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Questions and Answers
Where was Oliver Twist born?
Where was Oliver Twist born?
- A workhouse in 1830s England (correct)
- A home for young orphans
- A local undertaker's house
- A brutish chimney sweep's shop
What leads to Oliver's transfer from the home for young orphans to the workhouse for adults?
What leads to Oliver's transfer from the home for young orphans to the workhouse for adults?
- He gets into a fight with the other boys
- He is adopted by a local family
- He reaches the age of nine (correct)
- He asks for more gruel
Who offers five pounds to take Oliver away from the workhouse?
Who offers five pounds to take Oliver away from the workhouse?
- Fagin, the career criminal
- Noah Claypole, the undertaker's apprentice
- Mr. Sowerberry, the local undertaker
- Mr. Bumble, the parish beadle (correct)
Why does Oliver attack Noah Claypole?
Why does Oliver attack Noah Claypole?
Where does Oliver meet Jack Dawkins?
Where does Oliver meet Jack Dawkins?
What does Fagin train the orphan boys to do?
What does Fagin train the orphan boys to do?
What happens to Oliver when he is caught by the authorities after the pickpocketing mission?
What happens to Oliver when he is caught by the authorities after the pickpocketing mission?
Who takes the feverish Oliver to his home and nurses him back to health?
Who takes the feverish Oliver to his home and nurses him back to health?
What is the item that the two boys steal from the elderly gentleman during the pickpocketing mission?
What is the item that the two boys steal from the elderly gentleman during the pickpocketing mission?
What is the occupation of Mr. Sowerberry, the man who apprentices Oliver?
What is the occupation of Mr. Sowerberry, the man who apprentices Oliver?
What does Brownlow notice about Oliver?
What does Brownlow notice about Oliver?
Where does Oliver spend an idyllic summer?
Where does Oliver spend an idyllic summer?
What does Monks obtain and destroy?
What does Monks obtain and destroy?
What is the reason behind Monks' pursuit of Oliver?
What is the reason behind Monks' pursuit of Oliver?
What is the relationship between Rose and Oliver?
What is the relationship between Rose and Oliver?
What happens to Fagin at the end of the story?
What happens to Fagin at the end of the story?
Who adopts Oliver at the end of the story?
Who adopts Oliver at the end of the story?
What happens to Sikes?
What happens to Sikes?
What does Nancy do secretly?
What does Nancy do secretly?
Who brings Oliver to Fagin's gang?
Who brings Oliver to Fagin's gang?
What was the primary goal of the government workhouses under the Poor Law of 1834?
What was the primary goal of the government workhouses under the Poor Law of 1834?
What was the consequence of the economic dislocation of the Industrial Revolution on the poor?
What was the consequence of the economic dislocation of the Industrial Revolution on the poor?
What was the attitude of the charitable workers like Mr. Bumble and Mrs. Mann towards the poor?
What was the attitude of the charitable workers like Mr. Bumble and Mrs. Mann towards the poor?
What was the effect of the workhouses on the poor?
What was the effect of the workhouses on the poor?
What was the purpose of the labor required in the workhouses?
What was the purpose of the labor required in the workhouses?
What was the consequence of the Poor Law of 1834 for families in the workhouses?
What was the consequence of the Poor Law of 1834 for families in the workhouses?
What was the attitude of the government towards the poor during Dickens' time?
What was the attitude of the government towards the poor during Dickens' time?
What was the main criticism of the charitable institutions in Dickens' time?
What was the main criticism of the charitable institutions in Dickens' time?
What was the role of the officials who ran the workhouses?
What was the role of the officials who ran the workhouses?
What was the main challenge faced by the poor in the workhouses?
What was the main challenge faced by the poor in the workhouses?
What is the primary focus of individualism in the Victorian era, according to Fagin?
What is the primary focus of individualism in the Victorian era, according to Fagin?
What is the contrast between Fagin's family and the group formed by Oliver and his friends?
