About the author

Charlie Dickens (1812 - 1870) was born in Portsmouth, England. He started school
at the age of 9, but had to leave after three years because his parents couldn’t pay.
When he was 12 his father was sent to prison because he owed money. Charles
was separated from his family and sent to work in a factory to earn money. This
influenced Oliver Twist and many of the writer’s novels. In Oliver Twist he wanted to
expose the exploitation of children. He became famous because while he was
working as a reporter and became a journalist for a newspaper, his novels were
serialised in literary magazines.

Historical Background
The setting of Oliver Twist is 19th-century London, England. There was a clear
division between the wealthy and the poor. Rapid industrialisation of the cities meant
that poor people lived in horrible conditions, even childs had to work in factories,
mills and mines. Putting people into workhouses was the government’s solution to
poverty.

Chapter 1

In the early 1800s, Oliver Twist was born in a workhouse. After he was born, his
mother died. Before giving birth she was found lying in the street last night. She
wasn’t married. The workhouse officials sent Oliver to another workhouse, where an
angry old woman called Mrs Mann was responsible for him and 20 other babies. She
didn’t care about the babies, she only cared about herself. Mrs Mann kept to herself
the money the Board Directors gave her to give the children food and clothes. Mr
Bumble (one of the board directors) came to send Oliver to the workhouse he came
from (where his mother died)

Chapter 2

Mr Bumble said the Board wanted to see him. Oliver entered a room where some fat
gentlemen were sitting at a table. They asked him if he knew he hadn’t got parents
and that the authorities were responsible for him. They also said that he was going to
start work at six o’clock the next morning, so then Mr Bumble took Oliver to a big
bedroom, where all the boys slept. After 3 months Oliver and the other boys suffered
slow starvation. They chose Oliver to be the one who was going to ask for more
food, but when he asked the master, the master hit Oliver on the head with the
spoon, and shouted for Mr Bumble. Mr Bumble and the members of the Board
locked Oliver in a room and offered 5 pounds to the person who gave Oliver work
and took him away. One morning Mr Sowerberry, the undertaker, took Oliver.
Chapter 3

In his new home Oliver was kicked by Mr Noah Claypole, the son of the
Sowerberrys, but one day, Noah started to insult Oliver’s mother. Oliver started to
shake with anger and grabbed Noah by the throat and started to hit him. Mrs
Sowerberry pulled Oliver and locked him in a cellar without any food or water. Next
morning he opened the shop door and didn’t stop running until he was far enough
from the shop. In his path to London he found a boy around Oliver’s age who asked
him if he wanted to life in “the Artful Dodger”’s house (se llama así porque siempre
esquiva los problemas). The Artful Dodger didn’t want to enter London until it was
dark. They entered Islington (dirty and miserable place). In the house Oliver met
Fagin, the adult, who gets angry because Oliver watches his jewellery box.

Chapter 4

One morning, Oliver went out with the Artful Dodger and they saw a rich gentleman.
The Artful Dodger took a handkerchief (pañuelo) from the man’s pocket. He didn’t
saw the Artful Dodger, but saw Oliver, he caught Olver and a policeman grabbed the
boy and brought him to the police station, but because the gentleman wasn’t sure
that Oliver was the thief the policeman had to free him. Outside the police station
Oliver lied on the ground and Mr Brownlow (the gentleman) brought him to his
house. The house was quiet and the people were kind. One evening Mr Brownlow
told Oliver that he wanted to hear the story of his life. Mr Grimwig (a friend of Mr
Brownlow) was sure that Oliver was a thief. He wanted to prove his theory to his
friend. Mr Brownlow thought Mr Grimwig was wrong about Oliver. He believed that
Oliver was a good boy, so he asked Oliver to return some books.

Chapter 5

When the Artful Dodger and Charley returned without Oliver, Fagin was furious
because Oliver could tell the police about them. Sikes’ girlfriend Nancy arrived, she
reluctantly (de mala gana) agreed to go there. Nancy found Oliver and with Bill Sikes
help they both returned Oliver to Fagin. Oliver didn’t want to stay there, so he tried to
leave, but the boys caught him and after Fagin hit him he locked him into a dark
room. After 3 days the boys tried to persuade Oliver to become a thief like them.
Fagin and Bill Sikes needed a small boy to enter a house through a little window, so
he forced Oliver to do the work. When Oliver opened the house door to Sikes two
men appeared from the stairs and one of them shot Oliver in the arm. He started
bleeding, Sikes fired his gun to the men and then brought Oliver to the garden until
he lost consciousness.
Chapter 6

In another moment in the story the woman who helped Oliver’s mother died and
admitted that she stole a gold locket (medallón) from his mother, so before dying the
woman gives the locket to the matron. Returning to the main story, the morning after
the robbery, Oliver woke up in a field with all his pains. So he went to the same
house he tried to rob to find some help, while Sikes’ friend went to Fagin's house to
tell Fagin how bad it went. But when Fagin ran out of the house angrily he found
Monks (new character) in the street, who said that knew Oliver’s identity.

