The Analysis of Image of Good and Evil Children in Oliver Twist英语专业毕业论文.doc

The Analysis of Image of Good and Evil Children in Oliver TwistAbstract: Charles Dickens, known as critical realist in the sense that he was strongly critical of the social reality of his time, is genius in the history of English literature. Oliver Twist is his second long novel, and he throws tremendous energy into the creation of images of deserted children in this novel. This paper tries to analyze the function of images of deserted children based on three typical childrenArtful Dodger, Nancy, and Oliver Twist. Artful Dodger stands for social evil, the victim of the cruel society. The image of Nancy is a mixture of good and evil, struggling between the two forces and eventually good overcoming evil, which shows Dickens hope for society. Oliver Twist, the best of friends and the worst of enemies, symbolizes good. This image reflects Dickens psychological want in his childhood. His miserable childhood is the motion for him to shape such an image and such a happy end. The analysis of the three images not only promotes further understanding of the theme and social background of Oliver Twist, but the theme still has some practical significance that the influence of living environment is very important to the growth of children. Children can be good and evil, which depends on the living surrounding and social environemnt. People should be called on to care for children; attention should be paid to the deserted children who are in the process of shaping their personality. Key Words: Oliver Twist; images; deserted children; good; evil 摘 要：查尔斯狄更斯因为强烈批判所处时代而被称为批判现实主义作家，他是英国文学史上的天才。雾都孤儿是狄更斯第二部长篇小说, 在这部小说中，他创作了许多生活在社会底层的弃儿形象。本文分析了神偷手，奥利佛和南希这三个弃儿形象及他们形象在这部小说中的作用。神偷手是社会黑暗与邪恶的代表与牺牲品。南希则挣扎在社会的善恶之间，最终正义战胜邪恶，她的最终遭遇反映了狄更斯对社会的希望。奥利佛是善良与正义的体现, 在肮脏的世界中纯洁的心灵。这一形象的产生体现了作者儿童时的心理需求。对这三个人物形象的分析有助于对雾都孤儿的主题和社会背景的进一步理解，而且这一主题仍有某种现实意义，即生活环境对儿童成长的重要性。儿童的善与恶取决于他们所处的生活环境和社会环境。因此社会各界应该多关心孤寡留守儿童，在儿童塑造性格的过程中应该多给予他们一些关心和帮助。关键词：雾都孤儿；形象; 弃儿; 善良；邪恶IntroductionCharles Dickens，one of the most outstanding English writers in the nineteenth century, has a world of sympathy for the miseries and a strong feeling for the poor laboring masses. By exposing the social injustice and the vices of the upper class, he puts his heart into depicting the miserable existence of the common people; he gives a truthful picture of capitalist England of the time. Dickens vivid description creates many lifelike characters, which impress the readers deeply in their memory after reading. Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens first authentic novel, is also the first that he leads readers into a real but terrible life of underworld. Oliver Twist, famous for exposing the dark side of people living out that time, exposes the hypocrisy and cruelty of parish workhouse through depicting the little orphan boy Oliver Twists childhood in it. This novel is a vivid picture of his time and marks the beginning of Dickens literary life. Its general purpose is clear in his mind, evident from his preface: “I wished to show, in little Oliver, the principle of Good surviving through every adverse circumstance and triumphing at last.” 1The author depicts it not in a romantic mood just as his contemporary novels, but shows the miserable reality, which is the great and enduring strength of the book. The description of the criminal slums of London in which little Oliver lives brings Dickens a new class of serious readers interested in social reform. People start to think about social reasons for all of these phenomena. And in this novel, Dickens advocates his view that charitable person will have good recompense. The companions among whom he is to be knotted are the criminals of Londons underworld. Dickens knows it a lot by close observation and his own experience, which he has already demonstrated and suffered when he is very young. He is born in a so provident way that he understands those kinds of feelings and of course he could share the solitary childrens pain, for he bewilders in those years when he has labored hopelessly and helplessly in the blacking- warehouse. At abroad and home, many scholars have analyzed the novel from different angles since the publishing of Oliver Twist. First, at abroad some scholars have studied the influence of Dickens own childhood on Oliver Twist. Some scholars have studied the reason why a great author of Realism is popular among children from the angle and aspect of child psychologist. Second, at home many scholars in different universities have done a lot of studies on the novel. For example, the most popular studied theme is the reflection of realism in characters in Oliver Twist and Fagin. Some scholars analyze the coincidences of the novel from background of production and publication, Dickens radical ideas and his artistic style. However, these studies are mainly concerned with the whole story, more accurately the plot, or just focus on one character, Oliver Twist. Especially there is a lack of study of Artful Dodger and Nancy about how the social evils corrupt their human nature. Based on the efforts made by the previous studies, this paper is primary concerned about three typical children imagesArtful Dodger, Nancy and Oliver Twist. The three images stand respectively for evil, the mixture of good and evil, and good. And their different fates show Dickens view toward the nature of child. The typical sentences or passages from the novel are selected when they are needed to reflect the personality and phenomenon of the three characters. Through the analysis of words and behaviors of the figures, the nature of them can be shown to readers. In the modern society, the practical significance of this theme is to arouse peoples consciousness and attention to deserted children, especially the deserted children in the countryside. Chapter 1The Image of Evil Artful Dodger Artful Dodger, one of the deserted children, stands for the social evil. Trained completely by Fagin and corrupted completely in his mind, Dodger is said to be Fagins “good child”. While he is not wicked in nature, he lives in a society where he cannot get deserved care and warm. When facing with the choice of stealing and starvation, he has to crime for making a living. Evil as he is, he is also the victim of cruel society. 