Oliver Twist Coursework
Dickens begins this chapter by talking about Fagin in non-human terms that suggest he is frightening and dangerous. Words like "lair," "phantom," and "fangs" describe the Fagin's house and his physical appearance. This isn't the first use of animal imagery to suggest Fagin is scary and dangerous in Oliver Twist. Fagin has been described before as a reptile and a predator. Dickens has used animal imagery to express a sense of evil. Dickens is suggesting that Fagin is about to act like an animal and is his need for revenge a strictly human evil? This remark by Charley Dickens, showing Oliver's purity, further shows us that Fagin is willing to corrupt an innocent soul for the sake of his greed, as we find out later on that he was to corrupt the boy for money. He tries to make Oliver as one of his boys but in the end he does not succeed. Fagin seeks to corrupt even the innocent, which makes him almost evil.
Making Fagin a Jew is a metaphor as Fagin himself is a recurring symbol for the devil. Several times Dickens refers to him with known devil names or symbols. He talks of Fagin with flaming red hair and a beard, along with a three-pronged roasting fork, which all are symbols. Before he is to die, he refuses to pray for himself and his being a Jew has a very evil connotation. He is greedy and mean, trying to pull Oliver and others into his web of evil.
After Noah delivers his report, Fagin is furious with Nancy. When Sikes enters, carrying the loot from his night's work, Fagin un-nerves him by staring fixedly, speechless and twitching with emotion. The old man tells Sikes his story, masterfully rousing Sikes to a pitch of rage at the hint that the gang has been betrayed. Deliberately increasing the tension, Fagin wakes Claypole to make him tell Sikes about Nancy.
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 NOVELS CHARACTER, OLIVER, IS A GOOD PERSON AT HEART SURROUNDED BY THE FILTH OF THE LONDON STREETS. FILTH THAT DICKENS MIGHT HAVE DEALT WITH IN HIS EVERYDAY LIFE. BUT THROUGH MORALS AND MERE CHANCE OLIVER BECOMES A LIVING SYMBOL.
THROUGHOUT HIS LIFETIME, DICKENS APPEARED TO HAVE ACQUIRED A FONDNESS FOR "THE BLEAK, THE SORDID, AND THE AUSTERE. MOST OF OLIVER TWIST, FOR EXAMPLE, TAKES PLACE IN LONDON'S LOWEST SLUMS. THE CITY IS DESCRIBED AS A MAZE WHICH INVOLVES A "MYSTERY OF DARKNESS, ANONYMITY, AND PERIL." MANY OF THE SETTINGS, SUCH AS THE PICKPOCKET'S HIDEOUT, THE SURROUNDING STREETS, AND THE BARS, ARE ALSO DESCRIBED AS DARK, GLOOMY, AND BLAND.
EVEN WHILE HIS LIFE WAS IN DANGER WHILE IN THE HANDS OF FAGIN AND BILL SIKES, TWO SCHEMING PICKPOCKETS, HE REFUSED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE STEALING WHICH HE SO GREATLY OPPOSED. ALL OLIVER REALLY LONGED FOR WAS TO ESCAPE FROM HARSH LIVING CONDITIONS AND EVIL SURROUNDINGS WHICH HE HAD GROWN UP IN.
HOWEVER, NO MATTER HOW TEMPTING THE EVIL MAY HAVE BEEN, OLIVER STOOD BY HIS BELIEFS.
UNFORTUNATELY, MANY CRITICS HAVE FOUND IT HARD TO BELIEVE THAT A BOY SUCH AS OLIVER TWIST COULD REMAIN SO INNOCENT, PURE, AND WELL SPOKEN GIVEN THE LONG PERIOD OF TIME IN WHICH HE WAS SURROUNDED BY EVIL AND INJUSTICES. FAGIN THE HEAD OF A GROUP OF YOUNG THIEVES SPENDS MOST OF HIS TIME TRYING TO "DEMORALIZE AND CORRUPT OLIVER AND PREVENT HIM FROM EVER COMING INTO HIS INHERITANCE." HE IS SEEN AS AN ESCAPE FROM ALL PREVIOUS MISERY. HE ALSO HELPS ...
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HOWEVER, NO MATTER HOW TEMPTING THE EVIL MAY HAVE BEEN, OLIVER STOOD BY HIS BELIEFS.
