History Main / TheArtfulDodger

The Artful Dodger usually has some variety of TheFagin as a boss (as the original did), if he answers to someone.

* Gavroche in ''Literature/LesMiserables'' - but Hugo investigates the source of Gavroche's lifestyle, and its probable end. Gavroche springs from parents (the Thenardiers) who are cutthroat and depraved, but also incredibly resourceful. Hugo describes Gavroche's quick mind and high spirits, but says that though he's slipped through the cracks all his life, he's on the cusp of outgrowing the life he lives. Then, he might ally with the noble cause of the Friends of the ABC (who include a few working-class idealists in their ranks), or else, Hugo compares at least one vicious and brutal thug in M. Thenardier's gang to a grown up Gavroche.

%%* Jimmy the Hand from Creator/RaymondEFeist's ''Literature/RiftwarCycle''.

%%* Young Jack Sparrow from ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean''.

%%* ''ShanghaiKnights'' featured one who grew up to be [[spoiler:Creator/CharlieChaplin]].

The Artful Dodger is like the StreetUrchin, except that instead of being TheWoobie that makes you want to take him up in your arms and care for him, he seems perfectly happy to take care of himself. Oh, he'd ''let'' you take him home, just don't expect him (or any of your valuable possessions) to be there next morning. In RealLife, a child who lives on the streets experiences horrors most of us could not even imagine, but in some fictional works, a child on the street lives a happy-go-lucky life and practically thrives.

Compare with LovableRogue.

* The Feral Kid in ''Film/MadMax2TheRoadWarrior''.
* Young Jack Sparrow from ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean''.
* The Runts from ''Film/CityOfGod''. And, in the sixties part of the same film, Li'l Dice.

* Short Round in ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfDoom''.
* ''ShanghaiKnights'' featured one who grew up to be [[spoiler:Creator/CharlieChaplin]].
* The movie version of Toby from ''Film/SweeneyToddTheDemonBarberOfFleetStreet'' was like this.
* Wiggins, one of the Baker Street Irregulars, in ''Film/WithoutAClue''.
* Miette, in a way, from ''Film/TheCityOfLostChildren''.
* The Kid from ''Film/DickTracy''.
* Phillipe in ''Film/{{Ladyhawke}}''.
* ''{{Film/Newsies}}'' presents a whole cast of them, but most prominent of them is Jack, [[RedOniBlueOni Red Oni]] to [[TheSmartGuy David's]] Blue.

* Pistolet in ''Literature/TheBlackCoats''.

* Jamal from ''Literature/TheDrifters''.

* Kimball O'Hara, eponymous hero of Creator/RudyardKipling's ''Literature/{{Kim}}''.

* Jimmy the Hand from Creator/RaymondEFeist's ''Literature/RiftwarCycle''.

* Lupus in ''Literature/TheRomanMysteries''
* Raych Seldon starts as this in the ''Literature/{{Foundation}}'' prequels.

* Phoebe Buffay in {{Friends}} may well have been an Artful Dodger in her teens. She had to live on the streets from the age of 14 and is unlikely to have been an instance of TheWoobie judging by her character during the series. In one episode it's revealed that she once mugged a young Ross Geller.

* [[spoiler: Five]] in ''Series/DarkMatter'' was this prior to the series start.

* Marco from ''VideoGame/SkiesOfArcadia''.

* ''Literature/OliverTwist'': Being the TropeNamer, The Artful Dodger is the epitome of this trope [[spoiler: � until his boss's gambit goes awry, the police search his home and he gets deported to Australia,]]

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* ''Literature/OliverTwist'': Being the TropeNamer, The Artful Dodger is the epitome of this trope [[spoiler: … until his boss's gambit goes awry, the police search his home and he gets deported to Australia,]]

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* Gavroche of ''Theatre/LesMiserables'' -- this example is a great deal straighter than the one in the book. He also gets some of the best GreekChorus lines, which TheMovie only enhances -- "This is the land that fought for liberty, now when we fight, we fight for bread! That is the thing about equality: Everyone's equal when they're dead."

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* Nathan Drake from the ''VideoGame/{{Uncharted}}'' series is one as a teenager, until Sully "adopts" him as a protégé.