1.1 The Image of Artful Dodger Artful Dodger, the social evil，is a typical image of his gangs. He is not only corrupted in his own mind but also tries to induce Oliver Twist to join his group. He is a deserted child who is happy and satisfied with his career, even proud of it. Through this child, Dickens shows the social and moral problems that are extremely important to affect young children. Artful Dodger himself is the result and victim of such a miserable society.As one of Fagins “good children”, Artful Dodger makes a living by stealing handkerchiefs from pedestrians. He is the best among them for his proficiency of skill and clever mind. His real name is John Dawkins. Artful Dodger is just his nickname “as he had a rather flighty and dissolute mode of conversing, and furthermore avowed that among his intimate friends” 2 The Dodger is a pickpocket, so-called for his skill and cunning in that respect. As a result he has become the leader of the gang of child criminals, trained by the elderly Fagin. Although he is a boy who is about the same age as Oliver Twist, his appearance and inner thought are quite different from those of Oliver:He was snub-nosed, flat-browsed, common-faced boy enough; and as dirty a juvenile as one would wish to see; but he had about him all the airs and manners of a man. He was short of his age, with rather bow-legs, and little, sharp, ugly eyes. His hat was stuck on the top of his head so lightly, that it threatened to fall off every moment and would have done so, very often, if the wearer had not had a knack of every now and then giving his head a sudden twitch, which brought it back to its old place again. He wore a mans coat, which reached nearly to his heels.3 From these descriptions, we can see clearly that Artful Dodger tries his best to be a mature social gentleman and displays his maturity to other people. But because he does not receive any normal education and lives with such social evil as Fagin, every day, he is charged and corrupted, and then becomes extremely faithful to them. Unfortunately, he just takes it for granted to be a thief and even feels proud of it. When he asks Oliver Twist what a prig is, Oliver answers yes and says he is a thief. He admits it arguably and said, “Id scorn to be anything else.” Moreover, he is not only an evil himself, but he tries to induce Oliver Twist to be one of their gang. There are two times when he attempts to corrupt Oliver Twist to the evil circle. First, during Oliver Twists journey to London, the first person he encounters is Artful Dodger. Dodger provides Oliver with a free meal, tells him of a gentleman in London who will give him lodging for nothing, and never ask for charge. Grateful for the unexpected assistance and being so pure and innocent in nature, Oliver follows Dodger to the old gentlemans residence. In this way, Oliver unconsciously falls in with an infamous and cruel Jewish criminal known as Fagin, the so-called gentleman of whom the Artful Dodger speaks and works for. Attentively, Oliver lives with Fagin and his gang of juvenile pickpockets in their lair at Saffron Hill for some time, naively unaware of their criminal occupations. He believes they make wallets and handkerchiefs. Second, when Oliver is recaptured back by Sakes and Nancy, he is locked in Fagins residence and not allowed to go out. When Artful Dodger feels bored and wants to talk with these juveniles, he designedly takes this opportunity to persuade Oliver to join them. He said:Fagin will make something of you, though, or youll be the first he ever had that turned out unprofitable. Youd better begin at once; for youll come to the trade long before you think of it; and youre only losing time, Oliver. If you dont take pockets-handkerchiefs and watches, some other will all the worse, too, and nobody half a haporth the better, except the chaps wot gets themand youve just as good a right to them as they have.4 Because of Olivers strong and sturdy insistence in pure and innocent nature, Artful Dodger and his gang never succeed in charging and corrupting him. Ironically, Artful Dodger indulges in his evil and becomes the victim of cruel society.1.2 The Victim of Cruel SocietyDodger falls into the swamp of criminals, not because of his intrinsic wickedness, but because of the unchangeable situation where no one offers any help and lend any hand to him. Facing with the dilemma of starvation and stealing, he has to choose between these two undesirable courses of action, and stealing is his choiceness choice.5 Ultimately the fate Dodger has to face is being caught with a stolen silver snuff box on his person, and presumably sent to a penal colony in Australia. Dodger fails to handle his adversity well, roaring in the courtroom I am an Englishman, aint I? Where are my privileges? or similar terms where he considers himself a victim of society. The judge shows little patience for the Dodgers charades, and orders him out of the courtroom immediately after the jury does not take long to convict him of the theft. But Artful Dodger doesnt realize his corruption or evil impressed on him by society at last. On hearing his sentence, Dodger responds, “Threatening, till he got into yard, to make a parliamentary business of it; and then grinning in the officers face, with great glee and self-approval.” 