CHARLES DICKENS Was born on February 7, 1812, in Portsea, England. His parents were middle-class, but they suffered financially. When Dickens was twelve years old, his family forced him to quit school and work in a blacking factory, a place where shoe polish is made. His father was put in debtor’s prison, where Dickens’s mother and siblings eventually joined him. At this point, Dickens lived on his own and continued to work at the factory for several months. ... Oliver Twist As the child he...