Post by Daniel on Dec 5, 2009 7:28:57 GMT -5
Charles Dickens
Dickens was born on 7 February 1812, in Landport,
Portsmouth, in Hampshire, the second of eight children
to John Dickens (1786–1851), a clerk in the Navy Pay
Office at Portsmouth, and his wife, Elizabeth
His family's early, moderate wealth provided the boy
Dickens with some private education at William Giles's
School, in Chatham. This time of prosperity came to an
abrupt end, however, when his father spent beyond his
means in entertaining and in retaining his social position,
and was finally imprisoned at Marshalsea debtor's prison.
Dickens was an immensely popular as a writer. He started his early career as a free-lance journalist reporting the long, boring cases that characterised English Law in the 19th century, before turning to fiction writing.
Many of his novels were first published in serialised form: chapters were published individually in correct order in weekly instalments.
He is one of the most famous of English writers and the most famous of the Victorian Realists: he wrote to illustrate contemporary society and reform the faults he saw and experienced in English Society.
Dickens in Context:
The French Revolution
The French Revolution (1789–1799) was a period of political and social upheaval and radical change in the history of France, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on Enlightenment principles of citizenship and inalienable rights.
Dickens in Context:
Enlightenment – Romanticism - Realism
The Enlightenment: Before the middle of the 18th century. Focused on rationalism and empirical research. Logic.
Romanticism: After the middle of the 18th century up until the early 19th century. Focused on expressions of beauty, nature and the Sublime.
Realism: From the early 19th century up until the early 20th century, literature and art took on a more realistic and contemporary guise. Novels focused on illustrating the evils in current society, class divides, bureaucracy and the horrors of modern city life.
Dickens in Context:
The Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, and transport had a profound effect on the socioeconomic and cultural conditions in the United Kingdom. The changes subsequently spread throughout Europe, North America, and eventually the world. The onset of the Industrial Revolution marked a major turning point in human history; almost every aspect of daily life was eventually influenced in some way.
Starting in the later part of the 18th century there began a transition in parts of Great Britain's previously manual labour and draft-animal–based economy towards machine-based manufacturing. It started with the mechanisation of the textile industries, the development of iron-making techniques and the increased use of refined coal.[
Chapter 1 - 4
Oliver Twist is born a sickly infant in a workhouse.
Authorities at the workhouse send Oliver to a branch-workhouse. The overseer, Mrs. Mann, receives an adequate sum for each child’s upkeep, but she keeps most of the money and lets the children go hungry, sometimes even letting them die.
On Oliver’s 9th birthday, Mr. Bumble, a minor church official, informs Mrs. Mann that Oliver is too old to stay at her establishment, and he must return to the workhouse.
Mrs. Mann fetches Oliver. When Mr. Bumble is not looking, she shakes her fist at the boy, so he stays silent about the miserable conditions. Before Oliver departs, Mrs. Mann gives him some bread and butter.
At the workhouse Oliver suffers the starvation. One night at dinner, one child says that if he does not have more he might eat one of them. Terrified, the children at the workhouse cast lots. Oliver loses, and after dinner, asks for more food. His request shocks the authorities and they offer five pounds to anyone who will take him.
Oliver is flogged and then locked in a dark room .A brutish chimney sweep, offers to take Oliver. Several boys have died under his supervision. Mr. Bumble, the sweep, and Oliver appear before a judge to seal the bargain. The judge notices Oliver’s alarmed face. He asks why he looks so terrified. Oliver falls on his knees and begs that he beaten, killed, or any other punishment . The magistrate refuses to approve the deal.
The workhouse board considers sending Oliver out to sea as a cabin boy. However, Mr. Sowerberry, the parish undertaker, takes Oliver on as his apprentice. Mrs. Sowerberry remarks that Oliver is rather small. Mrs. Sowerberry serves Oliver the leftovers that the dog has declined to eat. Oliver devours the food as though it were a great feast. After he finishes, Mrs. Sowerberry leads him to his bed, worrying that his appetite seems so large.
Chapter 5 – 8
Oliver accompanies Sowerberry to prepare for a pauper’s burial. The husband of the deceased delivers a tearful tirade against his wife’s death. She has starved to death, and although he once tried to beg for her, the authorities sent him to prison for the offense. The dead woman’s mother begs for some bread and a cloak to wear for the funeral. Mr. Bumble quickly ushers the grieving family out of the cemetery, and Mr. Sowerberry takes the cloak away from the dead woman’s mother.
Oliver gains extensive experience in undertaking. His master dresses him well so that he can march in the processions. Noah, another apprentice, becomes jealous of Oliver’s advancement. He insults Oliver’s dead mother. Oliver attacks him. Charlotte and Mrs. Sowerberry rush to Noah’s aid, and they beat Oliver and lock him in the cellar.Early the next morning, Oliver runs away.
Oliver decides to walk the seventy miles to London.. In one village, signs warn that beggars will be thrown in jail. Finally, Oliver limps into a small town just outside London and collapses in a doorway. He is approached by a boy about his own age named Jack Dawkins, who dresses and acts like a grown man. Jack purchases a large lunch for Oliver and informs him that he knows a “genelman” in London who will let Oliver stay in his home for free. Oliver learns that Jack’s nickname is “the Artful Dodger.” He guesses from the Dodger’s appearance that his way of life is immoral.
That night, the Dodger takes Oliver to a London neighborhood. At a dilapidated house, the Dodger calls out a password, and a man allows them to enter. The Dodger conducts Oliver into a filthy, black back room where an “old shrivelled Jew” named Fagin and some boys are having supper. Silk handkerchiefs hang everywhere. The boys smoke pipes and drink liquor although none appear older than the Dodger. Oliver takes a share of the dinner and sinks into a deep sleep.
Chapter 9 – 12
The Artful Dodger returns with another boy, named Charley Bates. Dodger and Charley practice picking Fagin’s pockets. Fagin lets Oliver practice taking a handkerchief out of his pocket and gives him a shilling for a job well done.
