Oliver Twist Essay - 1641 Words

Charles Dickens wrote Oliver Twist, in 1883, to show the reader things as they really are. He felt that the novel should be a message of social reform. One of its purposes was to promote reform of the abuses in workhouses. In no way does Dickens create a dream world. His imagination puts together a bad place during a bad time; an English workhouse just after the Poor Law Act of 1834 (Scott-Kilvert, 48). In the first chapter of Oliver Twist, Dickens moves from comedy to pathos and from pathos to satire. He takes us from the drunken old woman to the dying mother to the hardened doctor. Such rapid switches help in all the later novels to hold together disparate effects, to provide variety and unity, and to give that double opportunity for†¦show more content†¦(Dickens, 131). Oliver escapes the situation but there is still the presence of a real threat. We are apt to forget how early-Victorian society, the society of the laissez-faire, took for granted individual conditions of privacy and isolation...It was a society where each unit, each family and household, led their secret lives with an almost neurotic antipathy to external interference (Price, 90-91). It was the age of the private gentleman who wanted nothing but to be left alone...He could ignore politics, the Press, the beggar who happened to be dying of hunger in the coach-house; he need feel no pressure of social or national existence...There has probably never been a time when England was-in the sociological phrase-less integrated.quot; (Price, 90-91). Dickens wrote in contrast to the society in which he witnessed around him. He brought together a unity of the two worlds and attempted to bring them together. This goes along with the purpose of reform in the workhouses. All these people have the same outlook and the same philosophy of life, a philosophy which that private g entleman, Fagin, sums up as looking out for number 1 (Price, 91). Dickens is unique in the way he often talks to the reader in quot;one to onequot; conversations. He does this quite frequently throughout Oliver Twist as a way of amplifying what he feels the reader should be attentive to. He also uses this technique to invoke stageShow MoreRelatedPoverty, By Oliver Twist1886 Words   |  8 Pagesthey come about always comes back and bites them. Within Oliver Twist Oliver’s background of poverty plays a major role on how he is introduced to the world and it is also a basis of his value to society and how he is treated. In the novel Oliver Twist, Dickens incorporates the theme of poverty which influences the main character’s behaviors and development throughout the novel. When the novel begins, the young orphan Oliver Twist is trapped within the miserable parish workhouse. â€Å"HeRead MoreEssay on Oliver Twist901 Words   |  4 PagesOliver Twist A Criticism of Society or a Biography With all of the symbolism and moral issues represented in Oliver Twist, all seem to come from real events from the life of its author, Charles Dickens. The novel’s protagonist, Oliver, is a good person at heart surrounded by the filth of the London streets, filth that Dickens himself was forced to deal with in his everyday life. It’s probable that the reason Oliver Twist contains so much fear and agony is because it’s a reflection of occurrencesRead MoreOliver Twist By Charles Dickens1370 Words   |  6 PagesOliver Twist was written by Charles Dickens, English writer and social critic. He is known as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. It was his second novel and was finished in September 1838. 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Befriended by a man robbed by the gang, Oliver ultimately learns his true identity and gains a new home, a fortune and a brand new family! Name Analogies: Oliver: Norman French form of a Germanic name, possibly the name Alfihar meaningRead MoreOliver Twist Essay589 Words   |  3 PagesOliver Twist Oliver Twist provides insight into the experience of the poor in 1830s England. Beneath the novels humor and dramatic plot runs an undertone of bitter criticism of the Victorian middle classs attitudes toward the poor. Dickenss Oliver Twist very vividly critisizes the legal system, workhouses, and middle class moral values and marriage practices of 1830s England. Basic Situation: Oliver Twist is born a sickly infant in a workhouse. His birth is attended by the parish surgeonRead MoreThe Genre Of Oliver Twist931 Words   |  4 PagesCameron Young 3rd English Oliver Twist Charles Dickens, Published in 1838 Genre †¢ The genre of Oliver Twist is coming-of-age Characteristics of the genre met †¢ Coming-of-age is simply the aging of the protagonist, usually going from childhood to adulthood, so the book meets the characteristic of this genre. Characteristics of the genre not met †¢ The only characteristic is showing the increase in age of the protagonist, so this book meets all the characteristics. Setting †¢ The setting is in the EnglandRead MoreLiterary Criticism of Oliver Twist Essay2020 Words   |  9 PagesLiterary Criticism of Oliver Twist Charles Dickens shows notable amounts of originality and morality in his novels, making him one of the most renowned novelists of the Victorian Era and immortalizing him through his great novels and short stories. One of the reasons his work has been so popular is because his novels reflect the issues of the Victorian era, such as the great indifference of many Victorians to the plight of the poor. The reformation of the Poor Law 1834 brings even moreRead MoreEssay On Oliver Twist2076 Words   |  9 Pages Oliver Twist Charles Dickens Honors English 10 Ms. Salsbury Ethan Wigal October 6, 2017 Charles Dickens is a famous British author known for writing many classics. He was born on February 7, 1812, in Portsmouth, England. Born to John Dickens and Elizabeth Barrow, Charles was the second child of eight. He grew up poor, eventually dropping out of school to bring in more money for his family. Dickens worked as an office boy, which helped to start his writing career. In 1836, he finally