Comparing the Opening Scenes of Two Film Versions of Great Expectations

1431 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Character development of pip in great expectations

Comparing the Opening Scenes of Two Film Versions of Great Expectations Great Expectations is one of the greatest novels in the "book world", which follows the life story of 'Pip'. Great Expectations was one of the best Dickens novels. It is known all over the world. It is translated in other languages so people everywhere can enjoy the work of Dickens. The story is about a boy called Pip. He is an orphan boy left with no one but his evil sister (or that's the way he sees it). He is shown as an innocent and somewhat naive young boy who is a little immature. "I drew a childish conclusion that my mother was freckled and sickly" We learn much more about Pip throughout the story and follow him on his journey to become his dream of a perfect gentleman to gain social class. The book was followed by 2 main films. One was directed in 1944 by David Lean. This was the first adaptation of the book into film since the book had been written in Dickens time. This film was then replaced by the BBC version in 1997, as it was meant to of been "improved". The big age gap in the two films has a big role in the films. This is because in 1944 something that was considered then to be the latest technology in filming then would be old school to the people of 1997. So the amount of available technology plays a role in the camera shots, colour, special effects and scenery. Both of them create tension but which one does it best? The first scene in the novel is used to introduce the main characters and tell us (audience) about the setting and scenery. The mood created within the opening of the scene is negative and a little tense. The novel begins with a dramatic opening on the bleak, boring Kentish marches. This sets the tone immediately. The setting moves from the opening Kent marshes to the dull graveyard. The grave yard is described "Bleak place, overgrown with nettles.

Show More
Related

  • How Does The Satis House Influence Pip's Behavior

    292 Words  | 1 Pages

    As a young child living in England’s marshes, Pip was a humble, kind, and gentle character. He lived an impoverished life with his sister, Mrs. Joe, and her husband, Joe Gargery, the neighborhood blacksmith. Pip was grateful for everything he had, including his few possessions and his family’s care. When he was offered the chance to play at The Satis House, the home of the wealthy Miss Havisham, Pip went in order to make his family happy.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast The Wizard Of Oz Book And Book

    1009 Words  | 3 Pages

    The film that was produced after the novel has a lot of differences and not as

    Read More

  • The Lives of Dickens' Characters

    1346 Words  | 3 Pages

    Collectively, these major novels overflow with orphans, adoptive parents, guardians, and failed parent-child relationships. Oliver, the main character in Oliver Twist, must forget about his "infantile past" (Marcus 182) in order to seek "the idyllic future" (Marcus 182). He gets hurled from orphanages to foster parents and so on until he finds himself a portion of the "wrong crowd." The pickpockets take him under their authority and attempt to show him the ropes of the embezzling operation. The orphan adapts well to the swindling lifestyle of Fagin and the boys, and through a series of mischievous choices, authorities apprehend him for stealing (although Dodger was the true felon), and Oliver must live with the consequences. Great Expectations also emphasizes the process of growing up through Pip, the main character. Pip's mother and father passed away while he was young, and he was forced to reside in the house of his older sister and her husband. The boy obtains many idealistic fathers, including Joe, Magwitch, Jaggers and Pumblechook, but none of these men can give him what he needs from a predecessor. Dickens demonstrates to the reader the consequences that bad parenting has on children. Some children are warped by the "knottiest roots" (Lucas 141). Pip, Estella, and Magwitch are all examples of hurt children. The bitter children dwell on their past, or "what has been forgotten" (Marcus 182), and blame the parents for their sufferings. Other children such as Joe and Herbert survive bad parents and go on with their lives, not letting the history affect the outlook.

    Read More

  • Comparing the Victorian Times of Great Expectations with Today

    650 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are many things about the Victorian Age that are different from our way of life today. Evidence of this can be found in such elements of the 1800's as courting manners, child- rearing, transportation, housing and careers. The novel and film Great Expectations give many examples of the contrast of the present and the past. Victorians were a very class-conscious society. These days, just about anyone can manage to have fairly nice clothes, a decent car, a place to live, and reasonable job security. Not so in Victorian times.

    Read More

  • Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

    996 Words  | 2 Pages

    Charles Dickens utilizes his life for inspiration for the protagonist Pip in his novel Great Expectations. They both struggle with their social standing. Dickens loved plays and theatre and therefore incorporated them into Pip’s life. Dickens died happy in the middle class and Pip died happy in the middle class. The connection Dickens makes with his life to Pip’s life is undeniable. If readers understand Dickens and his upbringing then readers can understand how and why he created Pip’s upbringing. Charles Dickens’ life, full of highs and lows, mirrors that of Pip’s life. Their lives began the same and ended the same. To understand the difficulty of Dickens’ childhood is to understand why his writing focuses on the English social structure. Dickens’ life revolved around social standing. He was born in the lower class but wasn’t miserable. After his father fell into tremendous debt he was forced into work at a young age. He had to work his way to a higher social standing. Because of Dicken’s constant fighting of class the English social structure is buried beneath the surface in nearly all of his writings. In Great Expectations Pip’s life mirrors Dickens’ in the start of low class and the rise to a comfortable life. Fortunately for Dickens, he does not fall again as Pip does. However, Pip and Dickens both end up in a stable social standing.

