Jack Dawkins, better known as The Artful Dodger or simply Dodger, is the main deuteragonist in Disney's Oliver Twist. He is Fagin's lieutenant, a thief, and Oliver's best friend.
Role in the film
Dodger is first seen catching an orphan named Oliver Twist trying to steal an apple from a market in London. Dodger stops Oliver from committing the theft and pretends to take him away when in fact, he simply intends to make a proper thief out of him since he, himself, is a master of thievery and to avoid him getting caught by the police. So, he decides to take Oliver to meet his fatherly mentor, Fagin at their hideout after introducing himself to Oliver as Jack Dawkins, better known as "The Artful Dodger" or simply "Dodger" in order to provide him with food and shelter and probably a way to reach Governor's Square; Oliver's point of destination when he learns that Oliver is an orphan.