UNFORTUNATELY, MANY CRITICS HAVE FOUND IT HARD TO BELIEVE THAT A BOY SUCH AS OLIVER TWIST COULD REMAIN SO INNOCENT, PURE, AND WELL SPOKEN GIVEN THE LONG PERIOD OF TIME IN WHICH HE WAS SURROUNDED BY EVIL AND INJUSTICES. FAGIN THE HEAD OF A GROUP OF YOUNG THIEVES SPENDS MOST OF HIS TIME TRYING TO "DEMORALIZE AND CORRUPT OLIVER AND PREVENT HIM FROM EVER COMING INTO HIS INHERITANCE." HE IS SEEN AS AN ESCAPE FROM ALL PREVIOUS MISERY. HE ALSO HELPS OLIVER TO EASE ANY FEARS ABOUT STARVATION AND LONELINESS.
FAGIN IS A MASTER CRIMINAL, WHOSE SPECIALTY IS FENANG (SELLING STOLEN PROPERTY).
HE EMPLOYS A GANG OF THIEVES AND IS ALWAYS LOOKING FOR NEW RECRUITS. HE IS A MAN OF CONSIDERABLE INTELLIGENCE, THOUGH CORRUPTED BY HIS SELF-INTEREST. HIS CONSCIENCE BOTHERS HIM AFTER HE IS CONDEMNED TO HANG. HE DOES HAVE A CYNICAL SENSE OF HUMOUR AND A MYSTERIOUS ABILITY TO UNDERSTAND PEOPLE. HE'S A VERY OLD SHRIVELLED JEW, WHOSE VILLAINOUS LOOKING REPULSIVE FACE WAS OBSCURED BY A QUANTITY OF MATTED RED HAIR.
Fagin and his gang are of like qualities, all being thieves and gangsters, with whom poor Oliver unwittingly falls in with. Oliver, being a kind and innocent soul, is beguiled by Fagin and his boys into joining them for time. He uses double talk to keep his true motives from others.
BILL SIKES IS A BULLY, A ROBBER AND A MURDERER. HE IS AN ALLY OF FAGIN. FAGIN PLANS THE CRIMES AND SIKES CARRIES THEM OUT. SIKE'S EVIL IS SO FRIGHTENING BECAUSE IT IS SO PHYSICAL. HE IS COMPARES TO A BEAST.
NANCY IS THE HAPLESS PRODUCT OF THE SLUMS, THE PUPIL OF FAGIN, AND THE ABUSED MISTRESS OF SIKES. ALTHOUGH SHE IS A PROSTITUTE AND AN ACCOMPLICE OF CROOKS, SHE HAS THE INSTINCTS OF A GOOD PERSON. SHE IS PART OF A FEW OF THE MOST MEMORABLE SCENES (WHEN SHE VISITS FAGIN'S DEN, WHEN SHE WAITS FOR BILL TO COME HOME OR WHEN SHE MEETS WITH ROSE MAYLIE AND BROWNLOW TO HELP SAVE OLIVER).
SHE IS UNTIDY AND FREE IN MANNER, BUT THERE WAS SOMETHING OF THE WOMAN'S ORIGINAL NATURE LEFT IN HER STILL.
In Oliver Twist, the characters portrayed present destructive forces. These characters represent self-interest. The characters are always looking out to advance themselves in matters either financial or otherwise. They posse' qualities are that people hide from the general public. These qualities, the want to control, greed, envy, idleness and jealousy, to name a few, are hidden from those they interact with, but there are some that they associate with that they reveal their mind to.
"HE IS SO JOLLY GREEN!"
THIS REMARK BY CHARLEY BATES, SHOWING OLIVER'S PURITY, FURTHER SHOWS US THAT FAGIN IS WILLING TO CORRUPT AN INNOCENT SOUL FOR THE SAKE OF HIS GREED, AS WE FIND OUT LATER ON THAT HE WAS COMMISSIONED BY MONKS TO CORRUPT THE BOY FOR MONEY. HE TRIES TO MAKE OLIVER AS ONE OF HIS BOYS BUT IN THE END HE DOES NOT SUCCEED. FAGIN SEEKS TO CORRUPT EVEN THE INNOCENT, WHICH MAKES HIM DOUBLY DIABOLICAL, ALMOST EVIL.
