Oliver Twist - the last chapter but one

SPOILERS



This is the chapter in which Fagin is condemned to die, the loathsome Noah Claypole having turned King's Evidence. This was the standout chapter for me. I liked the way Fagin stayed true to himself, despite being dazed by the situation he found himself in. He is so clever that the words of the judge come back to him, even though he was distracted and unable to concentrate during the trial. He undergoes a sort of mental breakdown, but he refuses to repent, both when the Jewish priests visit him, and when Oliver asks him to pray with him. He thinks about other people who he has put in his position. I suppose from time to time, the underworld were required to deliver someone to whoever passed for the police in those days. In an earlier chapter, Fagin remarks that a certain low-level criminal at the Three Cripples, or some other public place, was not yet ripe. However when Oliver (or Mr Brownloe) asks him for evidence on Monks, Fagin readily tells Oliver where it is. He does not show any ill feeling towards Oliver. He seems to like him in a way. I wonder whether one reason kept all those young apprentices was that he liked their company.