Thomas Gradgrind raises his children based only on facts and pushes them to live realistically. He later regrets depriving them of imagination. Josiah Bounderby is a wealthy businessman who agrees to marry Louisa Gradgrind. Sissy Jupe represents fancy and finds happiness, unlike Stephen Blackpool whose life is ruined by his drunken wife and false accusations of theft. Charles Dickens uses these characters to show the struggles faced by the lower class and critique England's social system during industrialization.