English Literature books summary

ill, near Stone Court; Raffles asks for a doctor, but also told Mr. Garth

some things about Bulstrode. On account of these things, Caleb Garth says

that he can no longer manage any of Bulstrode's property, and must give up

the appointment to manage Stone Court as well. However, Caleb says, he will

not spread around anything that he heard. Bulstrode then believes that all

has happened with the aid of providence, and that Raffles might die, and

leave him in peace.

Lydgate sees Raffles, and determines that though the case is grave,

yet Raffles will probably survive. He decides that it must be a case of an

alcohol-caused disease, and that Raffles must be an odd charity case for

Bulstrode. There seems to be no escape from ruin for Lydgate; the furniture

is about to be taken for his debts, and his relationship with Rosamond is

in shreds because of it. Lydgate cannot stand Rosamond's repeated crying,

and blaming him for her unhappiness. Now, he wishes he had married a woman

of a like mind and spirit, so that their union might have survived this

setback; instead, he is chained to Rosamond, when the union can no longer

make either of them happy.

Chapter 70:

Bulstrode is with Raffles, tending to him according to Lydgate's

orders, though wishing at the same time that Raffles would just die and

leave him in peace. Bulstrode still thinks that fate is on his side, that

Raffles will die and he will be free; he is not sorry for anything he has

done, but is more intent on getting away with everything. Bulstrode decides

that maybe another "good" deed will save him; he decides to give Lydgate

the money he needs, thinking that this action will clear his conscience,

and in case Raffles says something unpalatable, Lydgate will be obligated

not to repeat it.

Raffles dies only a few days after coming to Bulstrode; Lydgate is

there when he dies, and does not think to say that perhaps neglect led

somehow to the man's death. Lydgate knows he is obligated to Bulstrode, and

he is uneasy about this fact, because of Bulstrode's visitor and his

demise. However, there is nothing else that he can do, since to renounce

Bulstrode's help would mean ruin. Farebrother senses that Lydgate is still

in a desperate condition, though his money woes are over. Lydgate admits as

much, though he is now in a better position to continue his career and

marriage.

Chapter 71:

It seems that Bulstrode has not effectively thwarted ruin; for

Bambridge has heard how Bulstrode gained his fortune, and is ready to tell

the lot of men at the Green Dragon. The story begins at this point to

spread around Middlemarch, with mention of Will Ladislaw's family and how

they were robbed by him too. When Bambridge mentions that the man's name

was Raffles, someone present remembers that the funeral of Raffles was only

the other day, that he died at Stone Court while Bulstrode was there. This

looks very bad for Bulstrode; Caleb Garth confesses that he ceased all

business with Bulstrode last week, which is taken as another proof of

Bulstrode's wrong behavior. Also, gossip about Lydgate suddenly being able

to pay his debt, but without aid from Rosamond's family, becomes public

knowledge. When it is found out that he was attending on Raffles while he

died, and that the money came from Bulstrode, it appears that Lydgate took

a bribe so that he wouldn't tell of any foul play that happened.

All of Middlemarch is buzzing with the gossip, and people wonder

whether Bulstrode can be legally stripped of his money for gaining it

through illegal and immoral means. People guess that Lydgate poisoned

Raffles, with the money as a bribe; all kinds of things are flying around,

and have been spread all through Middlemarch before Lydgate and Bulstrode

are even aware of it. Bulstrode is accused at a medical meeting, and again

tries to defend himself through his services to the town. But Middlemarch

opinion is against him, and believes Lydgate to be an accomplice. However,

Dorothea would not see Lydgate slandered if such things proved untrue, and

is determined to get the truth about the whole thing.

Chapter 72:

Dorothea is set on proving Lydgate innocent, though this may prove

difficult. Farebrother would certainly like to help, but he knows from the

alteration and desperation in Lydgate's character of late, that is it

completely likely that Lydgate did take the bribe, to save himself.

Farebrother does not blame Lydgate, but at the same time knows how good

people may be tempted, and fail. Sir James is definitely against Dorothea

having anything to do with this issue; but Dorothea is still determined to

do a good turn for Lydgate, especially after he helped her so much when her

husband died. Dorothea is not the sort of person to allow a friend to be

wronged, unless he is really guilty of what he is accused of.

Chapter 73:

Lydgate is now faced with the heavy task of exonerating himself, for

he stands accused among everyone in Middlemarch. He wants to be able to

stand up and say that he did not take a bribe from Bulstrode, and had no

complicity in Raffles' death. However, his conscience troubles him, since

he wonders if he would have acted differently in the situation had

Bulstrode not given him the money. Lydgate determines not to run from the

town's opinion, but to bear it with all possible strength; nothing he can

do can clear his name now that public opinion is set against him, so he

will have to weather it as best he can.

