Labyrinths and Mazes
Nope: there aren't any Halloween corn mazes, terrifying The Shining hedge labyrinths, or Minotaurs hanging out in this novel. There are just the Oliver Twist-ing streets of filthy Londontown.Fagin...
Bill Sikes's dog
You know the old chestnut about how dogs start to look like their owners? Well, in Oliver Twist, dogs start to act like their owners.Sikes’s dog (whose name is Bull’s-Eye, but we only hear the...
Bridges and Water
Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink. And not because it's salt water, either. This water is filthy, full of jewelry, and disgustingly muddy. It's also a terrifying crossroads for all th...
Light and Dark
Despite how notoriously gray London is (especially with all that London fog), most of the action in this novel is pretty dang black and white.Light and dark are important symbols in Oliver Twist. N...
Agnes's ring and locket
You just know that Agnes’s ring and locket are going to be important because so much mystery is associated with them. When Agnes first shows up at the workhouse to give birth to Oliver before dyi...
Agnes's portrait
Oliver’s resemblance to Agnes’s portrait at Mr. Brownlow’s house is what first gives Mr. Brownlow a clue that Oliver might actually be the son of Agnes and Edward Leeford. Of course (thanks f...