The Theme Of Love In Hard Times By Charles Dickens

As articulated by the American author Leo Buscaglia, â€Å"Man has no choice but to love. For when he does not, he finds his alternatives lie in loneliness, destruction and despair.† Love truly is an essential emotion that forms and strengthens one’s character, allowing one to empathize and connect with others. However, this powerful emotion is often undervalued and ignored in society, where the need for Fact triumphs over the need for love, and the mind is cultivated at the expense of the heart. Such a society is vividly portrayed in the Charles Dickens’ novel Hard Times, specifically in the Gradgrind school system, where the admission of facts is strictly emphasized to consequently leave many scholars to grow up without any interference of†¦show more content†¦The Gradgrinds’ parental love rests upon such a flawed Fact-only method of thinking and reasoning, the system which Dickens ironically portrays as the typical love that children should rec eive. Consequently, this â€Å"flawed mold† system eventually contorts Louisa’s emotional development, causing her to reach adulthood while remaining totally senseless and unaware of love. The deprivation and misdirection of love in Louisa’s childhood corrupt her transition into adolescence with a severe lack of emotion and inability to understand parental love itself. The consequences of Louisa’s deprivation of parental love are manifested in her imprudent marriage with Bounderby. Louisa’s impulsive decision to marry Bounderby, ironically, stems from the ill advice of her brother Tom, who is emotionally bereft due to also being raised in the same manner as she was. Furthermore, their father, Mr. Gradgrind, who so sternly believes in the triumph of Facts over emotions, forgets marriage also needs to be based on emotion and love; he happily facilitates Louisa’s marriage to Bounderby, even though she knows she does not love him. â€Å"My dear Louisa, you abundantly repay my care. Kiss me, my dear girl† (106). Mr. Gradgrind perceives his love towards Louisa simply as conditional love, where he expects Louisa to marry as soon as she is physically mature, regardlessShow MoreRelatedCharles Dickens Great Expectations1223 Words   |  5 PagesBeloved author Charles Dickens was born on February 7, 1812 in Portsmouth, England. Growing up in a life of poverty, his childhood hardships provided the inspiration to write a myriad of classic novels including his 1861 seminole masterpiece, Great Expectations (â€Å"BBC History - Charles Dickens†). Great Expectations follows the life of an orphan named Pip, who’s perspective of the world is altered when he is attacked by an escaped convict in his parents’ graveyard in the town of Kent. Throughout hisRead MoreDickens Hard Times1535 Words   |  7 PagesDickens’ Hard Times â€Å"Now, what I want is, Facts. Teach these boys and girls nothing but Facts. 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