Summary of “The Adventures of Oliver Twist” by Dickens


Oliver Twist was born in a workhouse. His mother had only one glance at him and died; before the boy was nine years old, he could not find out who his parents were.

No kind word of affection, no kind affectionate glance has ever dawned on his dull infant years, he knew only hunger, beatings, bullying and deprivation. From the workhouse Oliver is given as a pupil to the undertaker; there he encounters the boyish boy Noe Kleipol, who, being older and stronger, constantly subjects Oliver to humiliation. He quietly demolishes everything until one day Noah responded badly to his mother – this Oliver could not bear and beat a stronger and stronger, but cowardly offender. He is severely punished, and he flees from the undertaker.

Seeing the road sign “London”, Oliver goes there. He sleeps in haystacks, suffers from hunger, cold and fatigue. On the seventh day after his escape to the town of Barnet, Oliver meets a ragamuffin of his age who introduced himself as

Jack Dawkins, nicknamed the Nimble Dodger, fed him and promised him shelter and protection in London. The crafty Dodger brought Oliver to the fence of stolen, godfather of London thieves and swindlers Jew Fagin – it was his patronage that was meant. Fagin promises to teach Oliver the craft and give the job, and for now the boy spends many days picking up the labels from handkerchiefs that young thieves bring to Fagin. When he first goes “to work,” and sees firsthand how his mentors the Dodgy Dodger and Charlie Bates pull out a handkerchief from the pocket of a gentleman, he runs in horror, They grab him like a thief and drag him to the judge. Fortunately, the gentleman refuses the claim and, full of sympathy for the hunted child, takes him to himself. Oliver has been sick for a long time, Mr. Brownlow and his housekeeper Mrs. Bedwin are nursing him, marveling at his resemblance to the portrait of a young beautiful woman that hangs in the living room. Mr. Brownlow wants to take Oliver to be brought up.

However, Fagin, fearing that Oliver will bring representatives of the law to his track, traces

and abducts him. He seeks at all costs to make Oliver the thief and achieve complete submission to the boy. For the robbery of the house, where he is attracted by Fagin, where he is very attracted by silverware, the performer of this action Bill Sykes, who recently returned from prison, needs a “lean boy” who, being pushed into the window, would open the door to the robbers. The choice falls on Oliver.

Oliver firmly decides to raise the alarm in the house, as soon as it turns out to not participate in the crime. But he did not have time: the house was guarded, and half-stuck into the window the boy was immediately wounded in the arm. Sykes pulls him out, bleeding, and carries away, but after hearing the chase, he throws him into the ditch, not knowing exactly whether he is alive or dead. Waking up, Oliver comes to the porch of the house; her inmate Mrs. Maylie and her niece Roz put him to bed and call the doctor, refusing to give the poor child to the police.

Meanwhile, in a workhouse where Oliver was born, a beggar old woman who at one time was courting his mother is dying, and when she died she robbed her. Old Sally calls the warder Mrs. Corney and repents of stealing the gold thing that the young woman asked her to keep, for this thing, perhaps, will make people better treat her child. Without agreeing, the old Sally died, giving Mrs. Corney a mortgage receipt.

Fagin is very concerned about the absence of Sykes and the fate of Oliver. Having lost control of himself, he incautiously cries out in the presence of Nancy, Sykes’ girlfriend, that Oliver costs hundreds of pounds, and mentions a will. Nancy, pretending to be drunk, lulls his vigilance, sneaks after him and overhears his conversation with the mysterious stranger Monks. It turns out that Fagin persistently turns Oliver into a thief by order of a stranger, and he is very afraid that Oliver is killed and a thread will lead to him – he needs the boy to become a thief. Fagin promises to find Oliver and deliver Monks – alive or dead.

Oliver is slowly recovering in the house of Mrs. Mailey and Rose, surrounded by the sympathy and care of these ladies and their home doctor, Dr. Losburn. He tells them his story without concealment. alas, it is not confirmed by anything! When, at the request of the boy, the doctor is going with him to pay a visit to Dr. Brownlow, it turns out that he, having handed over the house, went to the West Indies; when Oliver finds out the house by the road, where his Sykes led him before the robbery, Dr. Losburn discovers that the description of the rooms and the master does not match… But this does not make Oliver worse. With the advent of spring, both ladies move to rest in the village and take a boy with them. There he once encounters a disgusting kind of stranger who showered him with curses and rolled on the ground in a fit. Oliver does not attach importance to this meeting, finding him crazy. But after a while the face of a stranger next to Fagin’s face appears to him in the window. At the cry of the boy ran home, but the search did not yield any results.

Monks, meanwhile, does not waste time. In the town where Oliver was born, he finds the owner of the secrets of the old Sally Mrs. Creakle – she by this time managed to get married and become Mrs. Bumble. For twenty-five pounds Monks buys from her a small purse, which the old Sally took from the body of his mother Oliver. In the purse lay a gold medallion, and in it – two curls and an engagement ring; on the inner side of the medallion was engraved the name “Agnes”, left a place for the name and stood the date – about a year before the birth of Oliver. Monks throws this purse with all the contents into a stream where it can no longer be found. When he returns, he tells Fagin about this, and Nancy again eavesdrops on them. Shocked by a heard and tormented conscience because she helped bring Oliver Fagin back, deceiving him from Mr. Brownlow, she, lulling Sykes with opium, goes to the place where Lady Maylie has stayed, and tells Rose everything she overheard: that if Oliver was captured again, then Fagin would receive a certain amount, which would increase many times if Fagin made him a thief, that the only ones the evidence that establishes the boy’s personality rests on the river bed, that although Monks has obtained Oliver’s money, it would have been better to get them through another way-to drag the boy through all the city prisons and to hang him on the gallows; Monks called Oliver his brother and rejoiced that he was exactly at Lady Mayleigh, for they would give a few hundred pounds to find out the origin of Oliver. Nancy asks not to give her away, refuses to accept money and any kind of help and returns to Sykes,

