickens’ words resonate so powerfully with the majority? Perhaps it was how vividly he articulated the stories of the everyday underdog, or the imagery used to express emotion. Coming from a home where his father lived beyond his means and was subsequently jailed for debts, Dickens himself had experienced both what it was like to have a mouth full of turkey and a belly full of gruel.    Subjectively, Dickens’ most powerful passages are those that employ the use of food imagery to depict the tone of the setting in terms of emotion or prosp...
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