«Great expectation» by Charles Dickens

Introduction

The theme of my course work sounds as following: «Great expectation» by Charles Dickens". This course work can be characterized by the following:

The actuality of this work caused by several important points. We seem to say that Charles Dickens novels are one of the main trends in development of English literature in the 19th century, especially in Queen Victorian period of ruling the country, that works were written in its turn at high degree and concluded the development of country, culture, about life of poor and reach people in Victorian age and one of the influenced writer or best know writer of «Critical Realism» period in English literature who was Charles Dickens. So the significance of our work can be proved by the following reasons:

To give information about Charles Dickens life.

To be acquantance with the works of Charles Dickens.

To study, analyze, and sum up all the possible changes happened in the life of plots in «Great Expectation» novel.

To mention all the major of themes and opinions concerning in the novel.

The practical significance of the work can be concluded in the following items:

a) The work could serve as a good source of learning Dickens' novel «Great Expectation» by young teachers and students at schools and colleges.

b) The students and teachers could find a lot of interesting information for themselves about the novel.

Having said about the scholars studied the material before we can mention that my course work was based upon the investigations made by a number of well known English, Russian and Uzbek scholars as Ackroyd, Peter, Butt, John E. and Kathleen Tillotson, Chesterton G.K., Катарский Игорь Максимилианович, Скуратовская Л., А. А. Аникст и В. В. Ивашев, N. Buranov, and some others.

The general structure of my course work looks as follows:

The work is composed onto three major parts: introduction, main part and conclusion. Each part has its subdivision onto the specific thematically items. There are two points in the introductory part: the first item tells about the purpose of my course work and the practical value while other gives us about scholar who made research in Charles Dickens works and the general structure of my course work. The main part bears the five points in itself. The first point explains shortly Dickens' life and personal life. The second item gives briefer description of Dickens' books and place in literature. In the third point we study Symbolism in «Great Expectation». In the fourth paragraph of the my course work we deal with one of the most fascinating themes «infatuation and how it compares to and relates to love». The last paragraph of the main part analyzes the main plot of this story Pip’s Portrait in Great Expectation.

The conclusion of the course work sums up the reasons why I have chosen the «Great Expectation» by Charles Dickens not other writers or not other Dickens' works.

Charles Dickens' Life

Charles Dickens (1812−1870)

He was a great English novelist and one of the most popular writers of all time. His best-know books include `A Christmas Carol, David Copperfield, Great Epectations, Oliver Twist, The Pick-wick Papers, and a Tale of Two Cities. Dickens created some of the most famous characters in English literature. He also created scenecs and descriptions of places that have long delighted readers. Dickens was a keen observer of life and had a great understanding of humanity, especially of young people. He sympathized with the poor and helpless, and mocked and criticized the selfish, the greedily and the cruel.

Dickens was also a wonderfully inventive comic artist. The warmth and humor of his personality appear in all his works. Perhaps in no other large body of fiction does the reader receive so strong and agreeable an impressions of the person behind the story.

Dickens' Life

Charles John Huffam Dickens was born in Portsmouth, England, on Feb 7, 1812. He moved with his family to London when he was about two years old. Many of the events and people in Dickens' books are based on events and people in his life. Dickens’s father, John Dickens, was a poor and easygoing clerk who worked for the navy. John served in some respects as the model for Wilkins Micawber in David Copperfield. He spent time in prison for debt, an event that Charles re-created in Little Dorrit. Even when John was free, he lacked the money to support his family adequately. At the age of 12, Charles worked in a London factory pasting labels on bottles of shoe polish. He held the job only a few months, but the miser or that experience remained with him all his life.

Dickens attended school off an on until he was 15, and then left for good. He enjoyed riding and was especially fond of adventure stories, fairy tales, and novels. He was influenced by such earlier English writers asn William Shakespeare, Tobias Smollet and Henry Fielding. However, most of the knowledge he later used as an author came from his observation of life around him.

Dickens became a newspaper reporter in the late 1820's. He specialized in covering debates in Parliament and also wrote feature articles. His work as a reporter sharpened his naturally keen ear for conversation and helped develop his skill in protracting his characters speech realistically. It also increased has ability to observe and to write swiftly and clearly. Dickens’s first book, «Sketches by Boz (1836)», consisted of articles he wrote for the Monthly Magazine and the London Evening Chronicle. These descriptions, fictional portraits, and short stories surveyed manners and conditions of the time.

