The elderly ticket-porter Trotty is disillusioned by all the wrongdoings he observes in the world. Crime, immorality, and poverty seems to be everywhere, and he has the distinct notion that the working class is naturally defective and incapable of change. However, the Chimes of the local church call him into a supernatural vision, where he is to learn just how wrong he is about his fellow man. The Chimes is one of Charles Dickens's classic Christmas books, meant to convey a message about the trials of the Victorian working class, and of hope that change is always possible. CHARLES DICKENS [1812–1870], born in Portsmouth, England, was the most popular English-language novelist of his time. He created a fictional world that reflected the social and technological changes during the Victorian era. Among his most famous works are David Copperfield, Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities, A Christmas Carol, and The Pickwick Papers.