Oliver Twist -- My Third Journey with Charles Dickens

I just finished reading Oliver Twist, the third novel by Charles Dickens that I have read, after A Christmas Carol and Great Expectations.

As I have just realized through further studies, these three novels are among Charles Dickens' most adapted works. How lucky I am as a new fan who joined his readership only months ago, yet I have already been exposed to some of his most touching and popular stories!

Though I did not watch it, I knew the novel was first adapted into a film of the same name in 1948, directed by David Lean. Since then, countless adaptations have followed across various media, countries, and cultures.

Among all the adaptations, the musical Oliver!, composed by Lionel Bart and premiered in 1960, is probably the best known. The musical was such a success that it was acclaimed as "the birth of the British musical theatre scene," and Lionel Bart was later described by Andrew Lloyd Webber as "the father of the modern British musical."

The adaptation I did watch was the 1968 production based on the 1960 musical of the same name. The film won many accolades, including the Academy Awards in 1968. More than half a century has passed since I watched it, yet I still remember the face of Oliver Twist in the film, though I don't recall the plot at all.

In a way, reading this novel has reconnected me to my younger self, evoking nostalgia and self-discovery, while also exposing me to the complex themes and insights that the young Dickens, then 26, skillfully articulated in his second novel, published in 1838.

Though I am a new fan of Charles Dickens, I found his works exceptionally engaging not only for his genius in writing but also for the illustrations contributed by his friend George Cruikshank. This illustration vividly depicts Oliver, under pressure from his peers, asking for more food at the workhouse, as a new drama unfolds in his life.

This illustration is also my favorite: having escaped from his apprenticeship with the undertaker, Oliver is exhausted after walking for seven days to reach a town near London. He runs into the Artful Dodger, a pickpocket about the same age as Oliver but dressed and behaving like a man. The Artful Dodger treats Oliver to a hearty meal and introduces him to Fagin, the old "gentleman" who heads a gang of young thieves in London.

After all the dramatic events, Fagin is finally arrested and sentenced to death. Before his execution, Oliver meets Fagin for the last time, and Fagin tells him the whereabouts of the document that will reveal Oliver's true identity.  In this illustration, the suspense that has been present since the beginning comes to an end.

Elsewhere, I briefly read Charles Dickens' biography and was surprised to learn that although he is considered one of the greatest writers in English literature, he did not receive much formal education. As the second of eight children, Charles Dickens' happy childhood ended when his father was jailed in a debtor's prison because of unpaid debts, and the entire family was forced to move nearby.

As a result, Dickens was forced to work at the age of 12 in a shoe-blacking factory to help support his family. As a child laborer, Dickens experienced the terrible working conditions at the shoe-blacking factory and worked more than 10 strenuous hours every day. These hardships experienced in his childhood would later nourish and inspire many of his works throughout his writing career, including Oliver Twist.

Reading Oliver Twist has been an inspiring, educational, and nostalgic journey. I look forward to my next imaginative journey with Charles Dickens.