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Chapter 1
When Oliver Twist is born a sickly infant in a workhouse, his mother dies.
Chapter 2
Oliver is sent to a place for juvenile offenders overseen by Mrs. Mann, who often lets the children go hungry. On Oliver's ninth birthday, Mr. Bumble tells Mrs. Mann to return Oliver to the workhouse. One day, the other children force Oliver to ask for more food at supper, and the workhouse authorities offer a reward to anyone who will take him off their hands.
Chapter 3
Oliver is flogged and locked in a room in the parish as a public example. Mr. Gamfield, a chimney sweep, offers to take Oliver as an apprentice and appears before a magistrate to seal the bargain. When Oliver begs the magistrate to punish him rather than make him Mr. Gamfield's apprentice, the magistrate denies the apprenticeship.
Chapter 4
Mr. Sowerberry, the parish undertaker, takes Oliver as his apprentice. His wife remarks Oliver is rather small, gives him leftovers, and when Oliver devours the food, worries his appetite seems too large.
Chapter 5
Noah Claypole, Mr. Sowerberry's apprentice, wakes Oliver and with the maid, Charlotte, taunts him over breakfast. Oliver accompanies Sowerberry to prepare the burial of a woman who starved to death. Oliver concludes he dislikes the undertaking business.
Chapter 6
As a measles epidemic arrives, Oliver gains more experience in undertaking, making Noah jealous. Noah insults Oliver's mother and, after Oliver attacks him, locks him in the cellar.
Chapter 7
Oliver kicks the cellar door, and Mr. Sowerberry beats him and locks him up again. The next morning, Oliver runs away, and as he passes by his old workhouse, his friend Dick sees him but vows not to tell anyone.
Chapter 8
Oliver decides to walk to London, but eventually collapses in a doorway in a small town. A boy named Jack Dawkins, also known as "the Artful Dodger," takes him to a dilapidated house where a Jewish man named Fagin and some boys are having supper, smoking pipes, and drinking liquor amid several silk handkerchiefs.
Read a full Summary & Analysis of Chapters 1–8
Chapter 9
Oliver sees Fagin taking a box with jewelry and watches, and Dodger and Charley Bates return from the street with pocketbooks and handkerchiefs for Fagin. Dodger and Charley practice picking Fagin's pockets. Fagin lets Oliver practice taking a handkerchief out of his pocket and gives him money for a job well done.
Chapter 10
After days keeping Oliver indoors practicing pickpocketing, Fagin sends him out with Dodger and Charley. When the two boys steal the handkerchief of a gentleman, Oliver runs away, and the man shouts "Stop thief!" A police officer grabs Oliver, and the gentleman asks him not to hurt Oliver and follows them to the police station.
Chapter 11
The officer locks Oliver in a cell although the gentleman, Mr. Brownlow, recognizing something in Oliver's face, doesn't want to press charges. The magistrate sentences Oliver to three months of hard labor, but when it's revealed the other boys committed the crime, Oliver's charges are cleared, and Brownlow drives him away.
Chapter 12
After being delirious with a fever, Oliver awakes to find Brownlow's housekeeper, Mrs. Bedwin, watching over him, and feels as if his mother is sitting there. Once Oliver is stronger, she takes him downstairs, where the portrait of a young woman greatly affects Oliver. When Brownlow drops in, he exclaims Oliver closely resembles the lady in the portrait.
Read a full Summary & Analysis of Chapters 9–12
Chapter 13
Fagin sends Nancy dressed in nice clothes to the police station to find out what happened to Oliver. When they learn he had been taken to away, Fagin sends Charley, Jack, and Nancy after him.
Chapter 14
Brownlow removes the portrait of the lady as it seems to disturb Oliver. One day, as Oliver is about to tell Brownlow his life story, one of his friends, Mr. Grimwig, arrives and hints that Oliver might be a boy of bad habits. When Grimwig suggests Oliver will steal the money if he’s sent out for an errand, Brownlow wishes to prove him wrong and so sends him. Oliver does not return.
Chapter 15
As Oliver takes a wrong turn, Nancy appears, tells everyone he is her runaway brother, and drags him through the backstreets with the burglar Bill Sikes.
Chapter 16
When they arrive at a dilapidated house in a squalid neighborhood, Fagin tries to beat Oliver for his escape attempt. Nancy tries to defend him but is caught by Sikes and faints. Fagin and the gang strip Oliver, give him his old clothing back, and send him to bed.
Read a full Summary & Analysis of Chapters 13–16
Chapter 17
Mr. Brownlow publishes an advertisement offering a reward for information about Oliver's whereabouts or past, and Mr. Bumble visits and tells him Oliver has always displayed treachery and ingratitude, convincing Brownlow, but not Mrs. Bedwin, that Oliver is an impostor.
Chapter 18
For days, Fagin leaves Oliver locked up during the day, gradually allowing him to spend time with the other boys until he will do whatever Fagin asks.
