Adolphus William Ward

“The Canterbury Tales of Geoffrey Chaucer” (1343-1400) represent one of the foundations of English literature. For this 1879 entry in the influential "English Men of Letters" series of literary biographies, the distinguished critic Adolphus Ward placed Chaucer's life and work in the context of his tempestuous times, which included the Black Death.

To begin with the old rigmarole of childhood. In a country there was a shire, and in that shire there was a town, and in that town there was a house, and in that house there was a room, and in that room there was a bed, and in that bed there lay a little girl; wide awake and longing to get up, but not daring to do so for fear of the unseen power in the next room—a certain Betty, whose slumbers must not be disturbed until six o'clock struck, when

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Charles Dickens (1812-1870) created some of England's most enduring works of fiction. Ward's 1882 entry into the influential "English Men of Letters" series of literary biographies probes Dickens' life and work before and after “The Pickwick Papers”, his travel writings, David Copperfield, and beyond.