Rose is looking for someone to ask for advice. Helping a happy occasion: Oliver saw Mr. Brownlow on the street and found out his address. They immediately go to Mr. Brownlow. After hearing Roses, he decides to dedicate the essence of the case also to Dr. Losbern, and then to his friend Mr. Grimwig and the son of Mrs. Maylie Harry (Ros and Harry have long been in love with each other, but Roses does not say “yes” to him, fearing to damage his reputation and career with his questionable she is the adopted niece of Mrs. Maylie). After discussing the situation, the council decides, after waiting for Sunday, to ask Nancy to show them Monks or at least describe in detail his appearance.

They waited for Nancy only on Sunday: the first time Sykes did not let her out of the house. At the same time, Fagin, seeing the persistent desire of the girl to leave, suspected something amiss and put Noe Kleipol on her watch, who by this time robbed his master-undertaker, fled to London and fell into the hands of Fagin. Fagin, hearing the report of Noe, went into a frenzy: he thought that Nancy just started a new boyfriend, but it turned out to be much more serious. Deciding to punish the girl with someone else’s hands, he tells Sykes that Nancy betrayed everyone, of course, without specifying that she was talking only about Monks and gave up money and hope for an honest life to return to Sykes. He calculated correctly: Sykes was furious. But underestimated the power of this fury: Bill Sykes brutally killed Nancy.

Meanwhile, Mr. Brownlow does not waste time: he is conducting his own investigation. After receiving from Nancy a description of Monks, he restores the full picture of the drama that began many years ago. Edwin Lieford’s father (this is Monks’ real name) and Oliver was Mr. Brownlow’s longtime friend. He was unhappy in marriage, his son from an early age showed vicious tendencies – and he broke up with the first family. He loved the young Agnes Fleming, with whom he was happy, but things called him abroad. In Rome he fell ill and died. His wife and son, fearing to miss the inheritance, also came to Rome. Among the papers, they found an envelope addressed to Mr. Brownlow, in which there was a letter for Agnes and a will. In the letter, he begged to forgive him and as a sign of this wear a medallion and a ring. In the will, he allocated eight hundred pounds to his wife and his eldest son, and the rest of the property was left by Agnes Fleming and the child if he was born alive and reached adulthood, and the girl inherits money unconditionally, and the boy only provided that he does not stain his name with any shameful deed. Monks’s mother burnt this will, but the letter was saved in order to disgrace the family of Agnes. After her visit, under the yelp of shame, the girl’s father changed his name and fled with both daughters (the second was quite a crumb) to the most remote corner of Wales. Soon he was found dead in bed – Agnes left the house, he could not find her, decided that she had committed suicide, and his heart was broken. The youngest sister Agnes was first taken up by the peasants, and then she became the adopted niece of Mrs. Maylie – it was Rose. and the girl inherits money unconditionally, and the boy only on condition that he does not stain his name with any shameful act. Monks’s mother burnt this will, but the letter was saved in order to disgrace the family of Agnes. After her visit, under the yelp of shame, the girl’s father changed his name and fled with both daughters (the second was quite a crumb) to the most remote corner of Wales. Soon he was found dead in bed – Agnes left the house, he could not find her, decided that she had committed suicide, and his heart was broken. The youngest sister Agnes was first taken up by the peasants, and then she became the adopted niece of Mrs. Maylie – it was Rose. and the girl inherits money unconditionally, and the boy only on condition that he does not stain his name with any shameful act. Monks’s mother burnt this will, but the letter was saved in order to disgrace the family of Agnes. After her visit, under the yelp of shame, the girl’s father changed his name and fled with both daughters (the second was quite a crumb) to the most remote corner of Wales. Soon he was found dead in bed – Agnes left the house, he could not find her, decided that she had committed suicide, and his heart broke. The youngest sister Agnes was first taken up by the peasants, and then she became the adopted niece of Mrs. Maylie – it was Rose. After her visit, under the yelp of shame, the girl’s father changed his name and fled with both daughters (the second was quite a crumb) to the most remote corner of Wales. Soon he was found dead in bed – Agnes left the house, he could not find her, decided that she had committed suicide, and his heart broke. The youngest sister Agnes was first taken up by the peasants, and then she became the adopted niece of Mrs. Maylie – it was Rose. After her visit, under the yelp of shame, the girl’s father changed his name and fled with both daughters (the second was quite a crumb) to the most remote corner of Wales. Soon he was found dead in bed – Agnes left the house, he could not find her, decided that she had committed suicide, and his heart was broken. The youngest sister Agnes was first taken up by the peasants, and then she became the adopted niece of Mrs. Maylie – it was Rose.

At the age of eighteen Monks ran away from his mother, robbing her, and there was no such sin that he would not indulge. But before she died, she found him and told this secret. Monks made up and began to implement his diabolical plan, which Nancy hindered at the cost of her life.

Proposing irrefutable evidence, Mr. Brownlow makes Monks fulfill his father’s will and leave England.

So Oliver found her aunt, Rose resolved her doubts about her origins and finally said “yes” to Harry, who preferred the life of a village priest to a brilliant career, and the family of Meili and Dr. Losburn became friends with Mr. Grimwig and Mr. Brownlow, who adopted Oliver.

Bill Sykes was killed, tortured by an unclean conscience, he was not arrested; and Fagin was arrested and executed.


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Summary of “The Adventures of Oliver Twist” by Dickens