What is the contrast between Fagin's family and the group formed by Oliver and his friends?
What is the impact of the urban environment on the characters in the novel, according to Dickens?
What is the impact of the urban environment on the characters in the novel, according to Dickens?
What is the significance of the countryside in Oliver Twist?
What is the significance of the countryside in Oliver Twist?
What is Nancy's ultimate sacrifice, according to the novel?
What is Nancy's ultimate sacrifice, according to the novel?
What is the comparison between the two groups in terms of their relationships?
What is the comparison between the two groups in terms of their relationships?
What is the outcome of individualism, as demonstrated by the characters in the novel?
What is the outcome of individualism, as demonstrated by the characters in the novel?
What is the significance of the rural environment in the novel's portrayal of social class?
What is the significance of the rural environment in the novel's portrayal of social class?
What is the implication of Dickens's portrayal of urban life in Oliver Twist?
What is the implication of Dickens's portrayal of urban life in Oliver Twist?
What is the contrast between Sikes and Charley Bates in terms of their moral development?
What is the contrast between Sikes and Charley Bates in terms of their moral development?
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Study Notes
Oliver Twist's Life
- Oliver Twist is born in a workhouse in 1830s England, and his mother, whose name is unknown, dies soon after his birth.
- He spends the first nine years of his life in a badly run home for young orphans and then is transferred to a workhouse for adults.
- Oliver is apprenticed to a local undertaker, Mr. Sowerberry, but runs away after a fight with another apprentice, Noah Claypole.
Meeting Fagin and Getting Entangled in Crime
- Oliver meets Jack Dawkins, a boy his own age, who takes him to Fagin's house in London.
- Fagin is a career criminal who trains orphan boys to pick pockets for him.
- Oliver is sent on a pickpocketing mission with two other boys but is caught and narrowly escapes being convicted of the theft.
Meeting Mr. Brownlow and the Maylies
- Oliver is taken in by Mr. Brownlow, who nurses him back to health and is struck by Oliver's resemblance to a portrait of a young woman.
- Oliver thrives in Mr. Brownlow's home but is eventually captured by Fagin's gang and returned to Fagin.
- Oliver is sent to assist Bill Sikes in a burglary, but is shot and taken in by the women who live there, Mrs. Maylie and her beautiful adopted niece Rose.
The Pursuit and Arrest of Fagin and Monks
- Fagin and Monks are set on recapturing Oliver, and Monks obtains and destroys a gold locket that Oliver's mother left behind.
- Nancy, a member of Fagin's gang, meets secretly with Rose and informs her of Fagin's designs, but is overheard by another member of the gang.
- Sikes brutally murders Nancy and flees London, but is eventually caught and hangs himself while trying to escape.
- Mr. Brownlow confronts Monks and learns the truth about Oliver's parentage, and Monks is forced to sign over Oliver's share of the family inheritance to Oliver.
Themes and Social Commentary
The Failure of Charity
- The novel challenges the organizations of charity run by the church and government in Dickens's time.
- The workhouses operated on the principle that poverty was the consequence of laziness and that the dreadful conditions would inspire the poor to better their circumstances.
- Dickens describes the greed, laziness, and arrogance of charitable workers like Mr. Bumble and Mrs. Mann.
The Folly of Individualism
- The novel critiques the philosophy of individualism, which was prevalent during the Industrial Revolution.
- Fagin's philosophy is that a regard for "number one" holds people together, but this is shown to be a flawed philosophy.
Purity in a Corrupt City
- The novel explores the question of whether the terrible environments it depicts have the power to corrupt individuals permanently.
- Dickens suggests that even in a corrupt city, characters like Nancy can maintain a sense of decency and make sacrifices for others.
The Countryside Idealized
- The novel portrays the countryside as a place of purity and idealized rural life.
- Dickens suggests that the countryside has the potential to "purify our thoughts" and erase some of the vices that develop in the city.
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