130 pages • 4 hours read
Charles DickensOliver Twist
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1838A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Chapters 6-10Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 6 Summary: “OLIVER, BEING GOADED BY THE TAUNTS OF NOAH, ROUSES INTO ACTION, AND RATHER ASTONISHES HIM”
Oliver officially becomes Mr. Sowerberry’s apprentice. It is apparently sick season and Mr. Sowerberry’s undertaking business is busier than ever. Oliver partakes in many infant funerals as a mute mourner. Through his many trips with Mr. Sowerberry to grieving families, Oliver has countless opportunities to observe how grief affects people. He observes how the family of deceased wealthy old people is often secretly joyous, how husbands are calm in the face of their wives’ death, and how wives often grieve openly and dress for the occasion as if “they had made up their minds to render it as becoming and attractive as possible” (63).
Through his apprenticeship, Oliver continues to be bullied by a jealous Noah Claypole, mistreated by Charlotte, and hated by Mrs. Sowerberry. One night at dinner, Noah begins insulting Oliver’s mother in an attempt to get a rise out of the young boy. Noah calls Oliver’s mother a “right-down bad ‘un” and Oliver attacks Noah, pushing him to the ground and punching him (66). Noah is too much of a coward to fight back against the much smaller boy and instead, calls out for Charlotte and Mrs. Sowerberry’s help. It is only when Charlotte and Mrs. Sowerberry are punching and scratching Oliver that Noah chooses to join in and hit Oliver. After, they lock Oliver in the cellar, believing that Oliver would have murdered them all. Mrs. Sowerberry sends Noah to tell Mr. Bumble of Oliver’s murderous rage, a knife pressed to Noah’s black eye to keep the swelling down.
Chapter 7 Summary: “OLIVER CONTINUES REFRACTORY”
Noah dramatically relays to Mr. Bumble the incident of the morning, claiming loudly that Oliver attempted to murder him, Charlotte, and Mrs. Sowerberry. The man with the white waistcoat overhears Noah’s dramatics and claims that he’s known all along that Oliver was dangerous. Mr. Bumble arrives at the Sowerberrys and tries to get Oliver to stop knocking at the cellar door. Oliver is unafraid of Mr. Bumble and his boldness staggers Mr. Bumble. Mrs. Sowerberry believes Oliver to have gone mad but Mr. Bumble instead blames it on meat. He believes that Mrs. Sowerberry has overfed him and thus “raised a [sic] artificial soul and spirit in him” (74). Despite Mrs. Sowerberry only feeding Oliver scraps that no one else would eat, she chooses to believe Mr. Bumble.
When Mr. Sowerberry returns, he lets Oliver out of the cellar. Oliver explains why he attacked Noah but Mrs. Sowerberry continues to insist that Oliver’s mother “deserved what he said, and worse” (75). Oliver argues back, defending his mother, and Mrs. Sowerberry bursts into tears. Because of Mrs. Sowerberry’s tears, Mr. Sowerberry is forced to severely punish Oliver, lest the undertaker appear to be an uncaring husband. Mr. Sowerberry beats Oliver and Mr. Bumble canes him after. Mrs. Sowerberry continues to insult the memory of Oliver’s mother and later that night orders him to bed. Oliver decides to run away. Oliver heads to Mrs. Mann’s child farm, where he sees his former friend, Dick, weeding in the garden. Dick tells Oliver that he is dying, but the boy encourages Oliver to leave, blessing him and hugging him. Oliver leaves to “seek [his] fortune” (78).
Chapter 8 Summary: “OLIVER WALKS TO LONDON. HE ENCOUNTERS ON THE ROAD A STRANGE SORT OF YOUNG GENTLEMAN”
Chapter 8 begins with Oliver five miles away from the unnamed town, hiding and making sure that he cannot be seen, lest he be captured and taken back. Oliver decides to go to London, where he believes that no one will ever be able to find him. Oliver, with nothing more than a piece of bread, a shirt, two pairs of stockings, and a penny, begins walking the sixty-five miles towards London. Oliver walks twenty miles that day and falls asleep in an empty field. After a couple of days of wintry cold and miles of walking, Oliver tries to beg stagecoach passengers for help, but no one takes any notice of him. Oliver enters the town of Barnet, where he meets another boy by the name of Jack Dawkins, otherwise known as the Artful Dodger. The Dodger dons a large hat and a coat, and acts more like a gentleman than a boy the same age as Oliver. The Dodger buys Oliver ham and bread to eat and offers to bring him into London to live with an older gentleman who will protect them. Oliver makes up his mind to make himself indispensable to the older man and to lessen his contact with the Dodger, should he discover that the other boy was immoral.
The boys enter London and the sheer number of children in squalor terrifies Oliver. Eventually, Oliver enters the house near Field Lane, where he meets Fagin, an older Jewish man whom Dickens describes as “villainous-looking” (90). The dirty room is filled with many silk handkerchiefs and other young boys drinking and smoking. Fagin tells Oliver that the handkerchiefs are being sorted for laundry and the other boys erupt into laughter. After finishing his supper, Oliver is given a mix of gin and water and falls quickly to sleep on one of the sack beds.
Chapter 9 Summary: “CONTAINING FURTHER PARTICULARS CONCERNING THE PLEASANT OLD GENTLEMAN, AND HIS HOPEFUL PUPILS”
Oliver wakes to Fagin making coffee. Oliver is in the space between wakefulness and sleep and when Fagin calls his name, appears to still be asleep. Fagin assumes that Oliver is soundly asleep and the older man locks the door and pulls out a small box filled with treasures from a trap door in the floor. Fagin mutters to himself as he looks through the various expensive treasures excitedly. As Fagin says something about causing five men to receive the death penalty, he glances at Oliver and realizes that the young boy is awake. Fagin grasps a bread knife and demands to know if Oliver was awake an hour ago. Oliver denies this and Fagin pretends that his rage was all an act. When Fagin asks Oliver if the young boy has seen any of his treasures, Oliver says yes, and Fagin claims that they are all he has, because of his old age and miserly habits.