For days, Fagin keeps Oliver indoors practicing the art of picking pockets. Oliver notices that Fagin punishes the Dodger and Charley if they return home empty-handed. Finally, Fagin sends Oliver out with the Dodger and Charley to “work.”
After some time, the Dodger notices a wealthy gentleman. Oliver watches with horror as Charley and the Dodger sneak up behind the man and steal his handkerchief.
The gentleman turns and sees Oliver running away. The Dodger and Charley see Oliver running past them, so they join in, crying, “Stop thief!” A police officer arrives and grabs Oliver by the collar.
The officer locks Oliver in a jail cell to await his appearance before Mr. Fang, the district magistrate. Mr. Brownlow, the gentleman, protests that he does not want to press charges. He thinks he recognizes something in Oliver’s face. The owner of the bookstall rushes in and tells Mr. Fang that two other boys committed the crime. Brownlow takes him into a coach and drives away.
Oliver is delirious with a fever for days. When he awakes, Brownlow’s kindly housekeeper, Mrs. Bedwin, is watching over him. He says that he feels as if his mother has come to sit by him. The story of Oliver’s pitiful life brings tears to Mrs. Bedwin’s eyes. Once Oliver is strong enough to sit up, Mrs. Bedwin carries him downstairs. A portrait of a young woman catches Oliver’s eye and affects him greatly.
Mr. Brownlow drops in to see how Oliver is feeling. Brownlow exclaims with astonishment that Oliver closely resembles the young lady in the portrait. Brownlow’s exclamation startles Oliver so much that the boy faints.
Chapter 13 – 16
Fagin erupts into a rage when the Dodger and Charley return without Oliver.. They resolve to find Oliver before he reveals their operation to the authorities, and persuade Nancy to go to the police station.Nancy dresses in nice clothing, and at the police station she pretends to be Oliver’s sister. She learns that the gentleman from whom the handkerchief was stolen took Oliver home with him. Fagin sends Charley, Jack, and Nancy to find Oliver. Fagin decides to relocate his operation for the night and fills his pockets with the watches and jewelry from the hidden box after Charley, Nancy, and Jack leave.
Brownlow sends for Oliver to meet him in his study. Assuming that Brownlow means to send him away, Oliver begs to remain as a servant. Brownlow assures Oliver that he wishes to be Oliver’s friend. Mr. Grimwig, arrives to visit.Grimwig hints that Oliver might be a boy of bad habits. Mrs. Bedwin brings in a parcel of books delivered by the bookstall keeper’s boy. Grimwig suggests that Brownlow send Oliver with payment and returned books but hints that Oliver might steal it. Wishing to prove Grimwig wrong, Brownlow sends Oliver. It grows dark and Oliver does not return.
Oliver takes a wrong turn on the way to the bookstall. Suddenly, Nancy appears. She tells everyone on the street that Oliver is her runaway brother, and that she is taking him back home to their parents. Bill Sikes, Nancy’s violent boyfriend and criminal runs out of a beer shop, and he and Nancy drag Oliver through the dark backstreets.
Fagin, the Dodger, and Charley laugh hysterically at the fancy clothing Oliver is wearing. Fagin tries to beat Oliver for his escape attempt, and Nancy flies at Fagin in a rage. Sikes catches Nancy by the wrists, and she faints. They take his clothing, Brownlow’s money, and the books. Fagin returns Oliver’s old clothing to him and sends him to bed. Oliver had given the clothing to Mrs. Bedwin, who sold it to a Jew, and the Jew then delivered the clothing to Fagin and told Fagin where Oliver was.
Chapter 17– 22
Mr. Brownlow publishes an advertisement offering a reward for information about Oliver. Mr. Bumble notices it in the paper. He quickly goes to Brownlow’s home. Mr. Bumble states that, since birth, Oliver has displayed nothing but “treachery, ingratitude, and malice.” Bumble tells Brownlow that Oliver attacked Noah Claypole without provocation, and Brownlow decides Oliver is nothing but an impostor.
Fagin leaves Oliver locked up in the house. The Dodger and Charley ask him why he does not just give himself over to Fagin, since the money comes quickly and easily in their “jolly life.” Sometimes, Fagin himself regales his crew with funny stories of robberies he committed in his youth. Oliver often laughs at the stories despite himself.
Sikes plans to rob a house, but he needs a small boy for the job. Fagin offers Oliver’s services. Sikes warns Oliver that he will kill him if he shows any signs of hesitation during the robbery. Fagin informs Oliver that he will be taken to Sikes’s residence that night. They arrive at Sikes’s residence, and Sikes shows Oliver a pistol. He warns Oliver that if he causes any trouble, he will kill him. At five in the morning, they prepare to leave for the job.
Sikes leads Oliver to a house where his partners in crime, Toby Crackit and Barney, are waiting.They climb over the wall surrounding the house. Oliver realizes that he will be made to participate. He begs Sikes to let him go. Sikes curses and prepares to shoot him, but Crackit knocks the pistol away, saying that gunfire will draw attention.
Crackit clasps his hand over Oliver’s mouth while Sikes opens a tiny window. Sikes tells Oliver to enter through the window and open the street door. Oliver plans to warn the family. Sikes lowers him through the window. However, the residents of the house awake, and one shoots Oliver’s arm. Sikes pulls Oliver back through the window. He and Crackit flee with the bleeding Oliver
Chapter 23– 28
Crackit arrives at Fagin’s. Fagin has learned from the newspapers that the robbery has failed. Crackit informs Fagin that Oliver has been shot and claims that the entire population of the area then came after them. Crackit says that he and Sikes fled, leaving Oliver in a ditch.
