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Comparing two Cinderella stories
Analysis of great expectations by Charles Dickens
Analysis of great expectations by Charles Dickens
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Great Expectations - A Cinderella Story
In the profound novel, Great Expectations, written by Charles Dickens,
the main character "Pip" is put through many tests that examine the
type of man Pip strives to be and the type of man Pip really is. Pip's
relationships with two central characters, Tom and Magwitch, are
examined closely in this essay, and through these relationships, Pip's
character is visible. Great Expectations is, in a sense, a Cinderella
story in which Pip's fairy godmother turns out to be a convict running
from the law. This "amulet" gives Pip a gift that changes Pip and his
life.
In the beginning of the novel, Pip is a young boy that lives in an
inhospitable home with his older sister and her husband. Although
Pip's relationship with his sister is unkind, the relationship Pip
develops with her husband is affable. Pip's brother-in-law, Joe, has
taken Pip under his wing, and wants to take care of Pip. Critic
Christopher Morris writes, "Pip claims to have developed a solicitude
for Joe" in the opening of the novel, but later "that claim is
everywhere contradicted by his actions." One example that Morris
writes of to prove his point is, after Pip learns of the "selfless
rational for Joe's acquiescence in Mrs. Joe's government", Pip writes:
Young as I was, I believe that I dated a new admiration of Joe from
that night. We were equals afterwards, as we has been before: but
afterwards, at quiet times when I sat looking at Joe and thinking
about him, I had a new sensation of feeling conscious that I was
looking up to Joe in my heart.
(7, 52)3
Morris* points out the fact, that throughout the novel, this is the
only time Pip will regard Joe as his equal.
In chapter VIII, Pip is offere...
... middle of paper ...
...ip as a very low person. Later, when Pip
began to except Magwhich, he was able to shut the ideas of the man's
past out. Their relationship became that of a very strong friendship
because they did see each other's faults but chose to ignore them.
When a friendship is composed, the two parties have an unspoken
agreement to except any flaws the other has. This is much more
meaningful than love, because the human will is involved. The outcome
of love may seem more important, but there is always the chance a
lover will regain their true sight and not be able to accept your
faults. In the case of friendship, there is a bond because the other
is all ready at ease with your faults, and your bond can only become
stronger.
* In an article written by Christopher D. Morris, the actions and moral
bad faith that the central character, Pip, exhibits are examined.
Anne Sexton’s “Cinderella” and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Birthmark” deal strongly with the concept of perfection. Both works have a focus on the unattainability of perfection, yet their authors view this fact in different lights. For Sexton, the ease with which Cinderella obtains her so called “happily ever after” is sickeningly unrealistic. For Hawthorne’s Aylmer, it is the pursuit of total perfection that causes him to ignore just how perfect his life really is and the ruin to which his pursuits bring him.
eyes of a child so it will be memorable to him as he will never forget
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.
As Pip grows throughout the novel, he develops and matures from a young boy that doesn’t know what to do to a young man who has a great outlook on life. In the first stage of Pip's life he is young and does not understand what it means to be a gentleman and how it can affect his life. During the first stage of Pips life, he only wants 3 things. He wants education, wealth, and social advancement. These three wishes are mostly so he can impress Estella, who is the symbol of this first stage. Pip does not want to be just a blacksmith like Joe. He wants to be intelligent and considered a person of high importance. At the end of this stage he moves to London and begins to have a different outlook on his future.
The fairies and the fairy realm have many responsibilities in this play. The most important of which is that they are the cause of much of the conflict and comedy within this story. They represent mischievousness and pleasantry which gives the play most of its emotion and feeling. They relate to humans because they make mistakes but differ in the fact that they do not understand the human world.
... more conscious, regretful and likable Pip. The chapter ends with Pip imagining that there had been signs, warning. him that Magwitch was coming, but had gone unnoticed by him.
Great Expectations Josh Billings once said "to bring up a child in the way he should go, travel that way yourself once in a while". There are few things as important in the development of youth as the influence of the adults that surround them. The example of influential adults will almost always dictate, in some way, the behaviour of children. Young people look for role models and examples in the adults they meet. In Charles Dickens' novel Great Expectations (1860), vivid adult characters such as the eccentric Miss Havisham, the enigmatic lawyer Jaggers, the simple but kind blacksmith Joe and the mysterious convict Magwitch have fundamental influences over the development of the story's protagonist, Pip.
...rity, and the ending of his story he has sealed with pain and hardships of life. From losing his parents and sister, his best friend, being treated cold hearted by the love of his life Pip still manages to make it out in an okay way with the little hope with Estella and his close one's child who looks just like him in a scary way. It is not the best ending but it could've been worst for the young man. Pip's idea of life is truly suffering from the worst and getting only a little bit of resemblance from it.
influenced by various people. Pip experiences tough times as a boy and a young man, but at the end he has
The perennial pursuit of humankind is finding and establishing a unique identity while still maintaining enough in common with others to avoid isolation. This is the central pursuit of many of the characters in Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations, and it shapes the way that characters feel and interact in profound ways. Those who are certain of their selfhood are the most successful, and the acquisition of an identity is fundamental to achieve happiness and satisfaction for characters in Great Expectations.
Emily Augusta Patmore, née Andrews, was the inspiration for Coventry Patmore's iconic poem "The Angel in the House," both renowned and reviled for its depiction of the ideal Victorian woman. Some telling lines in the poem include "Man must be pleased; but him to please/Is woman's pleasure" and "she, too gentle even to force/His penitence by kind replies." Published in 1854, the poem paints a rosy picture of domestic Victorian life. It gained immense popularity in the years to follow, but became increasingly more controversial as western civilization uncertainly transitioned into an era of feminism and women's rights. Virginia Woolf, a 20th century English writer, notably mocked the poem by publishing her own work, a collection of essays entitled Killing the Angel in the House. Though the sentiments in the poem may be outdated now, it serves as a landmark, a reminder of how life was like for women during the Victorian era. Various other literary works published during the time also reflect similar themes, including Charles Dickens's bildungsroman Great Expectations, which charts the development of its main character but also follows women like Biddy and Estella, foils that seem like polar opposites at first but eventually both settle into their destined roles as domestic, inferior, Victorian women. Dickens's characterization of the alpha female Estella and the beta female Biddy in the novel Great Expectations reveals his misogyny and illustrates the Victorian theme that women are ultimately meant to be dominated.
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.
The main character, Pip, is a gentle character. His traits include humbleness, kindness, and lovingness. These traits are most likely the cause of his childhood poverty. In the beginning of the story, Pip is a mild mannered little boy who goes on with his own humble life. That, though, will change as he meets Magwich, a thief and future benefactor. Pip’s kindness goes out to help the convict, Magwich when he gives food and clothing to him. Magwich tells Pip that he’ll never forget his kindness and will remember Pip always and forever. This is the beginning of Pip’s dynamic change. Throughout the novel, Great Expectations, the character, Pip gradually changes from a kind and humble character to a character that is bitter, then snobbish and finally evolves into the kind and loving character which he was at the beginning of the story.
Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations depicts the desire of improvement through the conversation and actions of the characters, including Pip. Taking place in the 19th century, Great Expectations shows the important events of Pip’s life from the age of seven years old until his mid-thirties. Along the way, Pip meets a variety of friends and acquaintances that have an influence on him in forming his decisions and goals. They are constantly leaving him in confusion; however, Pip has the same influence on them. The friendships formed throughout the novel constantly make the characters reevaluate their choices, education, and rank in society in hopes of improving their life.
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.