Great Expectations/Oliver Twi

Two of Charles Dickens’ masterpieces, Great Expectations and Oliver Twist, are representatives of the many kinds of differences and similarities found within his volume of works. Perhaps the reason why these two novels share some of the same qualities is because they both reflect painful experiences which occurred in Dickens' past. During his childhood, Charles Dickens suffered much abuse from his parents, and this abuse is often expressed in his novels (Marcus 82). Pip, in Great Expectations, talked often about the abuse he received at the hands of his sister, Mrs. Joe Gargery. On one occasion he remarked, “I soon found myself getting heavily bumped from behind in the nape of the neck and the small of the back, and having my face ignominiously shoved against the wall, because I did not answer those questions at sufficient length (Dickens Expectations 69).”

While at the orphanage, Oliver of Oliver Twist also experienced a great amount of abuse. For example, while suffering from starvation and malnutrition for a long period of time, Oliver was chosen by the other boys at the orphanage to request more gruel at dinner one night. After making this simple request, "

Since both novels portray escapism as a central theme, it is not surprising that death also plays a major role in both stories. In the two novels, death and coffins symbolize a contented and peaceful manner of escape (Kincaid 51). In Oliver Twist, it is suggested that only loneliness and brutality exist on earth. Supposedly, there is no sanctity on the planet, which is a notion in conflict with the concept of a heaven on earth (Kincaid 51).

Welsh, Alexander. The City of Dickens. Oxford: Claredon Press, 1971.

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