Fagin rushes into a pub to look for a man named Monks. Not finding him, he hurries to Sikes’s residence. At Sikes’s residence, he finds Nancy, who, in a drunken stupor, reports that Sikes is hiding. Fagin relates Oliver’s misfortune, and Nancy cries that she hopes Oliver is dead, because she believes that living with Fagin is worse than death. Fagin replies that Oliver is worth hundreds of pounds to him. He returns to his house to find Monks waiting for him. Monks asks why Fagin has chosen to send Oliver out on such a mission rather than make the boy into a simple pickpocket. It becomes clear that Monks has some interest in Oliver. Monks was looking for Oliver and saw him the day Oliver was arrested.
The night after the failed robbery, Oliver awakens delirious. He gets up and stumbles over to the same house Sikes tried to get him to rob. Inside, Mr. Giles and Mr. Brittles, two servants, regale the other servants with the details of the night’s events, presenting themselves as intrepid heroes. Oliver’s feeble knock at the door frightens everyone. Brittles opens the door to find Oliver lying on the stoop. They exclaim that Oliver is one of the thieves and drag him inside. The niece of the wealthy mistress of the mansion calls downstairs to ask if the poor creature is badly wounded. She sends Brittles to fetch a doctor and constable while Giles gently carries Oliver upstairs.
Chapter 29– 32
The chapter begins with a description of Mrs. Maylie, the mistress of the house at which Oliver is shot. She is a kindly, old-fashioned elderly woman. Her niece, Miss Rose, is an angelic beauty of seventeen. Mr. Losberne, the eccentric local bachelor surgeon, arrives in a fluster, stating his wonderment at the fact that neither woman is dead of fright at having a burglar in their house.He asks the women if they have actually seen the thief. They have not and they accompany the surgeon to see him.
Miss Rose exclaims that he cannot possibly be a burglar unless older, evil men have forced him into the trade. She begs her aunt not to send the child to prison. Mrs. Maylie replies that she intends to send him to prison nonetheless. They wait all day for Oliver to awake. Oliver relates his life history to them, bringing tears to their eyes. Mr. Losberne hurries downstairs and asks if Giles and Brittles can swear that Oliver is the same boy they saw in the house the night before. Meanwhile, police officers from London, summoned by Brittles and Giles that morning, arrive to assess the situation.
Duff and Blathers, the officers, examine the crime scene, while the surgeon and the women try to think of a way to conceal Oliver’s part in the crime. The officers determine that two men and a boy were involved, judging from the footprints and the size of the window. Mr. Losberne tells them that Giles merely mistook Oliver for the guilty party. The officers depart and the matter is settled without incident.
Oliver slowly begins to recover. He begs for some way to repay his benefactors’ kindness. They tell him he can do so after he recovers his health. He laments not being able to tell Brownlow and Mrs. Bedwin what has happened to him. Mr. Losberne takes Oliver to London to see them. To Oliver’s bitter disappointment, he and Losberne discover that Brownlow, Mrs. Bedwin, and Mr. Grimwig have moved to the West Indies. Mrs. Maylie and Miss Rose then take him to the countryside. He and the ladies become greatly attached to each other during the months they spend there.
Chapter 33– 37
Without warning, Rose falls ill with a serious fever. Mrs. Maylie sends Oliver to mail a letter requesting Losberne’s assistance. Rose’s condition declines rapidly. Losberne arrives and examines her. He states there is little hope for her recovery. However, Rose soon draws back from the brink of death and begins to improve.
Harry Maylie, Mrs. Maylie’s son, arrives to see Rose. Harry is angry that his mother has not written him sooner. Mrs. Maylie replies that Rose needs long-lasting love rather than the whims of a youthful suitor. Mrs. Maylie tells her son that he must consider the public opinion in his desire to marry Rose for love. She mentions a “stain” on Rose’s name. Mrs. Maylie hints that Rose’s social status may thwart Harry’s ambitions to run for Parliament and that those thwarted ambitions might eventually destroy his love for Rose.He must choose between his prospects for material gain and his love for Rose. In the long run, however, there is no choice at all, in Mrs. Maylie’s opinion: the negative judgment of society is powerful enough to defeat love. Harry declares that his love for Rose is solid and lasting.
One day Oliver falls asleep while reading by a window. He has a nightmare that Fagin and a man are pointing at him and whispering. Oliver awakes to see them. They disappear rapidly as Oliver calls for help. Harry and Giles rush to Oliver’s aid.
Harry declares his love to Rose. Although she returns his love, she says she cannot marry him owing to the circumstances of her birth. His station is much higher than hers, and she does not want to hinder his ambitions. Harry states that he plans to propose marriage one more time, but that, if she again refuses, he will not mention it again.
From a window, Rose tearfully watches the coach carry Harry and Losberne away.
Chapter 38– 41
Bill Sikes is ill with a fever. Fagin and his friends drop in to deliver wine and food. Sikes demands that Fagin give him money. Nancy and Fagin travel to Fagin’s haunt. He is about to delve into his store of cash when Monks arrives and asks to speak to Fagin alone. The two men leave for a secluded room, but Nancy follows them and eavesdrops. After Monks departs, Fagin gives Nancy the money. Perturbed by what she has heard, she dashes into the streets and away from Sikes’s residence before returning to deliver the money. Sikes does not notice her nervousness until a few days later. Sensing something, he demands that she sit by him. After he falls asleep, she hurries to a hotel in a wealthy area. She begs the servants to allow her to speak to Miss Maylie, who is staying there.
Nancy confesses to Rose that she is the one who kidnapped Oliver on his errand for Mr. Brownlow. She relates that she overheard Monks tell Fagin that he is Oliver’s brother. Monks wants Oliver’s identity to remain unknown so that Monks himself can claim their family’s full inheritance. Monks would kill Oliver if he could do so without endangering himself. He has also promised to pay Fagin if Oliver is recaptured. Rose offers to help Nancy leave her life of crime. Nancy replies that she cannot, because she is attached to Sikes despite his abusive ways. She refuses Rose’s money.