Oliver believes Fagin because he thinks feeding and clothing all the boys must cost a lot of money and thus force Fagin to live in the dirty house. After Oliver cleans himself up, the Dodger arrives with one Charley Bates after a successful morning of pickpocketing. Fagin asks Oliver if he would like to make pocket-handkerchiefs and Oliver agrees excitedly, causing the Charley to laugh. After they eat, Fagin plays a game with the Dodger and Charley Bates, practicing their pickpocketing techniques. Two young ladies, Bet and Nancy, visit the boys and they drink together before leaving with Charley Bates and the Dodger. Fagin encourages Oliver to “make ‘em your models” and “do everything they bid you” (101). Fagin then has Oliver attempt to take a handkerchief out of the former’s pocket without him noticing. Oliver succeeds and Fagin rewards him with a shilling before showing him how to take the “marks out of the handkerchiefs,” removing initials from the stolen cloths so they can be resold (101).
Chapter 10 Summary: “OLIVER BECOMES BETTER ACQUAINTED WITH THE CHARACTERS OF HIS NEW ASSOCIATES; AND PURCHASES EXPERIENCE AT A HIGH PRICE. BEING A SHORT, BUT VERY IMPORTANT CHAPTER, IN THIS HISTORY”
Chapter 10 begins with Oliver living with Fagin and the boys, removing the marks out of the handkerchiefs. Soon, however, Oliver begins to want for fresh air and begs for Fagin to allow him to work with Charley Bates and the Dodger. Oliver has observed some odd behaviors while living with Fagin, especially when the Dodger and Bates return with no stolen goods. Fagin frequently falls into a rage when the boys return empty-handed. Oliver begins working with the Dodger and Charley Bates. He notices how Charley Bates steals from stores and how the Dodger grabs hats from the heads of boys and throws them down the street. Oliver considers leaving the boys, but fails to do so before the boys find a man to pickpocket in a bookstore.
Oliver watches the Dodger steal a handkerchief from the old man. The Dodger and Charley Bates run away but Oliver stays rooted to the spot and as a result ends up being accused of stealing the handkerchief. The old man and other passersby chase after Oliver, calling him a thief and pickpocket. Oliver is chased through the streets of London. Eventually, a man hits Oliver and brings him down to the ground and the officer arrests the young boy. The old gentleman, named Mr. Brownlow, despite accusing Oliver of stealing his handkerchief, is adamant that Oliver is treated well and not hurt. The Dodger and Charley Bates return back to Fagin triumphantly.
Chapters 6-10 Analysis
These chapters are marked by considerable violence. Being an orphan, with little to no real power in the world, Oliver is at the mercy and whims of those around him. Oliver is moved from place to place like an animal, an object, to suit the expenses of both the church and the state. Oliver’s lack of power and agency places him at the bottom rung of every social and hierarchal ladder. Through Oliver’s interactions with multiple characters throughout this section of the novel, Dickens clearly displays the theme of cruelty and violence innate in hierarchal and social strata.
Oliver is beaten and starved by officers at the workhouse. Violence has become such a common staple of his life under the church and government care that Oliver prays that “they would starve him–beat him–kill him if they pleased,” rather than send him off with the chimney sweep (33). Oliver thus faces constant violence from the very institutions meant to help him.
Dickens displays how those who seek power are most likely to be corrupted by it. Noah, for example, is initially bullied for being a charity boy, but upon Oliver’s arrival, finds himself being a step above the younger boy and begins bullying Oliver fervently. Further, his master and mistress, individuals who have been tasked with his care, attack Oliver also. Those who are meant to protect the weak choose to hurt them instead. This is made most evident when Charlotte, Noah, and Mrs. Sowerberry gather to attack Oliver viciously:
Charlotte’s fist was by no means a light one; but, lest it should not be effectual in calming Oliver’s wrath, Mrs. Sowerberry plunged into the kitchen, and assisted to hold him with one hand, while she scratched his face with the other. In this favourable position of affairs, Noah rose from the ground, and pommeled him behind (67).
Oliver’s status as an orphan has ostracized him and made him almost inhuman in the eyes of those above him. Instead of seeing a child in desperate need of help, those who lack power and desperately seek it see something (Oliver) that they can use to affirm their own authority and influence. This is made evident through Dickens’s portrayal of Mr. Bumble in this section. When Mr. Bumble asks Oliver if he is frightened of him, as he expects him to be, Oliver says no and this “staggered Mr. Bumble not a little” (73). He then proposes that Oliver has been fed too much and later canes and starves him even after Mr. Sowerberry has punished him.
Oliver suffers violence at the hands of many, especially from those who believe themselves to be good and righteous. The mob that chases after Oliver and the officers that take him to the magistrate are incredibly rough with him. At the end of the chase, Oliver “could hardly stand,” as he was run down and pounded into the floor by the supposedly good passersby (110). Violence thus plagues Oliver in his every interaction. The first person who cares about his well-being, and who uses their influence and authority to protect him is Mr. Brownlow. Despite assuming that Oliver is a pickpocket, Brownlow tells the officer, “don’t hurt him,” and proceeds to follow after to make sure he doesn’t (110).
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