Chapter 74:

Now that Bulstrode and Lydgate have already been judged and condemned,

it is the time for the wives of Middlemarch to assess and judge how Mrs.

Bulstrode and Rosamond might be to blame as well. Mrs. Bulstrode is

acquitted of her husband's wrongdoing, because she is a good person, and

all wrongs were done before they were even married. Rosamond is also

pardoned for the most part, because she is also one of the Vincys, and has

married an "interloper," as the townswomen say.

It takes Mrs. Bulstrode a while to find out what has happened with

regard to her husband; she knows that he came home ill from the meeting,

and seems much disturbed, but Lydgate will certainly not tell her why. Only

through visiting her friends does she find out what has happened; her

brother tells her everything, and she goes home, troubled at the knowledge.

But though a light has been shed on her husband's character, she finds that

there is no way for her to forsake him. She determines to try and live with

him, and eventually to forgive him, though it will certainly be a long and

painful time.

Chapter 75:

It seems that Rosamond refuses to learn any lessons from her

situation; to appease her vanity, she starts to think of Will Ladislaw, and

imagines that he must love her instead of Dorothea, because she is so

beautiful and charming. She continues to blame her husband for her

unhappiness, not her rabid materialism; everything is someone else's fault,

and she is still a creature who is perfectly innocent of blame. She gets a

letter from Will, saying that he will be paying a visit sometime soon;

Rosamond is cheered up by this, and decides to send out invitations for a

dinner party. Of course, all invitations are denied, and Rosamond is still

ignorant as to the reason why; she goes to visit her parents, and they tell

her the terrible news. When she goes home, she tells her husband that she

has heard about everything; she then reiterates that they must go to

London, to lessen her suffering. He cannot stand to hear this, and storms

out, without taking the time to correct her or explain anything.

Chapter 76:

Dorothea wrote a letter to Lydgate, bidding him to come and visit her.

Against Mr. Brooke and Sir James' advice, she has decided to try and clear

Lydgate, if she can, and also to continue and support the hospital as well.

Lydgate begins to tell her the whole truth‹they are good friends, and often

feel that they can confide in each other. He tells her everything about the

situation with Bulstrode, the money, and his continuing reservations about

having taken it. Dorothea and Lydgate also speak of his troubles in his

marriage; Dorothea senses that there is much difficulty communicating in

their union, and decides to see Rosamond, and try to reassure her about her

husband's worth, if she can. Dorothea would like Lydgate to stay until the

negative opinion of him in the town diminishes; she would also like to see

the hospital continue, under his able leadership. Lydgate determines to

leave, since he has little faith that he would be able to do good at the

hospital. But, Dorothea is determined to have him stay and give him aid;

she decides to give him a thousand pounds to work at the hospital, and to

see Rosamond the next day.

Chapter 77:

Rosamond has written a letter to Will, trying to make his visit come

more quickly; she is still very unhappy with everything, and Lydgate has

tried to avoid her, lest he upset her in some way. Dorothea has been

thinking about Will a lot lately, as well; she still cannot help but think

that he might be in love with her, though she also defends his honor

fervently. Sir James and Mr. Brooke have tried to get her to see that Will

is lowly, and the fact that his grandparents were Jewish pawnbrokers,

though they were wealthy, means that his character is base. Dorothea, of

course, will hear nothing of this; although she is not sure what Will's

feelings toward her are, she is resolved to think the best of him.

However, when Dorothea gets to Rosamond's, she enters to find Rosamond

crying, and Will clasping her hands. This scene upsets Dorothea, and seems

to be proof that Will loves Rosamond, and not her. She rushes out, intent

on attending to other errands, but still very upset and bothered by what

has happened.

Chapter 78:

Will and Rosamond are shocked at being found, and in a way that would

look bad to Dorothea. Will realizes suddenly what Rosamond was trying to

do; Rosamond wanted it to look like Will loved her, and kept him around in

order to create this impression. He blows up at her, especially when she

tries her methods that usually work on Lydgate. But her ways of quietly

manipulating fail with Will; he gets very angry when she intimates that

Will loves her, and says that the only woman he loves, or could think of

loving, was Dorothea. Rosamond is very hurt, and her illusions and vanity

are finally shattered. Will was a bit harsh toward her, but this was a

lesson that she desperately needed, and hopefully it will do her good.

Chapter 79:

Lydgate puts Rosamond to bed, still not totally aware of what has

caused her distress. Will comes over, but Rosamond has not mentioned Will's

visit earlier in the day; Will makes no mention of it to Lydgate either.