Oliver tells Rose that he saw Mr. Brownlow on the street. Oliver has ascertained Brownlow’s address, so Rose immediately takes Oliver there. Mr. Grimwig is visiting when they arrive. Once Rose and Brownlow are alone, she relates Nancy’s story. Oliver is brought in to see Brownlow and Mrs. Bedwin. After their happy reunion, Brownlow and Rose relay Nancy’s information to Mrs. Maylie and Losberne. Brownlow asks if he can include Grimwig in the matter, and Losberne insists that they include Harry. They agree to keep everything a secret from Oliver and decide to contact Nancy the following Sunday on London Bridge.
Chapter 42– 48
Noah Claypole and Charlotte flee to London after robbing Mr. Sowerberry. They stop at a bar, where they meet Fagin. Fagin invites Noah to join his gang.
Noah meets Fagin at his home. The Artful Dodger has been arrested for stealing a handkerchief. The Dodger, joking all the while, is convicted and sent to Australia.
Fagin is visiting Sikes when Nancy tries to leave for London Bridge at eleven on Sunday. Sikes drags her into another room and restrains her for an hour. When he departs, Fagin whispers to her that he will help her leave the brute Sikes if she wants. Fagin imagines that Nancy has wanted to meet a new lover that night. He hopes to persuade her to murder Sikes and bring her new love into his gang.. He plans to watch her in order to discover the identity of her new love, hoping to blackmail her.
Fagin tells Noah to follow Nancy. Nancy leaves the apartment. Noah.Nancy meets Mr. Brownlow and Rose on London Bridge. Noah hears Nancy beg them to ensure that none of her associates get into trouble because of her choice to help Oliver. They agree, and Nancy tells them when they will most likely see Monks visiting the public house. They hope to catch Monks. Nancy’s description of Monks startles Mr. Brownlow, who appears to know him. He and Rose depart. Noah hurries to Fagin’s house.
When Sikes delivers stolen goods to Fagin that night, Fagin and Noah relate the details of Nancy’s trip. Fagin does not tell Sikes that Nancy insisted that her associates not get into trouble. In a rage, Sikes rushes home and beats Nancy to death
In the morning, Sikes flees London, seeing suspicious looks everywhere. He wanders the road, haunted by the image of Nancy’s dead eyes. A local barn catches fire, and Sikes helps put out the fire. Sikes decides to return to London and hide. Afraid that his dog, Bull’s-eye, will give him away, he tries to drown the animal, but it escapes.
Chapter 49– 50
Mr. Brownlow has captured Monks and brought him to the Brownlow home. Monks’s real name is Edward Leeford. Brownlow was a good friend of Monks’s father, Mr. Leeford. Mr. Leeford was a young man when his family forced him to marry a wealthy older woman. The couple eventually separated but did not divorce, and Edward and his mother went to Paris. Meanwhile, Mr. Leeford fell in love with Agnes Fleming, a retired naval officer’s daughter, who became pregnant with Oliver. The relative who had benefited most from Mr. Leeford’s forced marriage repented and left Mr. Leeford a fortune. Mr. Leeford left a portrait of his beloved Agnes in Brownlow’s care while he went to Rome to claim his inheritance. Mr. Leeford’s wife, hearing of his good fortune, traveled with Edward to meet him there. However, in Rome, Mr. Leeford took ill and died. Brownlow reports that he knows that Monks’s mother burned Mr. Leeford’s will, so Mr. Leeford’s newfound fortune fell to his wife and son. After his mother died, Monks lived in the West Indies on their ill-gotten fortune. Brownlow, remembering Oliver’s resemblance to the woman in the portrait, had gone there to find Monks after Oliver was kidnapped. Meanwhile, the search for Sikes continues.
Toby Crackit and Tom Chitling flee to a squalid island after Fagin and Noah are captured by the authorities. Sikes’s dog shows up at the house that serves as their hiding place. Sikes arrives soon after. Charley Bates arrives and attacks the murderer, calling for the others to help him. The search party and an angry mob arrive demanding justice. Sikes climbs onto the roof with a rope, intending to lower himself to escape in the midst of the confusion. However, he loses his balance when he imagines that he sees Nancy’s eyes before him. The rope catches around his neck, and he falls to his death with his head in an accidental noose.
Chapter 51- 53
Oliver and his friends travel to the town of his birth, with Monks in tow, to meet Mr. Grimwig. There, Monks reveals that he and his mother found a letter and a will after his father’s death, both of which they destroyed. The letter was addressed to Agnes Fleming’s mother, and it contained a confession from Leeford about their affair. The will stated that, if his illegitimate child were a girl, she should inherit the estate unconditionally. If it were a boy, he would inherit the estate only if he committed no illegal or guilty act. Otherwise, Monks and his mother would receive the fortune. Upon learning of his daughter’s shameful involvement with a married man, Agnes’s father fled his hometown and changed his family’s name. Agnes ran away to save her family the shame of her condition, and her father died soon thereafter of a broken heart. His other small daughter was taken in by a poor couple who died soon after. Mrs. Maylie took pity on the little girl and raised her as her niece. That child is Rose. Mr. Bumble and Mrs. Bumble confess to their part in concealing Oliver’s history, and Mr. Brownlow ensures that they never hold public office again. Harry has given up his political ambitions and vowed to live as a poor clergyman. Knowing that she no longer stands in the way of Harry’s ambitions, Rose agrees to marry him.
Fagin is sentenced to death for his many crimes. On his miserable last night alive, Brownlow and Oliver visit him in his jail cell to find out the location of papers verifying Oliver’s identity, which Monks had entrusted to Fagin.
Noah is pardoned because he testifies against Fagin. Charley turns to an honest life and becomes a successful grazier, a person who feeds cattle before they are taken to market. Brownlow arranges for Monks’s property to be divided between Monks and Oliver. Brownlow adopts Oliver as his son. He, Losberne, and Grimwig take up residence near the rural church over which Harry presides.
