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How Does Charles Dickens Expose The Awful Treatment Of Children

Decent Essays

English Coursework

Novel: Oliver Twist
Name:Harish Aravinda

Research Question:

How does Charles Dickens expose the awful treatment of children?

Charles Dickens discusses about the ‘Barbarism’ which Oliver had to face. As a small child Oliver was not given proper food since Mrs. Mann uses up most of the money of the care for her own needs to make her life comfortable.Oliver Twist is blackmailed by Mrs.Mann to cry and say that he will be missing her before leaving to the workhouse where he was born. But nothing could have prepared him for the cruelty and difficulties in the workhouse. In this workhouse the awful treatment of children is being exposed.Charles Dickens illustrates the horrible conditions in the workhouse ,especially the huge …show more content…

He was brought up by hand. “
This quote from the book shows how miserable his life was,especially in the workhouse.

“Crimson with fury, Oliver started up; overthrew the chair and table; seized Noah by the throat; shook him, in the violence of his rage, till his teeth chattered in his head; and collecting his whole force into one heavy blow, felled him to the ground.”
This quote describes how Oliver acted with rage when Noah abused his mother.

The remarks in the beginning of chapter 6 are highly ironic as he describes how mourners present at the funeral of a wealthy elderly relative are able to prevail over their misery, when actually get to inherit a lot of wealth. It is quite a contradiction, how there is a lot of sorrow for the loss of a beloved relative of a poor family to a loved one of a wealthy family. Charles uses this to give members of a richer family a better understanding of the fast growing gap between the poor and rich.When Twist departs from the undertaker's place heading towards London, he goes up to the workhouse,to meet his friend Dick, even though he was unwell. This scene has great poignancy in it because Dick, who is himself dying, blesses

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