Chapter 19
When Sikes needs a small boy to help him rob a house, Fagin offers Oliver, and Sikes arranges for Nancy to deliver him to the scene.
Chapter 20
While Oliver waits for Nancy, Fagin gives him a book with tales of famous criminals that horrifies Oliver. On the street, Oliver considers calling for help, but Nancy warns him he could get both of them in trouble. At his residence, Sikes shows Oliver a pistol and warns him that he will kill Oliver if he causes any trouble.
Chapter 21
Sikes takes Oliver on a long journey to the town of Shepperton, where they arrive after dark.
Chapter 22
They meet Sikes's partners, Toby Crackit and Barney, and Sikes and Crackit leave with Oliver. When Oliver realizes he will participate in a robbery and begs Sikes to let him go, Sikes prepares to shoot him, but Crackit says that gunfire will draw attention. When Sikes lowers Oliver through a window, the servants awake and shoot Oliver's arm. Sike pulls Oliver back, and they all flee.
Read a full Summary & Analysis of Chapters 17–22
Chapter 23
Mr. Bumble visits Mrs. Corney, the widowed matron of the workhouse, to deliver some wine and kisses her. An old woman interrupts them and takes Mrs. Corney to a dying woman, Old Sally, who wishes to tell her something.
Chapter 24
Alone with Mrs. Corney, Old Sally tells her how after she helped a woman found on the road to give birth, the woman gave her a gold locket that might lead to people who would care for the child, named Oliver. Sally dies, and Mrs. Corney tells the nurses Sally had nothing to say.
Chapter 25
Crackit informs Fagin that Oliver has been shot and left in a ditch as he and Sikes fled.
Chapter 26
Fagin rushes into a pub looking for a man named Monks, then hurries to Sikes's residence, tells a drunken Nancy about Oliver's misfortune and that he is worth hundreds of pounds to him, and returns to his house, where he finds Monks waiting. Monks saw Oliver being arrested. When Monks thinks he saw the shadow of a woman, they stop talking and leave the house.
Chapter 27
Back in her room, Mrs. Corney and Mr. Bumble have spiked drinks, flirt, and kiss. Bumble proposes marrying her once he becomes master of the workhouse. As Bumble goes to Sowerberry's to request his services for Old Sally, he sees Noah telling Charlotte he wants to kiss her and lectures them for their immoral ways.
Chapter 28
The night after the robbery, Oliver awakes, stumbles over the house they tried to rob, and knocks on the door. Mr. Brittles, a servant, opens the door, recognizes Oliver as one of the thieves, and drags him inside. The niece of the mistress of the mansion sends Brittles to fetch a doctor and a constable, and the other servant, Mr. Giles, carries Oliver upstairs.
Read a full Summary & Analysis of Chapters 23–28
Chapter 29
After Mr. Losberne, the local doctor, attends to Oliver, Mrs. Maylie, the mistress of the house, and Miss Rose, her seventeen-year-old niece, tell him they haven't actually seen the thief yet and go see Oliver.
Chapter 30
Upon seeing Oliver, Miss Rose begs her aunt not to send the child to prison, and they wait for Oliver to awake. When Oliver tells them his life story, every listener cries. The police officers summoned by the servants arrive.
Chapter 31
The officers conclude a boy was involved in the crime. After Mr. Losberne tells them Giles mistook Oliver for the guilty party, and the servants state they cannot swear Oliver is the burglar, the officers leave.
Chapter 32
As Oliver recovers, Mr. Losberne takes him to see Brownlow and Mrs. Bedwin, but they have moved to the West Indies with Grimwig. Mrs. Maylie and Miss Rose take Oliver to the countryside, where his health and reading and writing skills improve, and they all become greatly attached.
Read a full Summary & Analysis of Chapters 29–32
Chapter 33
Rose falls ill with a fever, and Mrs. Maylie sends Oliver to mail a letter requesting Losberne's assistance. On the way back, Oliver stumbles against a man in a cloak, who asks Oliver what he is doing there and then falls to the ground, foaming. Oliver secures help for the man, returns home, and forgets the incident. Losberne examines Rose and states there is little hope for recovery, but she soon begins to improve.
Chapter 34
When her son, Harry, arrives to see Rose, Mrs. Maylie tries to convince him that marrying Rose could be bad for his career and status, as Rose has a "stain" on her name. Oliver dreams that Fagin and another man are pointing and whispering at him, and awakes to see Fagin and the stranger he met after mailing the letter peering through the window. Oliver calls for help, and they disappear.
Chapter 35
After Oliver tells them about Fagin and the mysterious man, Harry and Giles search for them and circulate a description of Fagin, but they find no clues of his whereabouts. Harry declares his love to Rose, but, although she loves him, she says she cannot marry him and hinder his ambitions.