Dickens was born on 7 February 1812, in Landport,
Portsmouth, in Hampshire, the second of eight children
to John Dickens (1786–1851), a clerk in the Navy Pay
Office at Portsmouth, and his wife, Elizabeth
His family's early, moderate wealth provided the boy
Dickens with some private education at William Giles's
School, in Chatham. This time of prosperity came to an
abrupt end, however, when his father spent beyond his
means in entertaining and in retaining his social position,
and was finally imprisoned at Marshalsea debtor's prison.
Dickens was an immensely popular as a writer. He started his early career as a free-lance journalist reporting the long, boring cases that characterised English Law in the 19th century, before turning to fiction writing.
Many of his novels were first published in serialised form: chapters were published individually in correct order in weekly instalments.
He is one of the most famous of English writers and the most famous of the Victorian Realists: he wrote to illustrate contemporary society and reform the faults he saw and experienced in English Society.
Dickens in Context:
The French Revolution
The French Revolution (1789–1799) was a period of political and social upheaval and radical change in the history of France, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on Enlightenment principles of citizenship and inalienable rights.
Dickens in Context:
Enlightenment – Romanticism - Realism
The Enlightenment: Before the middle of the 18th century. Focused on rationalism and empirical research. Logic.
Romanticism: After the middle of the 18th century up until the early 19th century. Focused on expressions of beauty, nature and the Sublime.
Realism: From the early 19th century up until the early 20th century, literature and art took on a more realistic and contemporary guise. Novels focused on illustrating the evils in current society, class divides, bureaucracy and the horrors of modern city life.
Dickens in Context:
The Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, and transport had a profound effect on the socioeconomic and cultural conditions in the United Kingdom. The changes subsequently spread throughout Europe, North America, and eventually the world. The onset of the Industrial Revolution marked a major turning point in human history; almost every aspect of daily life was eventually influenced in some way.
Starting in the later part of the 18th century there began a transition in parts of Great Britain's previously manual labour and draft-animal–based economy towards machine-based manufacturing. It started with the mechanisation of the textile industries, the development of iron-making techniques and the increased use of refined coal.[
Chapter 1 - 4
Oliver Twist is born a sickly infant in a workhouse.
Authorities at the workhouse send Oliver to a branch-workhouse. The overseer, Mrs. Mann, receives an adequate sum for each child’s upkeep, but she keeps most of the money and lets the children go hungry, sometimes even letting them die.
On Oliver’s 9th birthday, Mr. Bumble, a minor church official, informs Mrs. Mann that Oliver is too old to stay at her establishment, and he must return to the workhouse.
Mrs. Mann fetches Oliver. When Mr. Bumble is not looking, she shakes her fist at the boy, so he stays silent about the miserable conditions. Before Oliver departs, Mrs. Mann gives him some bread and butter.
At the workhouse Oliver suffers the starvation. One night at dinner, one child says that if he does not have more he might eat one of them. Terrified, the children at the workhouse cast lots. Oliver loses, and after dinner, asks for more food. His request shocks the authorities and they offer five pounds to anyone who will take him.
Oliver is flogged and then locked in a dark room .A brutish chimney sweep, offers to take Oliver. Several boys have died under his supervision. Mr. Bumble, the sweep, and Oliver appear before a judge to seal the bargain. The judge notices Oliver’s alarmed face. He asks why he looks so terrified. Oliver falls on his knees and begs that he beaten, killed, or any other punishment . The magistrate refuses to approve the deal.
The workhouse board considers sending Oliver out to sea as a cabin boy. However, Mr. Sowerberry, the parish undertaker, takes Oliver on as his apprentice. Mrs. Sowerberry remarks that Oliver is rather small. Mrs. Sowerberry serves Oliver the leftovers that the dog has declined to eat. Oliver devours the food as though it were a great feast. After he finishes, Mrs. Sowerberry leads him to his bed, worrying that his appetite seems so large.
Chapter 5 – 8
Oliver accompanies Sowerberry to prepare for a pauper’s burial. The husband of the deceased delivers a tearful tirade against his wife’s death. She has starved to death, and although he once tried to beg for her, the authorities sent him to prison for the offense. The dead woman’s mother begs for some bread and a cloak to wear for the funeral. Mr. Bumble quickly ushers the grieving family out of the cemetery, and Mr. Sowerberry takes the cloak away from the dead woman’s mother.
Oliver gains extensive experience in undertaking. His master dresses him well so that he can march in the processions. Noah, another apprentice, becomes jealous of Oliver’s advancement. He insults Oliver’s dead mother. Oliver attacks him. Charlotte and Mrs. Sowerberry rush to Noah’s aid, and they beat Oliver and lock him in the cellar.Early the next morning, Oliver runs away.
Oliver decides to walk the seventy miles to London.. In one village, signs warn that beggars will be thrown in jail. Finally, Oliver limps into a small town just outside London and collapses in a doorway. He is approached by a boy about his own age named Jack Dawkins, who dresses and acts like a grown man. Jack purchases a large lunch for Oliver and informs him that he knows a “genelman” in London who will let Oliver stay in his home for free. Oliver learns that Jack’s nickname is “the Artful Dodger.” He guesses from the Dodger’s appearance that his way of life is immoral.
That night, the Dodger takes Oliver to a London neighborhood. At a dilapidated house, the Dodger calls out a password, and a man allows them to enter. The Dodger conducts Oliver into a filthy, black back room where an “old shrivelled Jew” named Fagin and some boys are having supper. Silk handkerchiefs hang everywhere. The boys smoke pipes and drink liquor although none appear older than the Dodger. Oliver takes a share of the dinner and sinks into a deep sleep.
Chapter 9 – 12
The Artful Dodger returns with another boy, named Charley Bates. Dodger and Charley practice picking Fagin’s pockets. Fagin lets Oliver practice taking a handkerchief out of his pocket and gives him a shilling for a job well done.
