Final answer:
Charles Dickens worked in a factory during his youth after his father was imprisoned for debt, an experience that influenced his later writings.
Step-by-step explanation:
As a boy, Charles Dickens was made to work in a factory when his father was imprisoned for debt. During the era in which Dickens lived, child labor was prevalent, and families often depended on the work of their children to support themselves. There were long hours of work with little rest, no benefits, and harsh conditions. If a family could not pay a debt, they faced imprisonment, a fate that befell Dickens's own family, influencing his future writings that depicted the grim realities of life for the poor and working class during the Industrial Revolution. Works such as Hard Times and Oliver Twist drew from Dickens's own experiences and highlighted the need for social reform.