Part 1, Act 2, Scenes 8-11 Summary

Scene 8. Narration tells us that on a foggy morning in early spring, Noggs said farewell as Nicholas and Smike set off on their journeys. Nicholas refuses to tell Noggs where he's going as he doesn't really know himself. When they're far enough away, however, and Noggs has disappeared from view, Nicholas tells Smike that they're heading for the seaside town of Portsmouth where they could conceivably get a job on board a ship. Later in their journey, as they rest by the side of the road, Nicholas tries to help Smike remember his life before Dotheboys. Smike remembers a large, lonesome room with a hook in the ceiling, and tells Nicholas that he can't remember two days together when he hasn't been afraid.

Scene 9. In a roadside tavern, Nicholas and Smike learn with dismay that not only...