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VOL. 1, ISSUE 1 (2025)
Facts vs. feelings: The failure of Utilitarian Principles in Hard Times
Authors
Akhlaque
Abstract
This paper critically examines the flaws and
failures of utilitarian facts and principles as portrayed in Charles Dickens’s Hard
Times. Set in the midst of the Victorian Industrial Revolution, the novel
vividly captures the social, educational, and moral consequences of
utilitarianism’s dominance in mid-19th-century England. Through a close
literary analysis of central characters such as Thomas Gradgrind and Josiah
Bounderby, the study reveals how Dickens critiques the rigid emphasis on
empirical facts and measurable utility, which neglects the emotional,
imaginative, and ethical dimensions of human life. The novel exposes the
dehumanizing effects of utilitarian education, which reduces individuals to
repositories of information and suppresses creativity and empathy. Moreover,
Dickens illustrates how utilitarianism justifies social inequalities by
equating human worth with economic productivity, thereby overlooking the
suffering of the working class and the fractures within family and personal
identity. This analysis argues that Hard Times challenges the
reductionist utilitarian worldview by advocating for a more holistic
understanding of knowledge and morality—one that embraces imagination,
compassion, and moral complexity alongside facts and reason. The paper concludes
that Dickens’s critique remains profoundly relevant, offering a cautionary
perspective on the dangers of privileging utilitarian “facts” divorced from
human context, and underscores the importance of balancing rational calculation
with empathy in social and ethical decision-making.
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Pages:13-16
How to cite this article:
Akhlaque "Facts vs. feelings: The failure of Utilitarian Principles in Hard Times". World Journal of English, Vol 1, Issue 1, 2025, Pages 13-16
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