Discuss the presentation of the murder of Nancy in 'Oliver Twist' by Charles Dickens, paying particular attention to his use of setting, character and language.

Essay by RubyyHigh School, 10th gradeC, September 2008

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Discuss the presentation of the murder of Nancy in 'Oliver Twist' by Charles Dickens, paying particular attention to his use of setting, character and language.

Oliver Twist was written by Charles Dickens and set in Victorian London, and in the late 1830's the novel was published which was also at the beginning of Queen Victoria's reign, the novel was presented as a satirical social critique as Dickens is taking the Michael out of the way people lived in the Victorian times as he didn't agree with the standards of the terrible conditions of the workhouses. By writing 'Oliver Twist' Dickens was hoping to be able to get the message across his readers about what London was like such as crime and robbery and how it was very high especially pick pocketing. Many more crimes were carried through after dark, violence and prostitution was also common as prostitution was the only available job to young women with nowhere else to turn.

Dickens was also wanted his readers to understand the difference between rich and poor in London, that if you wanted government assistance you have to move into a workhouse. Families were separated; people were forced to do hard manual labour and rashens of food and clothing were very poor. Workhouses operated on the principle that poverty was the consequence of laziness and the terrible conditions were used to force the poor to better themselves. The reason for this obsession over poor was because as a young child his father was imprisoned and th e 12-year-old Dickens began working ten hour days in Warren's boot-blacking factory. He tries to get the readers attention by using gory scenes such as the death of Nancy which was one of the goriest events in the victorian literature.

The key...