Montreal Dickens Fellowship Study Questions: “Oliver Twist”
Westmount Public Library
November 5, 2013 2:30-4:30
Chapters 9-16
- Do you see Fagin as a kindly figure in some ways? He does provide food and shelter for homeless orphans. Does his pretense of fatherliness make him more sinister? Compare his “kindness” to that of the workhouse board.
- How are Fagin’s boys depicted as old beyond their years?
- Dickens uses Oliver’s detention to criticize the cruel injustices perpetrated by the Magistrate’s court of his day (particularly against juvenile offenders). In fact Magistrate Fang is based on an infamously cruel, true life, Magistrate Laing. Discuss the humour used in Dickens’ description of this humorless and dangerous public official.
- Discuss how Mr. Brownlow’s unexplained recognition of Oliver and Oliver’s uncanny resemblance to the portrait add to the mystery and suspense of the novel.
- With the Dodger and Charlie Bates running away and leaving Oliver to take the blame for the theft, Dickens is criticizing the new middle class philosophy of “every man for himself”, a philosophy also practiced by Fagin. Dickens holds up the virtues of love, loyalty, family, and community as a better way to live. Discuss.
- Comment on the similarities between Bill Sykes and his dog.
- Discuss Mr. Grimwig’s name, appearance and speech in terms of comic relief.
- Have you been “burned” by helping someone, only to be deceived? Did you feel gullible, making you think twice about repeating a similar good deed? Compare and contrast Mr. Brownlow and Mr. Grimwig in their attitudes toward unrewarded acts of kindness.
- Nancy is one of the only characters in the book that is not one-sided. She has divided loyalties and a strong conscience. How does Dickens demonstrate the complexity of her character?
- What is your overall impression of the novel up to this point? Does it grab your interest? Do you find it too maudlin? Is there enough humor to make the moral posturing and biting sarcasm palatable?