Chapter 7

In Mrs Maylie’s house (where Oliver is) Dr Losberne arrived and went upstairs to see
Oliver who was getting better. He asked the servants if they were sure that Oliver
was the thief, but they weren’t sure. When Oliver was stronger told his new friends
about Mr Brownlow, they went to Mr Brownlow’s house, but he had left suddenly for
the West Indies. Two weeks later, Mrs Maylie, Rose (Maylie’s niece[sobrina]) and
Oliver moved to the house in the country. Three months passed and Oliver was now
a strong healthy boy. Oliver was happy.

Chapter 8

One morning, Rose was very ill and Mrs Maylie was afraid she would die, so she
gave Oliver a letter to Dr Losberne. He ran to the post office, but when he left he
accidentally bumped into a tall man. At midnight, Rose was worse and Oliver prayed
for her, but when Dr Losberne arrived, he didn’t give much hope she would live.
However, the next afternoon, Rose felt much better and Dr Losberne said that she
would recover. Mrs Maylie’s son, Harry arrived and asked for Rose because she
loves her, but Mrs Maylie doesn’t want him to marry her because she comes from
poor people (she was adopted), even Rose didn’t want to marry him because it
would be better for him. Oliver was dreaming when he discovered that the dream he
was having wasn’t a dream at all because Fagin was on the window with the tall man
of the post office. Harry tried to find them, but he couldn’t.
Chapter 9

One day Monks went to see Mr Bumble (director of the workhouse where Oliver was
born) and asked him about Old Sally, he answered that she was dead, but he could
talk to Mrs Corney. She gave him the gold locket and Monks threw it to the river.
Then he went to Fagin’s house and said to him that he has got rid of the last
evidence of Oliver’s identity, but Nancy was listening to all the conversation. After
that, she went to Mrs Maylie’s house and warned Rose about Oliver’s identity,
Monks (brother of Oliver Twist) wants to hurt Oliver. Next morning Oliver saw Mr
Brownlow and with Rose went to see him. Finally, Oliver could explain to Mr
Brownlow why he didn’t return with his books. And while Oliver was talking with Mrs
Bedwin, Rose explained to Mr Brownlow everything Nancy told her.

Chapter 10

Nancy knew that if Fagin knew what she was doing he could hurt her or Sikes, but
she wanted to help Oliver. On Sunday night, Nancy wanted to meet Rose on London
Bridge, but Fagin was in her house talking to Sikes. She tried to leave, but Sikes
didn’t let her go. Fagin didn’t trust Nancy, so he told the Artful Dodger to follow
Nancy the next time she went out. The following Sunday night Nancy went to the
bridge, she met Mr Brownlow and Rose, she gave them the name of the public
house where Monks went. The Artful Dodger listened to everything and told
everything to Fagin. Fagin explained everything to Sikes, so he went to his house to
see Nancy.

Chapter 11

Sikes killed Nancy and tried to escape to France, but he couldn’t leave the dog, so
he decided to drown it, but when he tried the clever dog ran away. Mr Brownlow
found Monks in the public house Nancy told him and started to explain all the story of
Oliver’s father (Oliver’s father was married with Monks’ mother, they had their only
child, Monks, but then they separated. After the separation, Oliver’s father fell in love
with a girl called Agnes, they wanted to marry, but Oliver’s father had to go to Italy
because he had to earn money from the inheritance from Oliver’s father uncle while
Agnes was pregnant), at the end of the story, Mr Brownlow blackmailed (chantajeó)
Monks with prison if he didn’t answer, so he agreed and told them all about Fagin,
Oliver’s identity and to give Oliver his inheritance from their father.
Chapter 12

In Fagin’s house the crowd wanted to punish Sikes for killing Nancy, but when he
tried to escape he died (se lanzó por una cuerda, se le lió al cuello y se ahorcó). Two
days later in Mr Brownlow’s house, he explained Oliver his father’s story and his true
story, even his mother, Agnes, story (she was from a rich family, but she ran away
from home, and her father hide Agne’s pregnant disgrace moving to Wales with his
little sister, Rose,). Three months later Harry and Rose married and went to live in a
quiet village as Oliver who now was living with Mr Brownlow. The Artful Dodger
became an informer for the police and Monks died in a prison in America.