Random Extremely Dark Things You'd Never Suspect Charles Dickens Actually Did (16 items)

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  (#7) America Really Wasn't His Cup Of Tea

  Charles Dickens toured the United States twice: his first tour was in 1842 and the second in 1867. It would be an understatement to say he found himself unimpressed with the land of liberty. He published no less than two books about his American travels, accusing crude Americans of being uncouth opportunists who read pirated versions of his work for free. Upon visiting Washington DC, Dickens called it "head-quarters of tobacco-tinctured saliva." Despite Dickens' overt, and published, animosity, the feeling was hardly mutual, and most US fans continued to adore his work much later into his career.
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  (#3) He Had A Secret Affair With A Teenager

  Charles Dickens cultivated an image of being an upstanding, moral Victorian gentleman. But it was an illusion. Privately,Dickens fell out of love with his wife after she gave him 10 children. In 1857, the 45-year-old Dickens began an affair with 18-year-old Ellen Ternan, an actress in a play he produced. His affair with Ternan, lasting a total of 13 years, largely took place in a house Dickens bought for the actress just outside of London. Dickens and/or Ternan thoroughly destroyed their correspondence, and very few ended up knowing about the affair. Even fewer still knew of the possible child they had together who died in infancy, whose existence was noted of by Katey and Henry Dickens.
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  (#16) He Fervently Believed In Spontaneous Human Combustion

  Bleak House is one of Dickens's most well known works, but it features a scene that would make any modern reader do a double take:

  "Then they saw the pile of ash on the floor. They stared for a moment, before turning and running. They burst onto the street, shouting for help. But it was too late: Old Krook was gone, a victim of spontaneous combustion."

  Yes, a Dickens character dies from spontaneous combustion. While science wasn't exactly at its best in the 1850s, there was enough reason in the world for this plot point to draw considerable criticism and indignation. Nowadays an author might tweet a half-assed apology and move on with it, but Dickens had his own way of doing things. He went on the offensive and began to angrily cite obscure stories and pseudosciences as proof of the validity of his story.

  Dickens carried on the battle for 10 months, only dropping the issue when Bleak House was finally fully published in all its monthly installments. Unfortunately, Dickens had such a hold on the popular imagination that he inadvertently gave the theory a whole new life, and it continued on in the popular imagination for years, even showing up in a medical text in 1928. Just so we're clear spontaneous combustion is not real.
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  (#4) He Humiliated His Wife By Publishing Details About Their Failing Marriage

  When Dickens's marriage fell apart in 1858, rumors swirled throughout London about his household. Rather than ignoring them and taking the high road, Dickens couldn't resist the spotlight. So in June 1858, he published an article in the London Times addressing the rumors. Though he neither confirmed nor denied the separation, his airing of private laundry drew criticism from many; furthermore, during the following 20 years of Catherine Dickens' life people said she never recovered from the divorce.
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  (#9) A Horrible Train Accident Nearly Derailed His Life

  On June 9, 1865, Dickens was riding on a train with Ellen Ternan and her mother when it derailed in Kent. The incident was terrible - 10 people died and many more injured. The accident, though, brought out the best in Dickens. He immediately leapt into hero mode, tending to the wounded and offering them brandy from his own flask and water. Though Dickens emerged from the incident physically unscathed, it left a deep psychological impact on him. Had he been in a different car, it might have also led to his death.
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  (#2) He Preserved His Deceased Pets Through Taxidermy

  Charles Dickens was nothing if not a man of his age. As such, it feels unsurprising he practiced of taxidermy, and utilized this skill to stuff some of his beloved pets. A pet that met such a fate was his raven Grip, which can still be found at the Free Library of Philadelphia. In a slightly more morbid fashion, he also stuffed the paw of his favorite cat Bob and affixed it to an ivory letter opener. Dickens loved animals, especially ones he got to toy with and make toys of.

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