Charles Dickens

About Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens (1812–1870) remains a titan of Victorian literature, securing the #404 rank in historical importance for his profound influence on global culture and the English language. As the author of landmark novels like *Oliver Twist* and *A Tale of Two Cities*, Dickens masterfully exposed the social injustices of his era, shaping public consciousness regarding poverty, education, and the legal system, which resonated far beyond his native England.

Despite this high historical standing, his modern digital footprint shows a noticeable attention gap. Dickens accrued approximately 1.8 million annualized Wikipedia views in 2025, placing him in a state of relative online obscurity compared to his importance. For context, this is less than half the attention paid to fellow writer Ernest Hemingway (#425 importance, 2.9M views), despite Dickens being ranked significantly higher historically. This suggests that his substantial 19th-century impact is not being proportionally reflected in current internet traffic.

Furthermore, the trend data indicates a cooling of interest, with his pageviews declining by 10.6% year-over-year, and a Q1 versus Q3 momentum drop of 7%, hinting that the modern audience's focus is continuing to drift away from this canonical figure.