It seems that although these destructive characters draw to them others, they do not give their trust over to these characters. Always there is some ulterior motive in their actions. As in Fagin's assent to let Sikes use Oliver in his schemes has proved, self-interest is always the underlying motive. When Fagin lets Sikes get the boy for his purposes, we find out that he only does so to get Oliver in trouble with the law so that
Monks' directives to Fagin will get fulfilled and Fagin collects a lot of money, and so does Monks, who it turns out is Oliver's half-brother who gets all the inheritance if Oliver is disgraced in the eyes of the law.
"I mean to be a gentleman", said Mr. Claypole, kicking out his legs...
He means to be a swindler, as his speech dictates to us, and as he needs someone to show him how it's done, Fagin was more than happy to oblige him.
"I have got a friend that I think can gratify your darling wish, and put you in right away, where you can take whatever department of business you think will suit you best at first, and be taught all the others"
Fagin and Sikes have this underlying quality of greed and self- interest which draws them together. Even Noah Claypole, while not corrupted yet, is drawn in to Fagin's group because of his predisposition towards Fagin's type of living.
Fagin offers him a place in his gang, which Noah, dishonest critter that he is and predisposed to thieving, most happily accepts. But it is not only the bad characters that draw each other to them-selves, even the good folks draw one another'. As we have seen, those characters that represent the destructive forces of self-interest bring down those that are around them. Even their associates are not proof against their destructiveness. As with what happened to Bill Sikes have proven, those that associate with destructive characters get destroyed. Bill Sikes kills Nancy, the only one that loved Bill truly and even gives up salvation on his behalf. At Fagin's scheming urgings, Bill Sikes causes the destruction of all that was around him, and even Bill's dog was not immune to such a fate.
"The eyes again", he cried, in an unearthly screech"
His conscience makes him see Nancy's eyes as he killed her which causes him to fall.
Staggering as if struck by lightning, he lost his balance and tumbled over the parapet.
Nancy goes to meet Mr. Claypole, this is a 'dramatic irony', dramatic irony is something that the audience know but the characters don't. Nancy and the audience know that she is going to meet Mr. Claypole and of course so does 1 character, who is, Noah, even though Fagin doesn't trust her but still hasn't a clue what she is going to do.
In Oliver Twist, it is Fagin who destroys Nancy's chance of redeeming herself by poisoning Sikes' mind with thoughts of her betrayal. He fills Sikes' mind with insinuations that Sikes gets inflamed with anger which causes him to kill Nancy in the end, not even paying heed to her pleas that he join her in the chance of being better people, breaking away from Fagin's dominion. Fagin had Noah Claypole recount the details of the meeting on the bridge but the whole story is edited to put Nancy in the worst light.
"A gentleman and a lady that she has gone to of her own accord before, who asked herto give up her not? Pals, and Monks first...She told it all every word without a threat, without a murmur- she did-did she not?"
Sykes has no respect for Fagin and you can tell this by the way he speaks to him. You can see Fagin is afraid of him but Fagin does like to have the last word. If Sykes does not get his own way he will turn to violence as we see with the arguments over Oliver,
"... Looking sternly at him, and ostentatiously passing a pistol into a more convenient pocket. That's lucky for one of us."
This shows again Sykes is unpredictable and a bully and brings more tension. When Bill Sykes sees Fagin, Fagin changes the tone of his voice at once.
IT¹S PROBABLE THE REASON OLIVER TWIST CONTAINS SO MUCH FEAR AND AGONY IS BECAUSE IT¹S A REFLECTION OF INCIDENCE IN CHARLES DICKENS' PAST. DURING HIS CHILDHOOD, CHARLES DICKENS SUFFERED MUCH ABUSE FROM HIS PARENTS. THIS ABUSE IS OFTEN EXPRESSED IN HIS NOVEL. WHILE AT THE ORPHANAGE, OLIVER EXPERIENCED A GREAT AMOUNT OF ABUSE. FOR EXAMPLE, WHILE SUFFERING FROM STARVATION AND MALNUTRITION FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME, OLIVER WAS CHOSEN BY THE OTHER BOYS AT THE ORPHANAGE TO REQUEST MORE GRUEL AT DINNER ONE NIGHT. AFTER MAKING THIS SIMPLE REQUEST, THE MASTER (AT THE ORPHANAGE) AIMED A BLOW AT OLIVER'S HEAD WITH THE LADLE; PIN DOWN HIM IN HIS ARMS; AND SHRIEKED ALOUD FOR THE BEADLE.
