Oliver Twist is born in a provincial workhouse, where his mother dies at once, and grows up under the brutal regime of the Poor Law. After famously asking for more gruel, he is sold as an apprentice to an undertaker, mistreated, and finally runs away on foot to London.
On the road he meets the Artful Dodger, a swaggering young pickpocket who takes him to Fagin, an old receiver of stolen goods who trains boys to steal. Oliver's innocence is tested when he is caught up in a robbery, rescued by the kindly Mr Brownlow, and pulled back into the underworld by the violent housebreaker Bill Sikes and his partner Nancy, whose conscience becomes central to the plot. A mysterious figure named Monks seems strangely interested in Oliver's fate.
Serialised in 1837 to 1839, the novel was an attack on the New Poor Law of 1834 and on the treatment of poor children. Its melodrama and caricatures, including a portrayal of Fagin now criticised as antisemitic, sit alongside vivid scenes of London's slums that shocked readers into paying attention.
Book details
| Author | Charles Dickens |
|---|---|
| First published | 1838 |
| Original language | English |
| Genre | Classic |
| Type | Fiction |
| Pages (approx.) | 554 |
| Setting | London and provincial England, 1830s |
Themes
- Poverty
- Child exploitation
- Crime
- Innocence
- Social reform
Who should read it
Readers interested in Victorian social history and a fast-moving story of an orphan in the London underworld.