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Essay on what shapes pip,s character in great expectations
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I'm going to write about where Pip, a boy from a very humble background meets Miss Havisham, a rich but eccentric lady and how Charles Dickens wants the reader to feel sympathetic towards Pip. Pip is about 12 years old. He lives with his older sister, Mrs Joe Gargery, and her husband. His parents died when he was a little boy. His five brothers died as well, so his sister was like a mum to him. He was brought up by his sister and very strictly. He was very polite and obedient to his sister. He wasn't rich, he was a low social class, and in fact he was poor. His background makes me feel sorry for him, because he is an orphan. One day he was asked by an unordinary lady, called Miss Havisham, to come to her house and play in front of her. She wasn't very young and she wasn't old either. Her heart was broken and she hasn't seen the sun light for a long time. She was very slim and had grey hair. When Pip first came to Miss Havisham to play, he met a very pretty girl called Estella. She was very beautiful but not very nice to Pip. When he entered the house, he followed Estella to Miss Havisham's room. The room was large and lit only with wax candles and there was no sunlight in the house or in the room. It was a dressing-room and there was a big mirror. Miss Havisham wore a wedding dress, but it wasn't white any more it was yellow, because she never took it off after her marriage. She had long veil dependent from her hair and bridal flowers, she also wore some jewellery on her neck, but some jewels were lying on the table near her, because she didn't finish putting them on. There also was a never-worn yellowy shoe on the table, she didn't put it on her foot since her wedding day, and she only put one shoe on. Miss Havisham didn't finish dressing up since her wedding. There were other things on the table, such as her gloves, prayer book and a handkerchief. She looked very strange to Pip. A man left her on her wedding day, so she had her heart broken and she stayed in the house since her wedding, she never left her house, she knew nothing about days of the week or months of the year. Mrs Havisham talked to Pip in a quiet and calm voice. But she told him that her heart was broken with strong emphasis, she wanted to make it
When Pip goes to The Satis House, he was treated rudely by Miss Havisham’s attractive young daughter. As they were playing
I don’t like to say, I. stammered.” In this quote, Pip refuses to tell Miss Havisham what he. thought of Estella, because he did not want to create any more tension. than there already was. This then backs up my point as its.
eyes of a child so it will be memorable to him as he will never forget
She had two older brothers, Bill and Bob. Bill was 7 years older and Bob
a hard and heavy hand, and to be much in the habit of laying it upon
Great Expectations was a novel written by Charles Dickens. It was first published in serial form from 1st December 1860 and then further on was released in book form in August 1861, although was previously issued by David Copperfield in 1849. This novel reworks his own childhood as a first-person narrative; Dickens was fortunate and had an advantage of writing Great Expectations due to him living in the Victorian times, and he related his life experiences with the main character of the play, ‘Pip’. Charles opened the play with the character Pip; his name was short for his Christian name Philip. In the Victorian times there were 3 different classes, these were known as the upper class, middle class and lower class. Pip belonged to the working class, just as Charles did at this time period. This class was very unfortunate in the Victorian times; the men had to work long hours throughout the day in a factory or as a blacksmith while only earning a minute amount of money. Then the women would stay at home cooking the food needed and cleaning throughout the house. Children coming fr...
In Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens, the author begins the tale by revealing Pip's arrogance towards previous companions. By the end of the story, we learn of Pip's love and compassion for everyone.
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.
Living in a world where much about a person’s character is measured by wealth, it has become increasingly important to maintain a separation between material characteristics and intangible moral values. Pip, in Dickens’ Great Expectations, must learn from his series of disappointments and realize the importance of self-reliance over acceptance to social norms. Through his unwavering faith in wealthy “ideals,” such as Miss Havisham and Estella, Pip develops both emotionally and morally, learning that surface appearances never reveal the truth in a person’s heart.
was the youngest of seven children, but only Nannerl and he survived. The other five siblings
gentleman and receive a good education; he assumes that his benefactor is Miss Havisham. In London, Pip
In the novel, Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens the principal character, Pip, undergoes a tremendous change in character. I would like to explore with you the major incidents in Pip’s childhood that contribute to his change from an innocent child to someone consumed by false values and snobbery.
In order to make more money Pip’s uncle sends Pip to a psychotic old lady’s house named Mrs. Havisham. Mrs. Havisham is a mean and nasty character who constantly bickers at Pip and tells him of his unimportance. Pip continues to be mild mannered and respectful to Mrs. Havisham yet he begins to see that he will never get ahead in life just being nice. Mrs. Havisham uses Pip as sort of a guinea pig to take out her passion of revenge against men. She does this by using her daughter, Estella to torment Pip.
After this devastating event, Miss Havisham confined herself in her house, wearing her yellow wedding dress with all the clocks stopped at 8:40 - the exact time she was walked out on. When Pip comments on the eeriness of the house, she answers, "So old to me. . . so familiar to me; so melancholy to both of us" (54). When Miss Havisham says this, she is revealing how long she has actually been in the house and how it has stayed unchanged for that entire period of time. By this comment, she is also showing her frustration at being confined within herself and within her jadedness.
Dickens portrays Miss Havisham in a very unique way. There is a dramatic irony between Miss Havisham and Pip. It is ironic how she wanted to watch him become miserable, just because he is of the male gender, and ironically she grew to like him. She even paid for part of Pip's expenses for the partnership. Yet what is more ironic is that Miss Havisham does not praise herself for the good deed. In the beginning of the novel, Miss Havisham displayed a harsh, cold attitude toward Pip. This is displayed in her deceptive act on page 69, where she says, "Well, you can break his heart?" As the novel ends Miss Havisham's attitude completely changes. She realizes the pain she has caused Pip and apologizes to him. Because of her positive change, she becomes more likeable to the audience.