Chapter 36
Before he departs with Losberne, Harry asks Oliver to secretly write him telling everything he and the ladies do and say. Rose cries as she sees Harry departing.
Chapter 37
Mr. Bumble marries Mrs. Corney and becomes the master of the workhouse. Monks approaches Mr. Bumble in a pub and asks him to bring the woman who spoke to Old Sally at her deathbed to see him.
Read a full Summary & Analysis of Chapters 33–37
Chapter 38
Mr. and Mrs. Bumble meet Monks in a sordid section of town near a river. Monks pays Mrs. Bumble and she tells him how she redeemed a pawnbroker's receipt that was in Old Sally's hands for the gold locket. Monks finds a wedding ring with the name Agnes engraved and two locks of hair. He ties a weight to the locket and drops it into the river.
Chapter 39
Bill Sikes, who is ill and being nursed by Nancy, demands Fagin give him money. When Fagin goes to his residence with Nancy to get the money, Monks arrives and asks to speak to Fagin alone, but Nancy eavesdrops. A few days later, she goes to a hotel and begs the servants to speak to Miss Maylie.
Chapter 40
Nancy confesses to Rose she is the one who kidnapped Oliver on his errand for Mr. Brownlow. She reports overhearing Monks telling Fagin he is Oliver's brother and wants Oliver's identity to remain unknown so he can claim their family's full inheritance. Rose offers to help Nancy leave her life of crime, but Nancy says she can't because she loves Sikes, and adds she can be found on London Bridge every Sunday night in case further testimony is needed.
Chapter 41
After Nancy and Rose's meeting, Oliver tells Rose he saw Mr. Brownlow on the street. She takes him to Brownlow and tells him, Mrs. Maylie, and Losberne Nancy's story. They contact Nancy the following Sunday, and keep everything a secret from Oliver.
Read a full Summary & Analysis of Chapters 38–41
Chapter 42
After robbing Mr. Sowerberry and fleeing London, Noah Claypole and Charlotte stop at the pub. There they meet Fagin, who invites Noah to join his gang.
Chapter 43
Noah's first job is to go to the police station to watch the Dodger's trial, who has been arrested for pickpocketing. The Dodger is convicted.
Chapter 44
After Fagin witnesses Sikes restraining Nancy for an hour when she is about to leave for London Bridge, Fagin tells Nancy he will help her leave the brute, imagining she has a new lover and intending to blackmail her into bringing this lover to his gang and murdering Sikes.
Chapter 45
Fagin pays Noah to follow Nancy to London Bridge.
Chapter 46
Noah witnesses Nancy meeting Brownlow and Rose on London Bridge, begging them to ensure none of her associates get into trouble, telling them when Monks will most likely visit the pub, and describing Monks – which startles Brownlow, who seems to know him.
Chapter 47
Fagin and Noah tell Sikes about Nancy's meeting but omit that she insisted her associates not get into trouble. Sikes rushes home and beats Nancy to death.
Chapter 48
Sikes flees London, haunted by Nancy's dead eyes. When a barn catches fire, Sikes decides to return to London and hide. Afraid his dog will give him away, he tries to drown it, but it escapes.
Read a full Summary & Analysis of Chapters 42–48
Chapter 49
Brownlow brings Monks to his home, who reveals his real name is Edward Leeford. Edward moved with his mother to Paris, and Mr. Leeford fell in love with Agnes, who became pregnant with Oliver. Before traveling to Rome to claim an inheritance, Mr. Leeford left a portrait of Agnes in Brownlow’s care. Mrs. Leeford, hearing of her husband's inheritance, went to Rome with Edward and, when Mr. Leeford died, burned his will and inherited the fortune. After his mother died, Edward moved to the West Indies, where Brownlow, remembering Oliver's resemblance to Agnes, had gone to find Edward after Oliver's kidnapping.
Chapter 50
Toby Crackit and Tom Chitling flee to an island after Fagin and Noah are captured. When Sikes arrives at Fagin's hiding place, Charley Bates and a mob attack him, and he hangs himself inadvertently when trying to escape.
Chapter 51
Oliver, his friends, and Edward travel to the town of Oliver's birth. Edward reveals he and his mother found a letter from his father to Agnes's mother confessing their affair. They also found his father's will stating that if his illegitimate child were a boy, he would inherit it only if he committed no illegal act. Agnes ran away to save her family the shame, her father died soon afterward, and Agnes's sister was raised by Mrs. Maylie as her niece Rose. Mr. and Mrs. Bumble confess to concealing Oliver's history.
Chapter 52
Fagin is sentenced to death and, on his last night, Brownlow and Oliver visit him to find the location of papers verifying Oliver's identity.
Chapter 53
Brownlow arranges for Edward's property to be divided with Oliver. Edward squanders his share, ends up in prison, and dies. Brownlow adopts Oliver as his son and moves near the church where Harry now presides.