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* Lil' Ragamuffin in ''{{Guttersnipe}}'' is a parody of this trope, a street girl fanatically devoted to the "urchin life" and proud of her "unfancy" living situation.
* Rabble-Rouser [[spoiler:(real name Reginald)]] in RPGWorld counts. [[spoiler: He's actually Diane's little brother]] that was actually abandoned in South City as a baby because [[spoiler: his father was a human and his mother was a monster. They used a magic spell to make [[FantasticRacism Diane look more human because otherwise they wouldn't be allowed to keep her.]]]] The spell didn't work so well on Rabble-Rouser, so he was left to grow up on the streets.

* Manic from ''SonicUnderground''.

* ''HuckleberryFinn'' was pretty much this, though moreso in ''Literature/TheAdventuresOfTomSawyer''.

* ''Manga/{{Berserk}}: Isidro is a hot-headed kid who ran away from home in search of adventure, and since then he has supported his vagrant lifestyle through thievery, demonstrating the ability to carry off absurdly large amounts of stolen food and valuables inside his clothes. Even after joining Guts' new group and gaining some stability he still occasionally pickpockets people and shoplifts from merchants.

* Any number of HoratioAlgerJr. characters. His first (and arguably best) children's novel, ''Ragged Dick'', is the archetype of Alger's street hero books.

The Artful Dodger is like the StreetUrchin, except that instead of being TheWoobie that makes you want to take him up in your arms and care for him, he seems perfectly happy to take care of himself. Oh, he'd ''let'' you take him home, just don't expect him to be there next morning. Or any of your valuables, for that matter. In RealLife, a child who lives on the streets experiences horrors most of us could not even imagine, but in some fictional works, a child on the street lives a happy-go-lucky life and practically thrives.

* The Runts from ''The City Of God''. And, in the sixties part of the same film, Li'l Dice.

* The Feral Kid in ''MadMax II: The Road Warrior''.

* ''Series/{{Dickensian}}' has the trope namer, portrayed as a sneakthief and pickpocket who also passes messages from Bill Sykes to Fagin (although he is so far shown as the only child working with them, so Fagin isn't exactly TheFagin yet.)

* Liam in ''Series/TracyBeakerReturns''. Mike collects him from the police station and runs into Tracy who just published her first book followed by this discussion:
-->'''Mike''': See Liam if you want to get on in life, maybe we could have a little less artful dodger and a bit more Tracy Beaker
-->'''Liam''': I am like Tracy we both got nicked (that's arrested for the rest of us).
-->'''Mike''': You published your own book with Cam's money, Tracy how could you?
-->'''Tracy''': Cam's a writer she'll understand. I'll pay her back when the book sells.
-->'''Mike''': Oh, Tracy...
-->'''Liam''': So Mike, I think I'd better stick with the artful dodger thing for now, what do you reckon?

* SherlockHolmes had a whole gang of these, called the Baker Street Irregulars, to help him search for things or people all over the city.

* Jamal from ''TheDrifters''.

* Jimmy the Hand from RaymondEFeist's ''RiftwarCycle''.

* ''HuckleberryFinn'' was pretty much this, though moreso in ''TheAdventuresOfTomSawyer''.

* Raych Seldon starts as this in the {{Foundation}} prequels.

* Jan from TheSilverSword is a classic example, who ends up becoming a hero by the end of the book as he saves Edek from drowning.
* Briar of the Literature/CircleOfMagic books by Creator/TamoraPierce started out this way, he was even named Roach by the leader of his street gang. However this life is in no way romanticized, as by the start of the book he had experienced routine hunger, gang wars, physical abuse by police and other adults, had been arrested three times and was on his way to punishment labour (which it was implied he would not survive more than a couple of years) before Nico found him.

* Boxey on the new ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|Reimagined}}'' was going to become this, until the character was written out due to a lack of time for the planned development.

TheArtfulDodger is like the StreetUrchin, except that instead of being TheWoobie that makes you want to take him up in your arms and care for him, he seems perfectly happy to take care of himself. Oh, he'd ''let'' you take him home, just don't expect him to be there next morning. Or any of your valuables, for that matter. In RealLife, a child who lives on the streets experiences horrors most of us could not even imagine, but in some fictional works, a child on the street lives a happy-go-lucky life and practically thrives.