From the 1860's through the 1890s, Horatio Alger wrote hundreds of novels to teach young boys the merits of honesty, hard work, and cheerfulness in the face of adversity. As Carl Bode points out in his introduction, Horatio Alger filled a void in American literature and met scant...
During 1850's, common stories about "poor city youths, newsboys and bootblacks" who became rich and famous which were popular. "Ragged Dick" features such a young boy as its hero. Alger opened up Dick's identity, inspirations, dreams, plans and hopes. Dick was a sarcastic youngster,...