An English Realist
The movements towards realism in the English novel of the nineteen century 
reached its acme with the works of Charles Dickens and William Makepeace 
Thackeray. Charles Dickens was a prolific writer. Among his copious works 
are Oliver Twist, a candid exposure of the repugnant poor laws; Nicholas
Nickleby, in which the life of boys in a boarding school is vehemently
attacked; Hard Times, in which the author wanted to depict the infamous 
life in a factory during an early period of the industrial revolution;The
Pickwick Papers, about a naive gentleman who has numerous misadventures. The
novels, aimed at exposing the sordid and pernicious element of English life,
were said to have helped galvanize people into action leading to improvement
in these conditions.


terra firma--solid, firm land.
The rough ocean crossing took the wind out of his sails and he was happy
to be on terra firma again.