Personal life.

Personally unhappiness marred Dickens' public success. In 1836, he married Catherine Hogarth. Catherine had a sister Mary, who died in 1837. Dickens' greif at Mary’s death has led some scholars to believe that he loved Mary more than his wife. Catherine was a good woman but lacked great intelligence. She and Dickens had 10 children. The couple separated in 1858.

Dickens had remarkable mental and physical energy. He recorded his activities in thousands of letters, many of which make delightful reading. He spent much of his crowded social life with friends from the worlds of art and literature. Dickens enjoyed drama and went to the theater as often as he could. When he was rich and famous, he made a hobby of producing and acting in amateur theatrical productions. He had great success giving public readings of his works. Dickens gift for Creating dramatic scenes in his novels can be traced to his love for the theater.

Besides, writing, editing, and touring as a dramatic reader, Dickens busied himself with various charities. These charities included schools for poor children and a loan society to enable the poor to move to Australia. Dickens often walked for hours to work off his remaining energy. He came to know the streets and alleys of London better, perhaps, than any other person of his time.

Dickens' health began to decline about 1865 and he died of a stroke on June 9, 1870.

Charles Dickens' career.

Literary success.

Dickens won his first literary fame with «The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club». Published in monthly parts in 1836 and 1837, the book describes the humorous adventures and misadventures of a group of slightly eccentric characters in London and the English country side. After a slow start, «The Pickwick Papers" — as the book is usually called-gained a popularity seldom matched in the history of literature. At 24, Dickens suddenly found himself famous. He remained so until his death.

Dickens founded and edited two highly successful weekly magazines. He edited Household Words from 1850 to 1859 to his death. As a public figure, Dickens was constantly in the news, and was recognized and honored wherever he went. He was famous in America as well as in Britain, and he toured the United States in 1842 and in 1867 and 1868.

Dickens' book.

Dickens wrote 20 novels (including 5 short Christmas books), and many sketches, travel books, and other non-fiction works. Not all of his books were best sellers, but the most popular one broke all sales records for the time. Most his novels were published in sections.

The first phase.

After the success of «The Pickwick Papers», Dickens turned to more serious themes and plots. However, he always introduced enough humor to keep his books entertaining.

«Oliver Twist» (1837−1839), describes the adventures of poor orphan boy. The book was noted for its sensational presentation to London’s criminal world and for its attack on England’s mistreatment of the poor.

«In Nicholas Nickleby» (1838−1839), Dickens criticized greedy proprietors of private schools, who treated students brutally and taught them nothing.

«The old Curiosity Shop» (1840−1841) is less respected today than when it was first published, largely because the death scene of Little Nel seems sentimental to modern tastes.

«Barnaby Rudge (1841) is a historical novel that deals with a series of riots in London in 1780. Martin Chuszzlwit (1843−1844) is one of two books that Dickens based on his first trip to America. The other is the travel book American Notes (1842). Dickens intended Martin Chuzzlewit to be a study of many forms of selfishness. But it is best known for its unflattering picture of the crudeness of American manners and for its comic characters. Two of its finest creations are the hypocrite Pecksniff and the chattering, alcoholic midwife Sairey Gamp. Dickens wrote his five «Christmas books» during the 1840's. The first, A Christmas Carol 1843, is one of the most famous stories ever written. In the book, three ghosts show the old miser Ebenezer Scrooge his past, present and future. Realizing that he has been living a life of greed, Scrooge changes into a warm and unselfish person. The other Christmas books are The Chimes 1844, The Cricket on the Hearth 1845, The Battle of life 1846 and The Haunted Man 1848.

The second phase.

During the 1840's, Dicknes' view of Victiorian society, and perhaps of the world, grew darker. His humor became more bitter, often taking the form of biting satire. His characters and plots seemed to emphasize the evil side of human experience.

At the same time, He increasingly refined his art. The range of his tone widened and he paid more attention to structure and arrangement. He turned to symbolic themes to help express and expand his observations on topical political and social issues and on large-matters of morality and values. The unhealthy London fog in Bleak House, for example, symbolizes the illness of society, especially its lack of responsibility toward the downtrodden and the unfortunate.

