Description
« Oliver Twist, » penned by Charles Dickens in 1839, narrates the story of an orphaned boy navigating a harsh life, commencing in a workhouse and then being sold into an undertaker’s apprenticeship. His escape leads him to London, where he encounters the Artful Dodger, a member of a gang of youthful pickpockets led by the elderly Fagin. The novel stands out for Dickens’s stark and unembellished depiction of criminals and their gritty existence, shedding light on the cruel treatment of numerous orphans in 19th-century London.
This early instance of a social novel by Dickens sharply critiques the societal hypocrisies of his era, particularly child labor, the exploitation of children in criminal activities, and the prevalence of destitute street children. The inspiration behind the story likely draws from various sources, including the widely read account of Robert Blincoe, an orphan who toiled as a child laborer in a cotton mill in the 1830s. Moreover, Dickens’s own youthful encounters might have contributed to the novel’s themes and narrative.
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