Superlative Evil: Classist society’s impact on citizenry
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens is a coming of age story set in the early eighteen-hundreds through the late eighteen-hundreds, an era of Queen Victoria and a time for great progression and prosperity. Sadly, the progression and prosperity only benefited people belonging to a higher class putting a big division between the classes, and Dickens used this novel to reflect upon that society of time. The depiction of the greatest evil, the society, is made evident through Magwitch’s role as a boy growing up in poverty, as a criminal alongside of Compeyson, and the bond him and Pip shared.
Magwitch had a very hard upbringing considering he was an orphan in a poor community in the nineteenth
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I 'm your second father. You 're my son — more to me nor any son. I 've put away money, only for you to spend. When I was hired-out shepherd in a solitary hut, not seeing no faces but faces of sheep till I half forgot wot men 's and women 's faces was like, I see yourn. I drops my knife many a time in that hut when I was a eating my dinner or my supper, and I says, “Here 's the boy again, a looking at me whiles I eats and drinks!" I see you there a many times as plain as ever I see you on them misty marshes. “Lord strike me dead!" I says each time — and I goes out in the open air to say it under the open heavens — “but wot, if I gets liberty and money, I 'll make that boy a gentleman!" And I done it. Why, look at you, dear boy! Look at these here lodgings of yourn, fit for a lord! A lord? Ah! You shall show money with lords for wagers, and beat 'em!” (286-287)
This proves that even though society did portray Magwitch as ‘evil’, he was still a good person deep down.
In the end, the greatest evil depicted in Great Expectations was the society. The character of Magwitch is one of the many ways Dickens conveys that idea. He uses Magwitch’s role as an orphan growing up in poverty, how he is treated unfairly by the justice system, and his role as the strongest father like figure in Pip’s life. Magwitch was a victim of the unjust and corruptive society which led up to his criminal lifestyle. Ultimately the superlative evil presented in the novel was the society and their impact on
Throughout Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations, the convict under the alias “Magwitch” contains multiple characteristics that split him between two diverse classes. This duality of character and his frequent detainment cause him to desire a change to reinvent himself and leave the convict lower class. By succumbing to a corrupt class system, Magwitch demonstrates the duality of a man wronged by injustice and blinded by vengeance.
Strained Relationships, Resentment and Indignation Between the Classes in Great Expectations Great expectations is a profound story. It contains the theme of love,
There are many things that affect how people see each other. Judging others on their looks, personalities, and lifestyles is as natural as sleeping. A common subject of judgement has always been social class; each class has judged one another for centuries. Looking at another class is like looking into the window of another world that is shrouded in mystery; especially the upper class. The idea of being wealthy is surrounded by a stereotype that life is easy and everything is perfect. F. Scott Fitzgerald teaches in The Great Gatsby that this is not true through three different social classes in the 1920s: old money, new money, and no money. Although status makes life easier it can negatively affect the personalities of people with old money, new money, and no money.
First the reader can see this through Pip. After becoming a gentleman he is snobbish to Joe and Biddy. After he loses all his money he turns back to his family realizing how important they are. Next, the reader can see good in Miss Havisham. She hates all men, but then comes to be remorseful for raising Estella to be mean to all men, including Pip. The final way the reader can see good in the worst of men is through Magwitch. He gives Pip most of his money to become gentleman. In the worst of humans there is sometimes good to be found. The same can be with dogs. Sometimes the dog that is mean to most people can have some good and be nice to his or her owners. There is nothing better than having a friendly dog for a
Magwitch has lived the life of crime. It wasn't until he meets Pip, that he begins to change. The reason Magwitch was sent to the Botany Bay penal colony was for "putting stolen notes in circulation" (323; ch. 42). His companion, Compeyson, and chief engineer of the project was given a lesser sentence due to his education and wealthy appearance. Magwitch was not so lucky and was forced to endure the trials and tribulations of servitude in the penal colonies. Not much is mentioned in Great Expectations regarding the actual colonies. It is interesting, however, that Dickens would chose to include a character that is not simply killed but transported to vicious and cruel servitude that turned his life around. Magwitch's past criminal record would have fit the normal stereotype of criminals sent to the colonies. He had a past record before being tried on felony charges and would have been deemed un...
Great Expectations is essentially a novel of the education of a young man in the lesson of life. Pip is analyzing himself through his memories and from the point of view of maturity (“Charles Dickens” 1).
Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens is a fascinating tale of love and fortune. The main character, Pip, is a dynamic character who undergoes many changes through the course of the book. Throughout this analysis the character, Pip will be identified and his gradual change through the story will be surveyed.
There are so many important characters in this book that it would take me longer to describe the characters and there importance than it would to summarize the book. So I will keep it to a minimum with just a few crucial people. First there is Pip he is the main character in this book. When he was very young his parents died and know he is raised by his sister and her husband Joe Pip is a very innocent and caring person who wants to have a greater fate than the one presently owned. But is burdened by the fact that he lives in poverty. Next there is Mrs. Joe who raised Pip but is very mean to him and controlling of everyone in her house. Then Joe he is the person that gives Pip help. They play games and explain a lot of things to Pip he is about the only nice person in Pips life. Mrs. Havasham she lets Pip come over to her house and is very wealthy and the people around him think that she will raise him to be a gentleman. But hates men and never changes out of her wedding dress. She also has a daughter named Estella that was adopted and is very beautiful. But is being raised to hate men as well and is using her looks to break there hearts. Magwitch escapes from prison at the beginning of Great Expectations and terrorizes Pip in the cemetery. But out of Kindness Pip still bring the man what he asks for. Pip's kindness, however, makes a deep impression on him, and he subsequently devotes himself to making a fortune and using it to elevate Pip into a higher social class. Herbert pocket who is a good friend of Pip's and gives him advice throughout the book.
...ntation of the distinctions between the social classes. Dickens uses Pip’s relationships with Estella, Joe, and Magwitch to show how the lower class is judged by social status or appearances, instead of morals and values. The lower class is looked down upon and taken advantage of the upper class, and this is prevalent in the novel Great Expectations.
Charles Dickens’ aptly titled novel Great Expectations focuses on the journey of the stories chief protagonist, Pip, to fulfill the expectations of his life that have been set for him by external forces. The fusing of the seemingly unattainable aspects of high society and upper class, coupled with Pip’s insatiable desire to reach such status, drives him to realize these expectations that have been prescribed for him. The encompassing desire that he feels stems from his experiences with Mrs. Havisham and the unbridled passion that he feels for Estella. Pip realizes that due to the society-imposed caste system that he is trapped in, he will never be able to acquire Estella’s love working as a lowly blacksmith at the forge. The gloomy realizations that Pip is undergoing cause him to categorically despise everything about himself, feeling ashamed for the life he is living when illuminated by the throngs of the upper class.
Importance of Social Class in Charles Dickens's Great Expectations Social class played a major role in the society depicted in Charles Dickens's Great Expectations. Social class determines the manner in which a person is treated and their access to education. Yet, social class does not define the character of the individual. Many characters were treated differently because of their social class in Great Expectations. Seeing the contrast between how the poor and the rich were treated will give a clearer understanding of how much social class mattered.
Throughout Dickens’ novel Great Expectations, the character, personality, and social beliefs of Pip undergo complete transformations as he interacts with an ever-changing pool of characters presented in the book. Pip’s moral values remain more or less constant at the beginning and the end; however, it is evident that in the time between, the years of his maturation and coming of adulthood, he is fledgling to find his place in society. Although Pip is influenced by many characters throughout the novel, his two most influential role models are: Estella, the object of Miss Havisham’s revenge against men, and Magwitch, the benevolent convict. Exposing himself to such diverse characters Pip has to learn to discern right from wrong and chose role models who are worthy of the title.
Accepting his humble apology, Joe states: "God knows you're welcome to it--so far as it was ever mine. . . We don't know what you have done, but we wouldn't have you starved to death for it, poor miserable fellow-creator" (56; ch. 6.) The adage of the adage. After all, Magwitch is only stealing for his survival. This demonstrates Dickens' tendency to write fiction with a compassionate bleeding heart, contrasting with the views he expressed in his journalism that criminals are "a far lower estimation than a mad wolf" (Collins 255).
Essay Title- Examine how either text represents EITHER class OR gender. Are these representations problematic or contradictory? How do they relate to the plot and structure of the novel?
In conclusion, Dickens portrays the novels title, Great Expectations, through Pip’s desires and dreams and luck. Once he finds out his secret benefactor was Magwitch, he is surprised. Pip has had many great expectations which he was able to fulfill through the aid of Magwitch. Apart from Pip’s expectations of riches and importance of being a gentleman, the readers have expectations of the novel having many turning points due to Dickens ability to craft a consistent plot in which there is a fluency in all angles. Pip had high hopes, or Great Expectations, for everything which blindly seems right to him were not carried out.