For days, Fagin keeps Oliver indoors practicing the art of picking pockets. Oliver notices that Fagin punishes the Dodger and Charley if they return home empty-handed. Finally, Fagin sends Oliver out with the Dodger and Charley to “work.”
After some time, the Dodger notices a wealthy gentleman. Oliver watches with horror as Charley and the Dodger sneak up behind the man and steal his handkerchief.
The gentleman turns and sees Oliver running away. The Dodger and Charley see Oliver running past them, so they join in, crying, “Stop thief!” A police officer arrives and grabs Oliver by the collar.
The officer locks Oliver in a jail cell to await his appearance before Mr. Fang, the district magistrate. Mr. Brownlow, the gentleman, protests that he does not want to press charges. He thinks he recognizes something in Oliver’s face. The owner of the bookstall rushes in and tells Mr. Fang that two other boys committed the crime. Brownlow takes him into a coach and drives away.
Oliver is delirious with a fever for days. When he awakes, Brownlow’s kindly housekeeper, Mrs. Bedwin, is watching over him. He says that he feels as if his mother has come to sit by him. The story of Oliver’s pitiful life brings tears to Mrs. Bedwin’s eyes. Once Oliver is strong enough to sit up, Mrs. Bedwin carries him downstairs. A portrait of a young woman catches Oliver’s eye and affects him greatly.
Mr. Brownlow drops in to see how Oliver is feeling. Brownlow exclaims with astonishment that Oliver closely resembles the young lady in the portrait. Brownlow’s exclamation startles Oliver so much that the boy faints.
Chapter 13 – 16
Fagin erupts into a rage when the Dodger and Charley return without Oliver.. They resolve to find Oliver before he reveals their operation to the authorities, and persuade Nancy to go to the police station.Nancy dresses in nice clothing, and at the police station she pretends to be Oliver’s sister. She learns that the gentleman from whom the handkerchief was stolen took Oliver home with him. Fagin sends Charley, Jack, and Nancy to find Oliver. Fagin decides to relocate his operation for the night and fills his pockets with the watches and jewelry from the hidden box after Charley, Nancy, and Jack leave.
Brownlow sends for Oliver to meet him in his study. Assuming that Brownlow means to send him away, Oliver begs to remain as a servant. Brownlow assures Oliver that he wishes to be Oliver’s friend. Mr. Grimwig, arrives to visit.Grimwig hints that Oliver might be a boy of bad habits. Mrs. Bedwin brings in a parcel of books delivered by the bookstall keeper’s boy. Grimwig suggests that Brownlow send Oliver with payment and returned books but hints that Oliver might steal it. Wishing to prove Grimwig wrong, Brownlow sends Oliver. It grows dark and Oliver does not return.
Oliver takes a wrong turn on the way to the bookstall. Suddenly, Nancy appears. She tells everyone on the street that Oliver is her runaway brother, and that she is taking him back home to their parents. Bill Sikes, Nancy’s violent boyfriend and criminal runs out of a beer shop, and he and Nancy drag Oliver through the dark backstreets.
Fagin, the Dodger, and Charley laugh hysterically at the fancy clothing Oliver is wearing. Fagin tries to beat Oliver for his escape attempt, and Nancy flies at Fagin in a rage. Sikes catches Nancy by the wrists, and she faints. They take his clothing, Brownlow’s money, and the books. Fagin returns Oliver’s old clothing to him and sends him to bed. Oliver had given the clothing to Mrs. Bedwin, who sold it to a Jew, and the Jew then delivered the clothing to Fagin and told Fagin where Oliver was.
Chapter 17– 22
Mr. Brownlow publishes an advertisement offering a reward for information about Oliver. Mr. Bumble notices it in the paper. He quickly goes to Brownlow’s home. Mr. Bumble states that, since birth, Oliver has displayed nothing but “treachery, ingratitude, and malice.” Bumble tells Brownlow that Oliver attacked Noah Claypole without provocation, and Brownlow decides Oliver is nothing but an impostor.
Fagin leaves Oliver locked up in the house. The Dodger and Charley ask him why he does not just give himself over to Fagin, since the money comes quickly and easily in their “jolly life.” Sometimes, Fagin himself regales his crew with funny stories of robberies he committed in his youth. Oliver often laughs at the stories despite himself.
Sikes plans to rob a house, but he needs a small boy for the job. Fagin offers Oliver’s services. Sikes warns Oliver that he will kill him if he shows any signs of hesitation during the robbery. Fagin informs Oliver that he will be taken to Sikes’s residence that night. They arrive at Sikes’s residence, and Sikes shows Oliver a pistol. He warns Oliver that if he causes any trouble, he will kill him. At five in the morning, they prepare to leave for the job.
Sikes leads Oliver to a house where his partners in crime, Toby Crackit and Barney, are waiting.They climb over the wall surrounding the house. Oliver realizes that he will be made to participate. He begs Sikes to let him go. Sikes curses and prepares to shoot him, but Crackit knocks the pistol away, saying that gunfire will draw attention.
Crackit clasps his hand over Oliver’s mouth while Sikes opens a tiny window. Sikes tells Oliver to enter through the window and open the street door. Oliver plans to warn the family. Sikes lowers him through the window. However, the residents of the house awake, and one shoots Oliver’s arm. Sikes pulls Oliver back through the window. He and Crackit flee with the bleeding Oliver
Chapter 23– 28
Crackit arrives at Fagin’s. Fagin has learned from the newspapers that the robbery has failed. Crackit informs Fagin that Oliver has been shot and claims that the entire population of the area then came after them. Crackit says that he and Sikes fled, leaving Oliver in a ditch.
