Class Struggle in Hard Times
Hard Times displays the struggles of two different classes. The working class seems to have an inherent nobility that escapes the servitude of their station. In Rachael, such characteristics are seen in continual defense of morality. The wealthy, on the other hand, appear at loss at the true nature of happiness, instead grasping at surface beliefs to substitute their lack of contentment. Mrs. Gradgrind completes the picture by allowing her husband's system of Fact yet unable to live or appreciate it. Minor characters in Hard Times support Dickens' overall perception of class as personified by the leading figures.
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