Page 1 of 4 Problem of Evil in OT

Bumbling Figures, Blundering Society: Fagin, Bumble, and the Problem of Evil in Dickens' Oliver Twist 1 or Oliver Twist as a Dark ovel Dickens' Oliver Twist , which ultimately celebrates a protagonist who ourneys from ininnonocence to e!e!peperiencnce wiwiththouout cacapipitutulatlatining to ththe evevil foforcrces ththat hihin"n"er hihiss progress, a""resses the pervasive problem of evil in society an" human nature# Dickens presents two "imensions of evil in Oliver's worl" through the characters of $agin, ththe ool" %ew, an" &r# umble, the parish bea"le# y transferring $agin'in'ss criminality to the selfish, hyhypocritical umble, an authority figure who shoul" promote or"er an" ustice, he intensifies his satire on life an" society un"er the Poor (aws of 1)*4# umble an" $agin cackle with "elight as they e!ploit others namely the vulnerable Oliver in search of their self+serving goals# oth charactersrs "glide stealthily along, creeping beneath the shelter of the walls and doorways...seem[ing] like some loathsome reptile[s], engendered in the slime and darkness through which [they] move." 1)-. The novel's satire emerges as the rea"er connects $agin's criminal un"erworl" with umble's hypocrisy an" selfish plau"its, both of which comprise the malaise of /i/ictorian society e!pose" through Dickens' irony, sarcasm,, an" biting language# $agin an" umble, who fester in their cages of evil motives, illustrate the omnipresence of evil in the novel, especially as it relates to the treatment of the poor, the e!ploitation of the innocent, an" the corruption of society# 0fter successfully luring Oliver back into the chasms of his "rea"ful crimes, the monstrous $agin creeps out into "a maze of the mean and dirty streets 1)-. to fin" 2i2ikekes, who wiwill atattempt to mentntor ththe yyououng ououtctcast in a lilife of crime# $a$agiginn personifies humanity's evil, a satanic un"ersi"e of the humble compassion e!hibite" in the novel's most virtuous characters, namely &r# rownlow an" the &aylies# 3hile rownlow uellslls "the noise and turbulence in the midst of which [Oliver] had always lived," 114*4*. $a$agigin'n's bebestistial nanatuture ththrereatatenens ththe enenclclosure of E"enenicic innocence foun" in rownlow's country home with his evil temptations# $agin'in'ss serpentine ualities e!ten" to the character of umble, who embo"ies an institutional an" societal evil that complements $agin's criminal schemes# The evil framework erecte" by umble an" $agin forms the path of e!perience by which Oliver matures to un"erstan" his i"entity# The way in which $agin ensnares youths like the 0rtful Do"ger, 5harley ates, an" Oliver TTwiwist for his own monetary benefits parallallels the way in which umble e!ploits the rights of poor chil"ren who live in his workhouse in an attempt to increase his power# Dickens employs images of confineme nt an" hopelessness inin "escribing the %ew's o"ious hea"uarters of evil6 t was a very dirty place. [...] n all the rooms, the mouldering shutters were fast closed! the bars which held them were screwed tight into the wood the only light which was admitted, stealing its way through round holes at the top! which made the rooms more gloomy and filled them with strange shadows. 178. The "arkness of $agin's lair e!ten"s the image of the harsh prison of umble's workhkhouse from which Oliver escape"# 33ithin the novel's "iscourse on evil lieliess Dickens' satire on the situation of the poor cause" by the Poor (aws, which umble uphol"s stringently until they ultimately ren"er him a pauper in a scene of oyous irirononyy# DiDickckenens' lalangnguauagege, nanamely wor"r"s lilikeke "dirty," "mouldering," "closed,"

11 by %ason 9ysk# www#gra"esaver#com Page : of 4 Problem of Evil in OT

"gloomy," and "strange shadows" create a scene of festering unwholesomeness that transfers from the criminal un"erworl" to the situation of society at large# The fact that the workhouse in which Oliver an" other orphans fin" their only refuge resembles the stark nihilism of $agin's un"erworl" e!poses the brutal mistreatment of society's poor at the han"s of self+serving men like umble# 3hile $agin reects moral an" legal laws by in"octrinating a"olescents in a life of thievery, umble violates the basic co"e of love an" compassion upon which, in a moral sense, human nature rests# Oliver's famous plea, "#lease sir,  want some more" ;-. illustrates not only his starvation resulting from umble's sa"istic practices, but also his "esire for the love an" compassion that he fin"s only outsi"e of society's ina"euate provisions for the poor# e represents the temptation of evil "angle" before the growing Twist, who must learn to overcome the attractiveness of criminal fraternity# umble, however, represents what happens when one succumbs to a life of gree" an" e!ploitation? he represents what Oliver will never become# Dickens characteri=es Oliver as "a close prisoner in the dark and solitary room to which he had been consigned by the wisdom and mercy of the board." ;8. The "ark enclosures to which Oliver has been confine", especially the coffin in &r# 2owerberry's house an" the "itch outsi"e the home in 5hertsey, become metaphors for his vulnerability, as they "protect" him from "the gloom and loneliness which surround him# ;8. Dickens also critici=es the boar", as the phrase wisdom and mercy "rips with verbal irony that effects his satire on its impru"ent an" selfish Page * of 4 Problem of Evil in OT

