Another week, another historical round-up! This week in literary history is one of birthdays, deaths, and a very important marriage. But first, we have to acknowledge the publication of one of the most famous works of fiction in the English language: A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. On November 26th, 1859, the last installment of the novel was published in the literary periodical All The Year Round, which Dickens founded and owned. In its lifetime, the novel has sold over 200 million copies, making it one of—if not the—best-selling book of all time.
Travelling backward in time, November 28th, 1757 is the birthday of respected poet and painter William Blake. He is largely considered to be a Romantic poet, best known for his Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience, which were written to showcase the two contrary states of the human soul. Also on the 28th—however, a fair bit further back in 1582—a wedding took place in which William Shakespeare was lawfully united with his wife, Anne Hathaway. At the time, she was pregnant with their first child. However, while Hathaway was an eligible young woman of 26, Shakespeare was only 18, and a minor in the eyes of the law. Because of this, Shakespeare required permission from Hathaway’s father to marry Anne, which he granted. Her pregnancy was their first child of three, born six months after their marriage and named Susanna. They later had Judith and Hamnet, who were twins.
The 29th of November brings two more birthdays, the first being Louisa May Alcott in 1832. She was best known for her novel Little Women, which has been adapted into two movies, one in 1994 and again in 2019. She was an early feminist, committed to never marrying and devoted to the rights of women, as well as an abolitionist; her childhood home was a stop for fugitive slaves on the Underground Railroad, and her father, Bronson Alcott, started an anti-slavery society with the famous abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison. A bit later, in 1898, C.S. Lewis was born, best known as the author of The Chronicles of Narnia (and for being J.R.R. Tolkien’s bestie). And, in case you were hurting for a fun fact, he only had one joint in his thumb!
The 30th of November brings one more birthday and one important death. The birthday belongs to Mark Twain in the year 1835. He was a novelist and a humourist, and was given the title of “the father of American literature” by William Faulkner. He is best known for his novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, though he penned many other books in his time. Finally, on November 30th, 1900, Oscar Wilde—author of The Picture of Dorian Gray—passed away due to meningitis.
For many students, the end of November brings the calm before the exam-storm. Though I wish I had advice of my own to give, I will leave you with some wise words from Oscar Wilde himself: “Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.”