6Artful Dodger is just a very common role of criminal people in London, who lives in the dirty and gloomy houses in vile street. It must be remembered that, by the Poor Law Act of 1834, outdoor sustenance is as much as possibly done away with. Hence paupers are relieved only on condition of their entering a workhouse. But the workhouse life is made thoroughly uninviting and miserable, among other things by the separation of husbands and wives, and parents and children. So they make a living by stealing ranging and murder. And they are proud of it. Crime was a huge problem in London in the 1830s, when Dickens was writing, just as it is now. Novels and plays about crime are hugely popular. Some novelists write about crime because they have a particular point to make about the source of criminal behavior, or possible solutions to the crime wave. Other novelists write about crime just because they know it would sell. Oliver Twist was hugely popular, but Dickens definitely had a point to make: he wanted to show how criminals really lived, in order to discourage poor people from turning to crime. Artful Dodger, as a deserted child, was trained by Fagin to be a thief. Thus Dickens wanted to show how external influences created criminal behavior as much as or more than natural criminal urges. So the reason why deserted children become corrupted is that they do not get their deserved care and warm from the society. Their living right and liberty have subjected to the cruel ruler and evil leader. Thus we can easily come to the conclusion that Dodger is the victim of cruel society, and it is his fate and fact that he has to accept. He can not change his living career in such a social environment. Or we may say he is not himself at all in terms of an independent individual.Chapter 2The Mixture of Good and Evil NancyNancy, the most complicated character of the novel, is a mixed image of good and evil. On one hand, she has done numerous crimes under the control of Fagin as a young female thief. On the other hand, she tries all her best to help Oliver out from the thief gang with the awareness of disgrace in herself and evil in her fellow gang, gradually, she wakes up, regrets, stands up and defenses against evil and oppression. At last, she overcomes evil by making the sublimating of spirit and breakthrough of nature. 2.1 The Image of Nancy Nancy, a relatively minor character in the novel, might be the most complicated character of the novel for her mixed image shown in the book. Although her position in the whole novel is not outstanding and remarkable, although her range of activity is a bit narrow, she plays an important role that the author has created and arranged carefully as an significantly indispensable essence and motivation in the development of the plot.7 Shes the source of the information about the plot between Monks and Fagin to ensnare Oliver. She is a very complicated mixed image of good and evil in the novel. This paper will discuss this issue from the following aspects.First, it is of her birth. Though the author does not designedly give a detailed description and concrete information about Nancys identity and age in the book, it might be transpired from the whole novel that Nancy was corrupted at the age of six by Fagin, the receiver of stolen goods who persuades downtrodden youths to do his bidding. When she made her first appearance she has already been a young thief and has evidently been a prostitute and lived with Sikes for 12 years, so she is visibly in her teens. But where is her family? Where are her parents? Presumably she is a child deserted by parents for poverty or has no parents as Dodger and Oliver. The image of Nancy is not the result of Dickenss imagination, but it is the mirror and epitome of the nineteenth century. Second, it is about her facet of evil. The first thing which can prove her evil is her effort in the process of recapturing Oliver Twist. When Oliver Twist innocently goes out to make handkerchiefs because of no income coming in, with two of Fagins underlings: The Artful Dodger and a boy of a humorous nature named Charley Bates, Oliver realizes too late that their real mission is to pick pockets. Dodger and Charley steal the handkerchief of Mr. Brownlow, and promptly flee. To the judges evident disappointment, a bookstall holder who saw Dodger commit the crime clears Oliver, who, by now actually ill, faints in the courtroom. Mr. Brownlow takes Oliver home and, along with his housekeeper Mrs. Bedwin, cares for him. Fagin fears Oliver might peach on his criminal gang, so decides that Oliver must be brought back to his hideout. Nancy reluctantly takes this task. But still she pretends to be a sister and gets from a policeman the message where Oliver is. When Mr. Brownlow sends Oliver out to pay for some books, Nancy catches him with help from her abusive lover, a brutal robber named Bill Sikes, and Oliver is quickly bundled back to Fagins lair. Though she is charged and threatened by Fagin and Sikes, she has the mind of listening to the fate and she does not figure out the outcome of her action. The result is out of shock and out of her expectation for her innocence. Nancy sympathizes deeply for her wrongdoings. But we can not deny that it is her that finds out where Oliver lives and it is her that draws Oliver back to the Fagins gang, the social evil. Her twice courses of action can prove the evil side of her characteristic. Third, it is about her facet of good. So far we have discussed her villainous facet. However, the conscience and sympathy for the poor child dont extinct in her nature, which proves her good side in her characteristic. After Oliver is drawn back to Fagins gang, he feels dismayed, flees and attempts to call for police assistance, but is ruthlessly dragged back by the Dodger, Charley and Fagin. Nancy, however, is sympathetic towards Oliver and saves him from beatings by Fagin and Sikes:The Jew inflicted a smart blow on Olivers shoulders with the club; and was raising it for a second, when the girl, rushing forward, wrested it from his hands. She flung it into the