Fagin rushes into a pub to look for a man named Monks. Not finding him, he hurries to Sikes’s residence. At Sikes’s residence, he finds Nancy, who, in a drunken stupor, reports that Sikes is hiding. Fagin relates Oliver’s misfortune, and Nancy cries that she hopes Oliver is dead, because she believes that living with Fagin is worse than death. Fagin replies that Oliver is worth hundreds of pounds to him. He returns to his house to find Monks waiting for him. Monks asks why Fagin has chosen to send Oliver out on such a mission rather than make the boy into a simple pickpocket. It becomes clear that Monks has some interest in Oliver. Monks was looking for Oliver and saw him the day Oliver was arrested.
The night after the failed robbery, Oliver awakens delirious. He gets up and stumbles over to the same house Sikes tried to get him to rob. Inside, Mr. Giles and Mr. Brittles, two servants, regale the other servants with the details of the night’s events, presenting themselves as intrepid heroes. Oliver’s feeble knock at the door frightens everyone. Brittles opens the door to find Oliver lying on the stoop. They exclaim that Oliver is one of the thieves and drag him inside. The niece of the wealthy mistress of the mansion calls downstairs to ask if the poor creature is badly wounded. She sends Brittles to fetch a doctor and constable while Giles gently carries Oliver upstairs.
Chapter 29– 32
The chapter begins with a description of Mrs. Maylie, the mistress of the house at which Oliver is shot. She is a kindly, old-fashioned elderly woman. Her niece, Miss Rose, is an angelic beauty of seventeen. Mr. Losberne, the eccentric local bachelor surgeon, arrives in a fluster, stating his wonderment at the fact that neither woman is dead of fright at having a burglar in their house.He asks the women if they have actually seen the thief. They have not and they accompany the surgeon to see him.
Miss Rose exclaims that he cannot possibly be a burglar unless older, evil men have forced him into the trade. She begs her aunt not to send the child to prison. Mrs. Maylie replies that she intends to send him to prison nonetheless. They wait all day for Oliver to awake. Oliver relates his life history to them, bringing tears to their eyes. Mr. Losberne hurries downstairs and asks if Giles and Brittles can swear that Oliver is the same boy they saw in the house the night before. Meanwhile, police officers from London, summoned by Brittles and Giles that morning, arrive to assess the situation.
Duff and Blathers, the officers, examine the crime scene, while the surgeon and the women try to think of a way to conceal Oliver’s part in the crime. The officers determine that two men and a boy were involved, judging from the footprints and the size of the window. Mr. Losberne tells them that Giles merely mistook Oliver for the guilty party. The officers depart and the matter is settled without incident.
Oliver slowly begins to recover. He begs for some way to repay his benefactors’ kindness. They tell him he can do so after he recovers his health. He laments not being able to tell Brownlow and Mrs. Bedwin what has happened to him. Mr. Losberne takes Oliver to London to see them. To Oliver’s bitter disappointment, he and Losberne discover that Brownlow, Mrs. Bedwin, and Mr. Grimwig have moved to the West Indies. Mrs. Maylie and Miss Rose then take him to the countryside. He and the ladies become greatly attached to each other during the months they spend there.
Chapter 33– 37
Without warning, Rose falls ill with a serious fever. Mrs. Maylie sends Oliver to mail a letter requesting Losberne’s assistance. Rose’s condition declines rapidly. Losberne arrives and examines her. He states there is little hope for her recovery. However, Rose soon draws back from the brink of death and begins to improve.
Harry Maylie, Mrs. Maylie’s son, arrives to see Rose. Harry is angry that his mother has not written him sooner. Mrs. Maylie replies that Rose needs long-lasting love rather than the whims of a youthful suitor. Mrs. Maylie tells her son that he must consider the public opinion in his desire to marry Rose for love. She mentions a “stain” on Rose’s name. Mrs. Maylie hints that Rose’s social status may thwart Harry’s ambitions to run for Parliament and that those thwarted ambitions might eventually destroy his love for Rose.He must choose between his prospects for material gain and his love for Rose. In the long run, however, there is no choice at all, in Mrs. Maylie’s opinion: the negative judgment of society is powerful enough to defeat love. Harry declares that his love for Rose is solid and lasting.
One day Oliver falls asleep while reading by a window. He has a nightmare that Fagin and a man are pointing at him and whispering. Oliver awakes to see them. They disappear rapidly as Oliver calls for help. Harry and Giles rush to Oliver’s aid.
Harry declares his love to Rose. Although she returns his love, she says she cannot marry him owing to the circumstances of her birth. His station is much higher than hers, and she does not want to hinder his ambitions. Harry states that he plans to propose marriage one more time, but that, if she again refuses, he will not mention it again.
From a window, Rose tearfully watches the coach carry Harry and Losberne away.
Chapter 38– 41
Bill Sikes is ill with a fever. Fagin and his friends drop in to deliver wine and food. Sikes demands that Fagin give him money. Nancy and Fagin travel to Fagin’s haunt. He is about to delve into his store of cash when Monks arrives and asks to speak to Fagin alone. The two men leave for a secluded room, but Nancy follows them and eavesdrops. After Monks departs, Fagin gives Nancy the money. Perturbed by what she has heard, she dashes into the streets and away from Sikes’s residence before returning to deliver the money. Sikes does not notice her nervousness until a few days later. Sensing something, he demands that she sit by him. After he falls asleep, she hurries to a hotel in a wealthy area. She begs the servants to allow her to speak to Miss Maylie, who is staying there.
Nancy confesses to Rose that she is the one who kidnapped Oliver on his errand for Mr. Brownlow. She relates that she overheard Monks tell Fagin that he is Oliver’s brother. Monks wants Oliver’s identity to remain unknown so that Monks himself can claim their family’s full inheritance. Monks would kill Oliver if he could do so without endangering himself. He has also promised to pay Fagin if Oliver is recaptured. Rose offers to help Nancy leave her life of crime. Nancy replies that she cannot, because she is attached to Sikes despite his abusive ways. She refuses Rose’s money.
