Oliver Twist (Magill Book Reviews)
At a glance:
- Author: Charles Dickens
- Type of Work: Novel
- Genres: Long fiction, Social realism, Bildungsroman
- Subjects: Maturation or coming of age, Love or romance, Crime or criminals, Murder or homicide, Nineteenth century, Gangs, youth, Poverty or poor people, Child abuse, Inner cities or inner-city life, England or English people, Robbery or robbers, Adoption or adopted children, London, Corruption, Theft, Orphans or orphanages, Labor, Boys
- Locales: London, England
OLIVER TWIST, a rich tapestry of English society in the 1830’s, has two distinct strands. In the first chapters, Dickens satirizes Victorian social institutions. Born in a workhouse, the young protagonist of unknown (but genteel, as it turns out) parentage is arbitrarily given the name Oliver Twist. His subsequent experiences of charity at the hands of the parish beadle Mr. Bumble, the workhouse directors, the magistrates, and the household of the undertaker to whom he is apprenticed sharply indicate the hypocrisy, stupidity, and cruelty of the so-called respectable world.
...[The entire page is 688 words long]
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