Lydgate tells Will a bit of what has been going on, and that his name has

also been mixed up in the proceedings. Will is not surprised, and almost

does not care, because he thinks that Dorothea has already given up on him.

When Lydgate mentions Dorothea's name, he notices that Will has a very

peculiar reaction; he suspects that there is something between the two, and

in this, he is correct.

Chapter 80:

Dorothea goes over to the Farebrothers' house, which she does very

often; her visits keep her from being lonely, and also keep her from

criticisms that she needs a companion. But, when Will comes up, she

suddenly feels that she must leave; that evening, she finally realizes that

she loved Will, although she fears that this love has been lost. By the

morning, she has put aside all the remorse and anger of the previous

evening; she also begins to wear new clothes, symbolic of lesser mourning,

since it has been a year since Casaubon died. She resolves to go and see

Rosamond again, and to offer help as she meant to do the day before.

Chapter 81:

Dorothea finds Lydgate at home, and Lydgate thanks her for giving him

the money with which to pay his debt to Bulstrode. Dorothea is only too

happy to have been of service; she asks him in Rosamond is in, and finds

Lydgate completely unaware of what went on the previous day. Rosamond is

wary at the visit, but receives her anyway, and finds her quite different

from the day before, though perhaps troubled. Dorothea reassures her that

her husband is a good person, and is still welcomed in Middlemarch by

people of character and influence, like herself, Sir James, Mr. Brooke, and

Mr. Farebrother.

Dorothea then proceeds to speak about marriage, trying to address

Rosamond and Lydgate's marriage in the process. Dorothea hits on some of

her own sadness though, and her anguish at the whole debacle with Will

becomes apparent. Dorothea convinces Rosamond that Lydgate loves her very

much, and that she needs to give the marriage a chance, because she still

has his love; this cheers Rosamond up a bit, though her mind is still dazed

from the previous day. Rosamond feels that she should clarify the situation

with Will, so Rosamond tells her that Will was only there to explain that

he loved someone other than Rosamond, and always would. Rosamond tells her

this to try and exonerate herself somewhat, although Dorothea takes this

statement as an expression of sympathy and goodness on Rosamond's part.

Then, Lydgate enters, and the two part; neither can hold anything against

the other anymore, and both their minds have been eased.

Chapter 82:

Will debates with himself whether he should leave Middlemarch

altogether after the events of the previous day; in the end, he decides he

cannot leave after making some amends to Rosamond after her shock. He is

sorry that he got so angry at her, but at the same time, does not want to

come straight out and apologize‹especially since this would mean that he

would have to explain what happened to Lydgate, which is undesirable. Will

does end up going, and is as affable as he can be to Rosamond, without

betraying what went on before. Rosamond gives Will a note, saying that

Dorothea has been told the truth about what happened; Will is somewhat

relieved, but is worried about what might have transpired between Rosamond

and Dorothea.

Chapter 83:

Dorothea is too agitated to set herself at any one task; she tries to

memorize places on a map, before Miss Noble comes in, to greet her. Miss

Noble tells her that Will is there, waiting outside, to greet her; Dorothea

decides that she cannot turn him away, and has him sent into her. Dorothea

is a little formal in her greeting to Will; he still cannot fathom whether

she loves him or not. Will speaks to her carefully, hoping that she was not

offended by the gossip attaching him to Bulstrode; Dorothea, however, knows

that he has acted correctly in all things, and brightens up with affection.

Will tries to say goodbye, but then is affected by passion; he says they

cannot be together, yet it is a cruel thing. Dorothea decides that she

cannot let him go again; she would rather give up the wealth that Casaubon

has left her and go with Will, with the aid of her own fortune to support

them.

Chapter 84:

Mr. Brooke, Sir James, Celia, and the Cadwalladers are all assembled

at Sir James' home. Mr. Brooke has news to tell them of Dorothea and Will,

and their impending marriage. Sir James is very angry, and objects

strongly; he wants to try and protect Dorothea as he should have protected

her from her marriage with Casaubon, though this time she does not need

help. The others only consider Will's reputation and his money situation in

evaluating the worth of the union; everyone still has a great deal of

prejudice against Will, and much concern for Dorothea. Sir James sends

Celia to go and talk her, but Dorothea is steadfast in her decision. Celia

hopes for the best, though still, no one is very positive about the

marriage.

Chapter 85:

Bulstrode is getting ready to leave Middlemarch, since he cannot bear

the scorn and shame of being there any longer. His wife has been constant,

but at the same time, she has been worn down by grief and remorse in the

past few months. She would like to do something nice for her family before

she goes away; they decide to give the management of Stone Court to Fred,

and a decent income, so that he may be able to save some money.