    Read More

  • The Analysis of Friendship Between Pip and Joe in 'Great Expectations' by Charles Dickens

    1019 Words  | 3 Pages

    After being very ill Pip realises that being a gentleman means more than having money and an education. Many of Dickens books are about childhood difficulties. Perhaps this is because he was drawing on the experience of his own difficult childhood and his own desire, like Pips to become a gentleman. Dickens books are also about the class struggle, cruelty, inequality and injustice. Punishment was harsh such as deportation to do hard labour in Australia for small crimes or public hanging.

    Read More

  • Compare Chapter One of Great Expectations, in which Pip first meets

    1743 Words  | 4 Pages

    From this we can tell that Pip is childish in a sense as he doesn’t

    Read More

  • The Importance of Settings in Great Expectations

    1507 Words  | 4 Pages

    better is that also Dickens puts in a timid boy who has come to visit

    Read More

  • Conflicts, Relationships, and Friendships in Charles Dickens' Great Expectations

    652 Words  | 2 Pages

    Great Expectations is an 1861 fictional autobiography and bildungsroman novel about a young boy named Philip Pirrip (nicknamed Pip) living in England and the various stages he goes through in his life, the people he encounters, the conflicts he faces, the relationships/friendships he has, and the lessons he learns. Not only does Pip evolve immensely, he also learns to accept himself and the people around him––regardless of their past, social class, wealth, etc. He develops relationships and friendships with people who help him become a better person (e.g. Joe in the beginning, Magwitch in the end). All of the individuals that Pip meets impact him in some way, shape or form, whether it be in a major or minor way. Great Expectations effectively delineates a process of maturation, and self-discovery through experience as Pip transitions from childhood to adulthood.

    Read More

  • Pip's Education

    1547 Words  | 4 Pages

    As a bildungsroman, Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations presents the growth and development of Philip Pirrip, better known as Pip. Pip is both the main character in the story and the narrator, telling his tale many years after the events take place. Pip goes from being a young boy living in poverty in the marsh country of Kent, to being a gentleman of high status in London. Pip’s growth and maturation in Great Expectations lead him to realize that social status is in no way related to one’s real character.

    Read More

  • Great Expectations: Changes in the Character of Pip

    895 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • The Role of Women in Great Expectations

    2281 Words  | 5 Pages

    It can be seen through Dickens’s highly successful novel Great Expectations, that his early life events are reflected into the novel. Firstly the reader can relate to Dickens’s early experiences, as the novel’s protagonist Pip, lives in the marsh country, and hates his job. Pip also considers himself, to be too good for his ...

    Read More

  • The Bildungsroman and Pip's Great Expectations

    3865 Words  | 8 Pages

    These elements are crucial to the structure and development of Great Expectations: Pip's maturation and development from child to man are important characteristics of the genre to which Great Expectations belongs. In structure, Pip's story, Great Expectations, is a Bildungsroman, a novel of development. The Bildungsroman traces the development of a protagonist from his early beginnings--from his education to his first venture into the big city--following his experiences there, and his ultimate self-knowledge and maturation. Upon the further examination of the characteristics of the Bildungsroman as presented here it is clear that Great Expectations, in part, conforms to the general characteristics of the English Bildungsroman. However, there are aspects of this genre from which Dickens departs in Great Expectations. It is these departures that speak to what is most important in Pip's development, what ultimately ma...

    Read More

  • A Comparison of Great Expectations and Oliver Twist

    1753 Words  | 4 Pages

    Great Expectations and Oliver Twist are representative of the works produced by Charles Dickens over his lifetime. These novels exhibit many similarities - perhaps because they both reflect painful experiences that occurred in Dickens' past.

    Read More

  • Significance of the Title: Great Expectations: Charles Dickens

    664 Words  | 2 Pages

    Charles Dickens novel Great Expectations (1861) has great significance to the plot. The title itself symbolizes prosperity and most importantly ambition. The main character and the protagonist, Pip (Philip Pirrip) was born an orphan and hand-raised by his sister Mrs. Gargery and her husband Joe Gargery. Pip was a young boy when he was threatened by a convict, Magwitch, at his parents’ grave to aid him. Pip nervously agreed to lend him a hand and was haunted day and night of the sin he committed which involved stealing food and tools from his Mr. and Mrs. Gargery’s house. Later on, he is called for at the Satis Manor by a rich woman, Miss Havisham. There he met a beautiful young girl, Estella, to whom Pip falls in love with. The novel being divided into three volumes, Pips great expectations arise soon after visiting the Satis Manor.

    Read More

More about Comparing the Opening Scenes of Two Film Versions of Great Expectations

Open Document