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Christian OShea
Cindy Rodgers
English 12
December 9, 2016

In Oliver Twist, a classic work of literature, Charles Dickens tells the

story of a young orphan in Victorian England. The story follows Oliver Twist
as he transitions from a miserable, loveless life of poverty in a workhouse
into a home with a family to love and comfort him. Along the way he is taken
in by Fagin and his band of thieves, wrongly accused of a crime, and
discovers that his older half-brother, Monks, has been the one trying to
corrupt him all along. Back in Victorian England, the accepted idea was that
people were born either pure or corrupt. Charles Dickens uses this story to
demonstrate that a persons character is a reflection of their upbringing.
Oliver Twist is a moral, kind-hearted young boy who never gives in to
temptation. Oliver shows how moral he is by his reaction to the artful dodger
pick-pocketing Mr. Brownlow. The moment Oliver witnesses the Dodger
committing this crime he is mortified, so much so that he freezes, is caught,
and held accountable for the crime. Dickens writes in this chapter, He stood
for a moment with the blood tingling through all his veins from terror that he
felt as if he were in a burning fire. This quote demonstrates how innocent

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and harmless Oliver really is. The main reason for his panic is, he finally
understands what Fagin is up to. Although it is sad to see Oliver in this panic,
it is a quality I appreciate because it shows how he didnt pass negative
judgment on Fagin during his stay with him but instead sees all his tricks as
innocent games.
After going through several morally challenging situations involving his
brother and Fagin he finally finds a safe and loving family. However it could
have ended very differently for Oliver. All through the book Monks, Olivers
older half-brother, is working with Fagin to corrupt him. Monks is doing this
because of the will that his father left for Oliver. The will states that if Oliver
commits a crime all his money is to go to his brother. It seems that this is an
impossible task because of Olivers clear view of right and wrong. However,
for the sake of finding an alternative ending lets assume that Monks and
Fagin were able to succeed in their plot.
If, instead of being too frightened to follow The Dodgers lead, he
decided to steal with the intention of returning what he stole later. By doing
this Oliver would be able to prove himself to Fagin and the other boys. But
because he doesnt know what Fagin is plotting with his brother he would be
unaware of the immediate consequences. Another way he could have been
tricked into stealing would be if Fagin made up stories about people to
persuade Oliver that they were just stealing back what was stolen from
them. Either way, if Oliver had gone through with the crime he would be

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arrested and would never be found by Harry and Rose. Not only would he
lose the chance of having a family, all his inheritance would go to his evil
half-brother.