Oliver tells Rose that he saw Mr. Brownlow on the street. Oliver has ascertained Brownlow’s address, so Rose immediately takes Oliver there. Mr. Grimwig is visiting when they arrive. Once Rose and Brownlow are alone, she relates Nancy’s story. Oliver is brought in to see Brownlow and Mrs. Bedwin. After their happy reunion, Brownlow and Rose relay Nancy’s information to Mrs. Maylie and Losberne. Brownlow asks if he can include Grimwig in the matter, and Losberne insists that they include Harry. They agree to keep everything a secret from Oliver and decide to contact Nancy the following Sunday on London Bridge.
Chapter 42– 48
Noah Claypole and Charlotte flee to London after robbing Mr. Sowerberry. They stop at a bar, where they meet Fagin. Fagin invites Noah to join his gang.
Noah meets Fagin at his home. The Artful Dodger has been arrested for stealing a handkerchief. The Dodger, joking all the while, is convicted and sent to Australia.
Fagin is visiting Sikes when Nancy tries to leave for London Bridge at eleven on Sunday. Sikes drags her into another room and restrains her for an hour. When he departs, Fagin whispers to her that he will help her leave the brute Sikes if she wants. Fagin imagines that Nancy has wanted to meet a new lover that night. He hopes to persuade her to murder Sikes and bring her new love into his gang.. He plans to watch her in order to discover the identity of her new love, hoping to blackmail her.
Fagin tells Noah to follow Nancy. Nancy leaves the apartment. Noah.Nancy meets Mr. Brownlow and Rose on London Bridge. Noah hears Nancy beg them to ensure that none of her associates get into trouble because of her choice to help Oliver. They agree, and Nancy tells them when they will most likely see Monks visiting the public house. They hope to catch Monks. Nancy’s description of Monks startles Mr. Brownlow, who appears to know him. He and Rose depart. Noah hurries to Fagin’s house.
When Sikes delivers stolen goods to Fagin that night, Fagin and Noah relate the details of Nancy’s trip. Fagin does not tell Sikes that Nancy insisted that her associates not get into trouble. In a rage, Sikes rushes home and beats Nancy to death
In the morning, Sikes flees London, seeing suspicious looks everywhere. He wanders the road, haunted by the image of Nancy’s dead eyes. A local barn catches fire, and Sikes helps put out the fire. Sikes decides to return to London and hide. Afraid that his dog, Bull’s-eye, will give him away, he tries to drown the animal, but it escapes.
Chapter 49– 50
Mr. Brownlow has captured Monks and brought him to the Brownlow home. Monks’s real name is Edward Leeford. Brownlow was a good friend of Monks’s father, Mr. Leeford. Mr. Leeford was a young man when his family forced him to marry a wealthy older woman. The couple eventually separated but did not divorce, and Edward and his mother went to Paris. Meanwhile, Mr. Leeford fell in love with Agnes Fleming, a retired naval officer’s daughter, who became pregnant with Oliver. The relative who had benefited most from Mr. Leeford’s forced marriage repented and left Mr. Leeford a fortune. Mr. Leeford left a portrait of his beloved Agnes in Brownlow’s care while he went to Rome to claim his inheritance. Mr. Leeford’s wife, hearing of his good fortune, traveled with Edward to meet him there. However, in Rome, Mr. Leeford took ill and died. Brownlow reports that he knows that Monks’s mother burned Mr. Leeford’s will, so Mr. Leeford’s newfound fortune fell to his wife and son. After his mother died, Monks lived in the West Indies on their ill-gotten fortune. Brownlow, remembering Oliver’s resemblance to the woman in the portrait, had gone there to find Monks after Oliver was kidnapped. Meanwhile, the search for Sikes continues.
Toby Crackit and Tom Chitling flee to a squalid island after Fagin and Noah are captured by the authorities. Sikes’s dog shows up at the house that serves as their hiding place. Sikes arrives soon after. Charley Bates arrives and attacks the murderer, calling for the others to help him. The search party and an angry mob arrive demanding justice. Sikes climbs onto the roof with a rope, intending to lower himself to escape in the midst of the confusion. However, he loses his balance when he imagines that he sees Nancy’s eyes before him. The rope catches around his neck, and he falls to his death with his head in an accidental noose.
Chapter 51- 53
Oliver and his friends travel to the town of his birth, with Monks in tow, to meet Mr. Grimwig. There, Monks reveals that he and his mother found a letter and a will after his father’s death, both of which they destroyed. The letter was addressed to Agnes Fleming’s mother, and it contained a confession from Leeford about their affair. The will stated that, if his illegitimate child were a girl, she should inherit the estate unconditionally. If it were a boy, he would inherit the estate only if he committed no illegal or guilty act. Otherwise, Monks and his mother would receive the fortune. Upon learning of his daughter’s shameful involvement with a married man, Agnes’s father fled his hometown and changed his family’s name. Agnes ran away to save her family the shame of her condition, and her father died soon thereafter of a broken heart. His other small daughter was taken in by a poor couple who died soon after. Mrs. Maylie took pity on the little girl and raised her as her niece. That child is Rose. Mr. Bumble and Mrs. Bumble confess to their part in concealing Oliver’s history, and Mr. Brownlow ensures that they never hold public office again. Harry has given up his political ambitions and vowed to live as a poor clergyman. Knowing that she no longer stands in the way of Harry’s ambitions, Rose agrees to marry him.
Fagin is sentenced to death for his many crimes. On his miserable last night alive, Brownlow and Oliver visit him in his jail cell to find out the location of papers verifying Oliver’s identity, which Monks had entrusted to Fagin.
Noah is pardoned because he testifies against Fagin. Charley turns to an honest life and becomes a successful grazier, a person who feeds cattle before they are taken to market. Brownlow arranges for Monks’s property to be divided between Monks and Oliver. Brownlow adopts Oliver as his son. He, Losberne, and Grimwig take up residence near the rural church over which Harry presides.