A Classic Tale (Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens)

Member Name: jane08

Product:	Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
Date:	13/07/08 (100 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Wonderfully written with memorable characters

Disadvantages: The ending is a little too coincidental

***This review contains spoilers***

Oliver Twist is the second novel published by Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers being his first. Like many novels of the day it was released in serial form; with monthly instalments in Bentley's Miscellany, it was then printed as a novel in 1838.

Oliver is a young boy being raised in the orphanage of an unnamed town, his father being unknown and his mother having died upon his birth in the local workhouse. When he reaches the age of nine, Oliver is moved to that very workhouse where he is forced into an occupation for his stay. With meagre portions of gruel for sustenance, Oliver and the other young workers grow discontent and hungry. After drawing the short straw, Oliver is chosen to brave the wrath of the workhouse administrators by uttering the immortal line, "Please sir, I want some more". It is this simple request that sets in motion a series of unfortunate and desperate events which leads Oliver to the horrid company of Fagin and his company of pick pocketing friends.

Oliver Twist has to be the most well known orphan in all of literature and film. When first released it became a huge success and has remained so to this day. Being perhaps the most famous of Dickens' works, which considering that none have ever gone out of print, is a great achievement. There have been countless film and television adaptations from gritty realistic portrayals to the incredibly popular 1968 musical 'Oliver!'.

It is not only the character of Oliver that has become a part of the modern conscience, subsidiary characters like Bill Sykes, Nancy, Fagin and of course the young Artful Dodger are just as famous.

Bill Sykes is the most evil and terrifying person with whom Oliver becomes acquainted. Faithfully followed by his dog to the end, his character shows no sign of goodness being completely deplorable throughout. His horrific murder of the young and ill treated Nancy, which is described in quite thorough detail, is the epitome of his evilness.

Nancy is a character that is wonderfully rounded. She is painfully aware of her keeper's character, yet is devoted to him despite his treatment of her. Unwilling to turn him over to the law, it is her devotion to him that ultimately sees her miserable demise. Nancy is an incredibly frustrating character, the reader sympathises with her plight and wills her to accept the help she is offered, yet quite realistically this abused woman remains faithfully with her keeper, to await her fait.

Reading the descriptions of Fagin by Dickens one is first struck be the overtly anti-Semitic description of his appearance. He is constantly described in ways such as, the hideous Jew or the Jew Fagin; never is he described in a way that is not related to his ethnicity. One must remember, when reading this novel, that in the days of Dickens these sorts of things were common place, even if they are unsavoury to the modern reader. As a character Fagin is a man out for himself. He has a powerful influence over the boys in his charge and profits from them through this. Of his many thieves, the young Jack Dawkins, otherwise known as the Artful Dodger, is the most prevalent and well known. His character has become a favourite amongst the public. A poor product of his environment it's difficult to criticise the young thief.

*****

Oliver Twist is only the second Charles Dickens novel I've read, with A Tale of Two Cities, being my first. Having tried to read Great Expectation several times I was all for writing Dickens off as an author I just couldn't enjoy. Oliver Twist however has completely changed my opinion of him. I was quite astonished by how much I enjoyed this story and the style in which it is written; so much so that I've already ordered several more of his classic stories to make my way through.

Dickens has a masterful way of writing. His descriptions are imaginative and fascinating without dragging on for pages like some authors seem to do. The plot line is well thought out, it carries mysteries that hold the readers attention and make you want to read on. The characters are diverse and, although sometimes a little stereotypical, are completely memorable. The one thing that struck me most about the style was the abundance of sarcasm and humour. There isn't a single passage that doesn't contain something of this sort which makes the whole novel the more enjoyable.

For people who detest ridiculously long chapters, I know I do, then Oliver Twist, and Dickens' other works, are brilliant. Due to the style of their publication his novels have very short chapters of little more than a few pages in length. This also means that each chapter furthers the plot so the story doesn't stagnate; it is constantly on the move which makes it exciting and easier to read.

There is only one thing that I could mark down in Oliver Twist and that is the twist in the novel. While I liked the ending, in the sense that the characters fates are precisely what you'd wish, the twist is a little unrealistic. A suspension of disbelief is needed to account for the remarkable coincidences that seem to occur.

****

My copy of this classic is the harback Everyman's Library edition which includes an introduction by G. K. Chesterton. There are also twenty four prints of the original illustrations which accompanied the monthly serials when they were first printed. Even if some of them don't fit my image of the characters, it's a nice touch to see the original pictures along side the text.

Summary: A classic story, well written and entertaining.