philosophies# consider yourself as number one, without considering me too as the same, and all the other young people. ... ou can*t take care of yourself , number one, without taking care of me, number one. ... *m of the same importance to you as you are to yourself. (387-8) $agin an" umble rule with an iron han" that "efines  the magnitude and extent of [their] operations an" inspires a degree of whoesome fear  *)8. within the  pupis un"er their tutelage# umble pri"es himself on possessing the authority to e!ercise unwarrante" punishment over the paupers# Dickens captures him "brav[ing] the cold wind of the night! merely pausing, for a few minutes, in the male paupers* ward, to abuse them a little, with the view of satisfying himself that he could fill the office of workhouse-master with needful acerbity." :;@. This biting portrayal of a character so attracte" by his own power satiri=es the obsessive bea"le who neglects his role as a caretaker for the glamour of authority# The phrase merely pausing connotes the pomposity that governs umble's character an" makes him such a misgui"e", self+inflating ruler of his own corrupt un"erworl"# >e personifies the negative connotations of his name, namely, a state of confusion or a person who literally !um!es# umble "wells in a state of bumble"om, "efine" as bea"le"om in its glory, which raises the societal official at the e!pense of the humble pauper un"er his care# Dickens' characteri=ation of the bumbling bea"le as one "efine" by official pomposity an" fussy stupi"ity an" absorbe" in a umble+ centric worl" paints a satiric portrait of society's bumbles, an" illuminates the nee" to improve the situation of the poor# 0fter umble marries &rs# 5orney, he "wells "espon"ently in the reali=ation that because he marrie", "[his] mighty cocked hat was replaced by a modest round one. &r. 'umble was no longer a beadle." *::. >is cocke" hat symboli=es the authority that "efines his character# >e an" &rs# umble "were gradually reduced to great indigence and misery, and finally became paupers in that very same workhouse in which they had once lorded it over others# 477. 2imilarly, $agin, the powerful go"father of Twist's un"erworl", falls into a state of pathetic failure, as he grovels for Oliver's loyalty an" support in freeing him from impen"ing "eath# $agin, like umble, "struggle[s] with the power of desperation" 474. an" illustrates the failure of evil to en"ure, "espite its ability to temporarily mesmeri=e# Dickens' satire rests partly on his ability to intertwine the characters of $agin an" umble, which unites the corruption of society's authoritative figures with the behaviors of a notorious criminal# $agin impe"es Oliver's uest to fin" an i"entity an" a place within the macrocosm while umble worsens this impe"iment by furthering Oliver's misery rather than "eterring him from $agin's entrapment# The novel resolves Page 4 of 4 Problem of Evil in OT

Oliver's har"ships cause" by these two perpetrators by "isposing of them with ti"y symmetry# umble engages in a pathetic "isplay of false concern as he cries,  o my hi*s deceive me/ Or is that little Oliver) Oh O-li-ver, if you know*d how *ve been a- grieving for you." >e later asserts, " always loved that boy as if he*d been my my my own grandfather," 4-@. illustrating his ina"euate comparison through his use of gran"father rather than gran"son, the latter better suiting the generational relationship between the two# $agin's confrontation with Oliver on the night before his hanging complements umble's "ownfall, as he attempts to regain Oliver's honor an" companionship an" his former way of life governe" by monetary pursuits# Dickens characteri=es $agin, who assumes "a countenance more like that of a snared beast than the face of a man," as a rabi" beast, for the turnkey must hol" him "own, for "he [like a wild animal] grows worse as the time gets on." 47:. Oliver's strength in confronting the physical manifestation of his nightmares illustrates his triumph over evil forces an" emergence as a stronger, more i"entifie" character who cries out, "Oh/ 0od forgive this wretched man/" 474. Dickens incriminates the institutions establishe" to help the victims of crime an" e!ploitation by u!taposing $agin's criminality with umble's hypocrisy, corruption an" e!ploitation#