Point of View

This novel is written from the third person omniscient point of view, which allows the reader to view the themes and events through a variety of perspectives.

Setting

Hard Times is set in London during the Industrial Revolution. Because the novel deals with the societal issues of the time, particularly the plight of the working poor, the novel has two distinct settings which include the setting for the working poor (Coketown) and the middle class. Coketown is perhaps the more distinct of the two settings. It is described as dark, dirty streets of identical red brick buildings. The uniformity and pollution make it impossible to differentiate between the hospital and the laundress. Perhaps what is most striking about Coketown is the black smoke (often described as “serpentine”) that billows from the factory smokestacks. This smoke not only represents the industrialization of London, but on a...