Oliver+Twist

=Oliver Twist=

Summary
- Oliver Twist is born in a workhouse in the 1830's in England. Oliver's mother dies just after Oliver's birth. - Oliver spends the first nine years of his life in a badly run orphanage and then is transferred to a workhouse. Mr. Bumble, the parish beadle, offers five pounds to anyone who will take the boy away from the workhouse. - Oliver is appretinced to a local undertaker, Mr. Sowerberry. Oliver attacks another apprentice, Noah Claypole, when Noah makes rude remarks concerning Oliver's mother. Oliver then runs away and travels toward London. - Oliver meets Jack Dawkins. Jack offers Oliver shelter with his benefactor, Fagin. Fagin is then revealed to be a criminal who trains orphan boys to pick pockets. - Oliver is caught pickpockets and convicted as a thief. Oliver narrowly escapes his conviction when he is taken in by the gentlement whose handkerchief he had stolen, Mr. Brownlow. Mr. Brownlow is struck by Oliver's resemblance to a portrait of a young woman that hangs in his house. - Oliver is kidnapped by two members of Fagin's gang, Bill Sikes and his lover Nancy. Oliver is then returned to his life of crime with Fagin. - Oliver then participates in burglary with Sikes. He is shot by a servant of the house, but then taken in by the women who live there, Mrs. Maylie and her beautiful adopted niece Rose. They grow fond of Oliver, but Fagin recaptures Oliver. - It is revealed in the novel that Oliver's mother left behind a gold locket when she died. -Nancy meets secretly with Rose and informs her of Fagin's criminal activities. - Sike's discovers Nancy treachery and brutally murders her and then kills himself. - Monks turns out the Oliver's half brother. Agnes Fleming is revealed to be Oliver's mother and had an affiar with Mr. Leeford, the Maylies' father. Rose is Agnes's sister. Mr. Brownlow finally adopts Oliver, and they and the Maylies retire to the countryside.

Characters
1. Oliver Twist-- The lead protagonist. He is a kind, good-natured boy who was orphaned at a young age. 2. Fagin-- The theif who leads the gang that Oliver joins once in London. 3. Bill Sikes-- The evil thief who works with Fagin and uses Oliver for burglary jobs. He and Nancy are in a relationship. 4. Nancy-- Member of Fagin's gang, but has better morals and a purer heart than the others. She tries to help Oliver leave the gang of thieves. She is in a relationship with Bill Sikes. 5. Mr. Brownlow-- A member of the upper class who takes Oliver in when he is ill. He is constantly kind and compassionate towards Oliver. 6. Rose Maylie-- A beautiful, upper class woman. She persuades her aunt to nurse Oliver back to health when he appears on their doorstep. 7. The Artful Dodger-- A member of Fagin's gang around the same age as Oliver. 8. Mr. Bumble-- A church beadle who works for the workshouse where Oliver grows up. He has very bad morals despite being a member of the church. 9. Monks-- Oliver's half-brother. He is sickly and hateful towards Oliver. He plots with Fagin to keep Oliver on the streets so that he can keep all of the inheritance left to them by their deceased father.

Setting

 * English countryside
 * Small English town
 * London
 * Around the 1830's

Themes
**Social Commentary ** **Political Commentary ** **Economic Commentary **
 * 1) Social Class
 * 2) Accusation based on class and appearance
 * 3) Praises morality and condemns immorality
 * 4) Living conditions based on class
 * 5) Marriage expectations based on class (marry for love-Harry, marry for money-Bumble)
 * 6) Gender
 * 7) Women are the weaker sex. Men are held to a higher standard than women
 * 8) Religion- stereotype of Jewish people as immoral and corrupt
 * 1) Shows the corruptible nature of English politics and comments on its harmful effects on the poor.
 * 2) Satirizes the New Poor Law which made life harsh for many young orphans. It portrays the board as unintelligent.
 * 3) Law enforcement was inefficient and overly harsh.
 * 4) Politics are dominated by characters of high statute or wealth that use their power to manipulate the system.
 * 1) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Oliver was helped and pitied by the wealthy. There is a huge difference between the rich and the poor.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">The economic conditions portrayed in the workhouses and the crimes (thievery, prostitution) were designed to shock readers and change the conditions of the poor working class.

The names of the characters often represent personal qualities exhibited by the characters. “Twist” is in reference to the amount of change in fortune Oliver receives over the course of the story. Rose’s names obviously symbolizes beauty along with youth. Toby Crackin, “Crackin” makes reference to breaking into houses his role in the gang of youths. Mrs. Mann, “Mann” is seen as a symbol of her lack of tender and feminine qualities.
 * Character’s Names**