Have you ever thought about how it would be to live in a time of poverty? How would life be if you were poor and did not know from where you would be getting your next meal? What would it be like to be forced to live in a workhouse? These are some of the questions you might ask yourself if you were living in early nineteenth century Dickens addresses these issues in his timeless masterpiece Oliver Twist. In thestory of Oliver Twist, Dickens uses past experiences from his childhood and targets thePoor Law of 1834 which renewed the importance of the workhouse as a means of relieffor the poor.Dickens' age was a period of industrial development marked by the rise of themiddle class (Wagenknecht 219). In the elections brought about by the accession ofWilliam IV in 1830, the Tories lost control of the government. Assumption of power bythe Whigs opened the way to an era of accelerated progress (Kaste 8). In this time periodchildren worked just as much, if not more, than some of the adults. After 1833, anincreased amount of legislation was enacted to control the hours of labor and workingconditions for children and women in manufacturing plants. The Poor Law of 1834provided that all able bodied paupers must reside in a workhouse (8). Widespreadhostility was felt to the new law; many believed that life was harder in a workhouse than inprison (Rooke 22). The plan was successful from one standpoint, for within three yearsthe cost of poor relief was reduced by more than one-third. However, this system wassharply censured. The increased prevalence of crime was attributed towards it. Inmatesof the workhouses became objects of public stigma, and to further heighten theunpopularity of the institutions, living conditions were deliberately made harsh (Kaste 8). Poverty was at it's peak around this time in England. Houses were overcrowded, packedtogether in narrow streets and courts which were often piled deep in rotting refuse (Rooke33)...