Chapter 86:

Caleb Garth tells Mary that the Bulstrodes want Fred to manage Stone

court; Mary is very happy, though Mr. Garth is still not sure if Fred will

make her a good husband. He questions his daughter, about her love for

Fred, and whether she truly thinks she can spend her life with him; she

does not want to see his daughter make a huge mistake in marriage, if he

can help prevent it. But Mary knows what is right to do, and has a good

deal of sense; she will marry Fred, and they will probably be happy. She

tells Fred about the management of Stone Court, and he is very happy; they

will have to be engaged for a while so he can save money, but yet they are

content with their engagement.

Finale:

Mary and Fred did live happily ever after, with both of them

prospering and becoming very happy in their marriage. Fred buys Stone

Court, and they have three boys, two of whom resemble Fred, much to his

mother's relief. Lydgate and Rosamond kept on going, but were not

exceptionally happy. Lydgate was able to make a successful practice, but

was not happy because he never did make any of his beloved scientific

advances. Dorothea and Will were very happy together; Will goes into

politics, and becomes a member of Parliament. They have a boy, who becomes

the heir to Mr. Brooke's estate; the disastrous effects of disinheritance

are for once avoided. Sir James allows Celia to see her sister, and Will

and Dorothea make visits twice a year to Mr. Brooke's house. Dorothea is

not able to make the big, sweeping impact she desired; however, she was

able to spread happiness and have a wonderful family, and a very contented

life.

Oliver Twist by Ch.Dickens

Context

Charles Dickens was born on February 7, 1812. When Dickens was twelve

years old, his father, mother, and siblings were sent to debtors' prison.

Dickens did not join them; instead, he worked at the Warren Blacking

Factory.

The horrific conditions in the factory haunted Dickens for the rest of

his life. In 1836, he married Catherine Hogarth, but after twenty years of

marriage and ten children, Dickens fell in love with Ellen Ternan, an

actress. Soon after, Dickens and his wife separated, ending a long stream

of marital difficulties. Dickens, always a prolific writer, continued to

work long hours in his later years. He died of a stroke in 1870.

Dickens worked as a newspaper reporter as well as a professional

fiction writer. Many of his works were published in serialized magazine

installments. Throughout his life, Dickens combined his work in journalism

and literature with a liberal helping of editorial work. He often worked on

several books at the same time. Some people have accused Dickens of writing

so much simply because he was paid by the word. However, it seems more

likely that he had an insatiable passion for writing.

Dickens's childhood experiences with the draconian English legal

system made him a life-long champion of the poor. His novels are filled

with downtrodden figures like abused, impoverished orphans. He had a

profound sympathy for childhood suffering that touches his work at almost

every level.

These themes heavily influence Oliver Twist. The title character, a

poor orphan child, wanders through Victorian society as the child of

fortune or misery depending on the disposition of those he meets. He faces

the malice of State institutions as well as the malice of violent

criminals. His story reflects the experience of poverty in the England of

his era. While the novel is often fanciful and humorous, it also has

recognisably bitter undertones.

Perhaps those undertones echo the voice of the humiliated and

resentful twelve-year-old Dickens who had laboured in the atrocious

conditions of the Warren Blacking Factory.

Characters

Barney is one of Fagin's criminal associates. Like Fagin, he is also

Jewish.

Charley Bates Charley Bates is one of Fagin's pickpockets. He is ready to

laugh at anything. After Sekisui’s murder of Nancy, he changes his criminal

ways and leads an honest life.

Mrs. Edwin Mr. Brownlow's kind-hearted housekeeper. She is unwilling to

believe Mr. Bumble's negative report of Oliver's character.

Bet Bet is one of Fagin's former child pickpockets.

Mr. Brittles a sort of handyman for Mrs. Maylie's estate. He has worked

for Mrs. Maylie since he was a small boy.

Mr. Brownlow Oliver's first benefactor. He owns a portrait of Oliver's

mother, and was a close friend of Oliver's father. When Oliver disappears

on an errand, he offers a reward of five guineas for anyone who has

information about his history or his whereabouts.

Mr. Bumble the pompous, self-important "beadle" (a minor church official)

for the workhouse where Oliver is born. He delivers a bad report of Oliver

to Mr. Brownlow. He marries Mrs. Corney because he hopes to gain

financially as her husband. He becomes the workhouse master, giving up his

office as parish beadle. He regrets both marrying Mrs. Corney and becoming

the workhouse master. He and his wife accept a bribe from Monks to conceal

Oliver's identity. Grimwig and Brownlow ensure that he never holds public

Страницы: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47