Noah Claypole and Charlotte

Noah Claypole and Charlotte are a couple whose relationship is defined by Noah's domineering control and Charlotte's submissive devotion, a dynamic that drives their joint descent into London's criminal underworld. Their partnership, forged in the petty cruelties of the undertaker's shop, is less a romance than a system of exploitation, with Noah as the tyrannical head and Charlotte as his willing, if sometimes resentful, instrument.

Identity and Background

Noah Claypole is a charity-boy, a large-headed, small-eyed youth of lumbering make, who works as an apprentice to Mr. Sowerberry, the parochial undertaker. Unlike the workhouse orphan Oliver Twist, Noah can trace his genealogy to his parents: a washerwoman mother and a drunken, discharged soldier father with a wooden leg. This background gives him a precarious social standing, one he fiercely protects by bullying those beneath him. Charlotte is the Sowerberrys' slatternly maidservant, described as having shoes down at heel and blue worsted stockings very much out of repair. She is Noah's primary enabler and, initially, his co-conspirator in tormenting Oliver.

The Dynamic of Domination and Devotion

From the outset, their relationship is one of stark inequality. Noah treats Charlotte with a casual, proprietary cruelty, ordering her about and expecting her to cater to his every whim. During a private supper, Noah lolls negligently in an easy-chair, his legs thrown over one arm, while Charlotte opens oysters for him, which he consumes with remarkable avidity. When she offers him a particularly delicious one, he responds with a patronizing "What a delicious thing is a oyster!" and laments that eating too many makes one uncomfortable. Charlotte, in turn, expresses her devotion by saying she likes to see him eat them more than eating them herself, a declaration that prompts Noah to reflect, "how queer!" This pattern of Charlotte's self-abnegation and Noah's entitled consumption is the bedrock of their bond. When Mr. Bumble catches them in this intimate scene, Noah immediately betrays Charlotte, blubbering that "She's always a-kissing of me, whether I like it, or not" and that she "chucks me under the chin... and makes all manner of love!" This cowardly deflection, even as he enjoys her favors, perfectly encapsulates the relationship's exploitative core.

The Flight to London and Criminal Partnership

Their relationship takes a decisive turn when they flee the town after robbing Mr. Sowerberry's till. Noah, the architect of the plan, forces Charlotte to carry the heavy bundle of stolen goods while he walks ahead, unencumbered. He berates her for her slowness, calling her a "lazybones" and threatening to kick her if she doesn't keep up. His cunning is revealed in his decision to let Charlotte carry the money: if they are pursued, the evidence will be found on her, allowing him to claim innocence and escape. Despite this calculated betrayal, Charlotte remains devoted, insisting she took the money "for you, Noah, dear." Upon reaching London, Noah assumes the alias "Mr. Morris Bolter" and introduces Charlotte as "Mrs. Bolter," a fiction that formalizes their partnership as a criminal unit. He immediately establishes his authority, telling her, "don't yer speak, except when yer spoke to." This journey cements their transition from a petty, domestic tyranny to a full-fledged criminal conspiracy.

Integration into Fagin's Gang

Once in London, Noah and Charlotte are quickly absorbed into Fagin's criminal network. Fagin, recognizing Noah's potential, recruits him for the "kinchin lay"—robbing young children sent on errands. Noah eagerly accepts, seeing it as a way to make a fortune. Charlotte is integrated as his accomplice, and Fagin refers to her as "Mrs. Bolter." Their relationship, now embedded in a larger criminal enterprise, continues to be defined by Noah's dominance. He boasts to Fagin about how well he has trained Charlotte, saying, "She's kept tolerably well under, ain't she?" in the tone of a keeper who has tamed a wild animal. Fagin, in turn, praises Noah as a "genius." Charlotte's role is to support Noah's schemes, and she is expected to contribute her earnings to their shared pot. This arrangement, while profitable, does not alter the fundamental power dynamic; Noah remains the master, and Charlotte the subordinate.

The Final Disposition

After Fagin's arrest and the gang's dissolution, Noah and Charlotte's criminal partnership takes a final, ironic turn. Receiving a free pardon for turning approver against Fagin, Noah finds himself at a loss for a legitimate livelihood. He eventually goes into business as an informer, a profession that perfectly suits his sneaking and duplicitous nature. His plan is to walk out once a week during church time, attended by Charlotte in respectable attire. The lady (Charlotte) faints at the doors of charitable publicans, and the gentleman (Noah), being accommodated with threepenny worth of brandy to restore her, lays an information the next day and pockets half the penalty. Sometimes Mr. Claypole faints himself, but the result is the same. This final scheme is a perfect distillation of their relationship: a calculated, exploitative performance of vulnerability, with Charlotte as the willing prop in Noah's ongoing con, ensuring their genteel subsistence through mutual, if unequal, complicity in deceit.