Great Expectations by Charles Dickens :: Great Expectations Essays

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens Coursework Question: In the extract where Pip, a boy from a very humble background meets Miss Havisham, a rich but eccentric lady dickens wants the reader to feel sympathetic towards Pip. How does he make us feel this way? In this assignment, I will analyse, discuss and comment on the techniques Charles Dickens (Dickens) uses as a writer to gain sympathy for the main character Pip. I will look closely at setting, language, characterisation, the opening and closing of the extract. I will also quote ideas and phrases from the text to help me analyse and explain. Pip, the main character, is a lonely orphaned child. He lives with his sister and her husband the blacksmith. We know that Pip’s family is poor because they live of a blacksmith wages, not very much. The novel is set in the Victorian era where social status played a major role in daily life; we see this in the novel. Pip’s sister brought him up by ‘hand’ and finds he is a burden on her. Dickens chose to make the main character, Pip, lonely and poor to gain our sympathy. This novel is written in the voice first person, as if it were Pip telling the story. Dickens wrote this novel from Pip’s point of view. Pip is telling us the story when he is much older, as if he were thinking back to when he was a child. The fact that Dickens chose to make Pip, the main character, the narrator instead of another character creates a bond between Pip and us, the readers. In this extract Pip is sent by Mr Pumblechook, a distant relative, to see Miss Havisham (Havisham). Mr Pumblechook is not of higher class, but mingles well with them. Mr Pumblechook believes Havisham will take to Pip like she took to Estella, which would secure Pip’s future. Although another reason is that Pips sister finds he is a burden on her and wouldn’t mind getting rid of him. Pip is warned to behave, as Havisham is of higher social class and his sister doesn’t want him to ruin his chances. When Pip enters Havisham’s house we have hope for Pip that Havisham will take to him like she did to Estella. Havisham, as she is of higher, lives in a more lavish house than Pip. Dickens uses the setting to gain sympathy and to keep us interested. Pip enters a large room, he very observant. For example he mentions, ‘pretty large room, well lighted with wax candles.’ The description creates a mental image in our minds of where he is, immediately we