CHARLES DICKENS NOVEL, OLIVER TWIST, CENTRES ITSELF ON THE LIFE OF THE YOUNG, ORPHAN OLIVER, BUT HE IS NOT A DEEPLY DEVELOPED CHARACTER. HE STAYS THE SAME THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE NOVEL. HE HAS A DESIRE TO BE PROTECTED, HE WANTS TO BE IN A SAFE AND SECURE ENVIRONMENT, AND HE SHOWS UNCONDITIONAL LOVE AND ACCEPTANCE TO THE PEOPLE AROUND HIM. THESE ARE THE ONLY CHARACTER TRAITS THAT THE READER KNOWS OF OLIVER. HE IS AN ARCHETYPE OF GOODNESS AND INNOCENCE. HIS INNOCENCE DRAWS MANY PEOPLE CLOSE TO HIM. EACH CHARACTER IS ATTRACTED TO HIS INNOCENCE FOR DIFFERENT REASONS, SOME TO DESTROY IT AND OTHERS TO BUILD IT. THEIR RELATIONSHIPS WITH OLIVER REVEAL NOTHING MORE ABOUT HIS PERSONALITY. THEY REVEAL MORE ABOUT THEIR OWN PERSONALITIES. THEREFORE, OLIVER IS USED NOT AS THE PROTAGONIST OF THE STORY, BUT AS THE ANCHOR FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE OTHER CHARACTERS.
We know that this is not his complete truth of the whole meeting. But Fagin, being a crafty one, sought to silence Nancy through Bill Sikes, with, unforeseeable results. Fagin uses half-truths to manipulate Bill Sikes emotions, which causes him to destroy Nancy, which in turn leads to the destruction of the whole gang.
Fagin, for all his craftiness and wile, causes his own downfall. In his attempt to silence Nancy by using Bill Sikes, has sets in motion events that brings him and his gang down. With Nancy's death, the promise of protection that was given to the rest of the gang at Nancy's request was broken. As we have seen, the destructive nature of this character turns in against himself. Fagin brings about his own downfall. It has been said that evil brings about its own destruction.
Fagin draws out every detail of Nancy's conversation from Noah. But he doesn't mention her desire to protect everyone but the fact that she chose to return to Sikes rather than be rescued. Sikes rushes from the room in a frenzy of rage. Fagin stops the robber briefly on the stairs to ask a loaded question:
"You won't be_ too_ violent, Bill?" Sikes and he exchange meaningful looks and Fagin modifies his comment: "I mean not too violent for safety."
With a terrifying singleness of purpose and a savage passion Sikes heads home. Remember the violent crimes he's committed before, and remember how many times Fagin has informed on other accomplices who weren't useful any more. Nancy is different towards Sikes and Fagin.
Nancy is pleased when Sikes returns. This makes his bloody murder of her even more chilling. Nancy begs for her life. She clutches desperately at him, trying to make him understand that she chose to stay with him. Brownlow will rescue them both, she promises, and they can find new lives. But her pleas are useless. Sikes is beyond reason.
Sikes knows he'll be discovered if he fires his gun, so instead he smashes her face with it. Dying, the girl tries to pray. She holds up the white handkerchief Rose has given her. But Sikes strikes her down with his club.
Rose Maylie's Handkerchief, shows that Rose is a symbol of good in this book with her loving nature and perfect beauty. When she gives Nancy her handkerchief, and when Nancy holds it up as she dies, it shows that by her acts, Nancy has gone over to the "good" side against the thieves. Her position on the ground is as if she is in prayer, and this shows her godly or good nature.
The description of the morning after Nancy's murder is graphic and dreadful. The apartment is a total mess. Even the dog's feet are bloody. The darkness that shrouded London's underworld until now is suddenly replaced by brilliant sunlight. Many readers think the reason Dickens uses sunlight here is to suggest that such dreadful evil will be uncovered and exposed. Sikes tries to draw the curtain to block out the light from the grisly scene in the room. But he can't do it, any more than he will be able to prevent what happens to him.
Sikes can't control his own emotions. Inside the room he is careful never to turn his back on the corpse with its haunting eyes.
Naila Parveen LC
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