The term 'characterized by poverty' can be summarized by the following crossword solutions: 'straitened' (10 letters), 'TURBULENT' (9 letters), 'Wagnerian' (9 letters), and 'WITH' (4 letters). Straitened means to be in a state of financial difficulty or hardship, while TURBULENT implies a state of unrest or disorder. Wagnerian refers to the works of German composer Richard Wagner, which often depicted characters in poverty. Lastly, WITH indicates that something is accompanied by something else, in this case poverty.