Instances of dramatic irony often emphasize Oliver's inherent innocence and the fact that he is clueless about crime. In Chapter 10, for example, Oliver is horrified to discover what has been obvious to the readers and other characters:
What was Oliver's horror and alarm as he stood a few paces off, looking on with his eye-lids as wide open as they would possibly go, to see the Dodger plunge his hand into this old gentleman's pocket, and draw from thence a handkerchief, which he handed to Charley Bates, and with which they both ran away round the corner at full speed.
The Artful Dodger and Charley Bates have been scoping out the old gentleman (who turns out to be Mr. Brownlow) and have pointed him out as a "prime plant." Oliver has the same context clues that have already made it clear to the reader that the plan is for the boys to pick Mr. Brownlow's pockets. Oliver's "horror and alarm" emphasizes that he is such a good-natured child that stealing has not even occurred to him as a possibility in this moment.
Even after Oliver knows that Fagin is operating a criminal enterprise, he still figures out very late in the game that he has been recruited to burglarized the Maylies' house. In Chapter 22, he has already been hoisted over a wall by the time he realizes what is going on:
And now, for the first time, Oliver, well-nigh mad with grief and terror, saw that housebreaking and robbery, if not murder, were the objects of the expedition. He clasped his hands together, and involuntarily uttered a subdued exclamation of horror. A mist came before his eyes, the cold sweat stood upon his ashy face, his limbs failed him, and he sunk upon his knees.
In this case, the reader has been privy to a conversation between Fagin and Sikes that Oliver missed. This conversation makes clear that Oliver is going to be used to break into a small space. Still, Oliver has plenty of context to infer that something dicey is happening long before this moment. The fact that he does not suspect until he has already begun breaking and entering both demonstrates his innocence and heightens the stakes of what happens next. He is the tiniest bit complicit, which for many characters (such as Noah Claypole) would lead them further down the criminal path. Oliver, though, refuses to facilitate the burglary no matter the personal cost. His resolve nearly gets him killed, but it also saves him by keeping him morally pure enough for the Maylies to come to his rescue later in the novel.
Instances of dramatic irony often emphasize Oliver's inherent innocence and the fact that he is clueless about crime. In Chapter 10, for example, Oliver is horrified to discover what has been obvious to the readers and other characters:
What was Oliver's horror and alarm as he stood a few paces off, looking on with his eye-lids as wide open as they would possibly go, to see the Dodger plunge his hand into this old gentleman's pocket, and draw from thence a handkerchief, which he handed to Charley Bates, and with which they both ran away round the corner at full speed.
The Artful Dodger and Charley Bates have been scoping out the old gentleman (who turns out to be Mr. Brownlow) and have pointed him out as a "prime plant." Oliver has the same context clues that have already made it clear to the reader that the plan is for the boys to pick Mr. Brownlow's pockets. Oliver's "horror and alarm" emphasizes that he is such a good-natured child that stealing has not even occurred to him as a possibility in this moment.
Even after Oliver knows that Fagin is operating a criminal enterprise, he still figures out very late in the game that he has been recruited to burglarized the Maylies' house. In Chapter 22, he has already been hoisted over a wall by the time he realizes what is going on:
And now, for the first time, Oliver, well-nigh mad with grief and terror, saw that housebreaking and robbery, if not murder, were the objects of the expedition. He clasped his hands together, and involuntarily uttered a subdued exclamation of horror. A mist came before his eyes, the cold sweat stood upon his ashy face, his limbs failed him, and he sunk upon his knees.
In this case, the reader has been privy to a conversation between Fagin and Sikes that Oliver missed. This conversation makes clear that Oliver is going to be used to break into a small space. Still, Oliver has plenty of context to infer that something dicey is happening long before this moment. The fact that he does not suspect until he has already begun breaking and entering both demonstrates his innocence and heightens the stakes of what happens next. He is the tiniest bit complicit, which for many characters (such as Noah Claypole) would lead them further down the criminal path. Oliver, though, refuses to facilitate the burglary no matter the personal cost. His resolve nearly gets him killed, but it also saves him by keeping him morally pure enough for the Maylies to come to his rescue later in the novel.