«Dombey and Son 1846−1846 deals primarily with a selfish egotist whose pride cuts him off from the warmth of human love. The book stresses the evils of the Victorian admiration for money. Dickens believed that money had become the measure of all personal relations and the goal of all ambition.

With David Copperfield 1849−1850 Dickens temporarily lessened the role of social criticism to concentrate money on semi autobiography. The novel describes a young man’s discovery of the realities of adult life. David’s youth is clearly patterned after Dickens’s youth.

Bleak House 1852−1853 is in many respects Dickens greatest novel. It has a complex structure and many levels of meaning, mixing melodrama with satire and social commentary. The book deals with many social evils, chiefly wasteful and cruel legal processes. It also attacks the neglect of the poor, false humanitarians and clergyman, and poor sanitation.

The long novel was followed by the much shorter and simpler Hard Times 1854. Hard Times attacks philosopher jeremy Benthatm’s doctrine of tulitarianism. Benthatm believed that all human ideas, actions, and institutions should be judged by their usefulness. Dickens was convinced that Bentham reduced social relations to problems of cold, mechanical self-interest.

In Little Dorrit 1855−1857, Dickens continued his campaign against materialism and snobbery, which were represented by the rich Merdle family and their social-climbing friends. He also ridiculed government inefficiency in the form of the «Circumlocution Office. The prison like the fog in Bleak House, is symbolic. It stands for the painful conditions of life in a materialistic decaying society.

A tale of two Cities 1859 was the second of Dickens two historical novels. It is set in London and Paris and tells of the heroism of fictional Sidney Carton during the French Revolution.

In Great Expectations 1860−1861, Dickens returned to theme of a youth’s discovery of the realities of life. An unknown person provides the young hero Pip with money so that Pip can live as gentleman. Pip’s pride is shattered when he learns the source of his «great expectations». Only by painfully revising his values does Pip establish his life on a foundation of sympathy, rather than on vanity, possessions, and social position.

Our Mutual Friend 1864−1865 was Dickens' final novel of social criticism. Dickens again attacked the false sides of the newly rich. He satirized greed, using the great garbage heaps of the London dumps as a symbol of filthy money. The novel is also notable for its suggestive use of London' River Thames.

Dickens had completed about one-third of his novel The Mystery of Edwin Drood when he died. Nobody shows how Dickens intended the story to end. Scholars and readers throughout the years have proposed many possible solutions for the mystery.

Dickens' place in literature.

Dickens is now considered one of the major figures of English literature, but his position was not always so high. His reputation declined between 1880−1940. This was partly due to the psychological emphasis that became fashionable in novels after Dickens’s death. Critics valued Dickens chiefly as an entertainer and above as a creator of a huge gallery of comic, pleasant, and famous characters. They recognized him as a master creator of plot and scene, and as a sharp-eyed observer of Lodon life. But they considered his outlook simple and unrealistic. They believed he lacked artistic taste and relied too much on broad comedy, dramatic effects, sentimentality, and superficial psychology.

However, since 1940, numerous books and essays have described Dickens as a writer of considerable depth and complexity. He has also been praised as a sensitive and philosophic observer of human struggles thing social institutions. In this sense, Dickens has been associated with such authors as Herman Melville, Franz Kafka and Fyodor Dostoevsky.

Recent criticism has demonstrated that Dickens can no longer be regarded only as a entertainer, though his ability to entertain is probably the major reason fo his popularity. Whatever his other claims to greatness may be, Dickens ranks as a superbly inventive comic artist. His characters have been compared to those of Shakespeare in their variety, color, energy, and life. Dickens was aware of human evil, but he never lost his perspective. His art was sustained by an awareness and appreciation of the human comedy.

Symbolism in «Great Expectation»

dickens career symbolism novel

In life, symbolism is present all around us. Whether it is in the clothes we wear, the things we do, or what we buy, everything has a meaning. Symbolism is also present in literature and it is shown in Charles Dickens Great Expectations.

The symbols of isolation, manipulation, the tragic hero, and wanting to be someone else are seen throughout the book through the characters of Estella, Magwitch, Miss Havisham, and Pip.

The character of Estella represents the symbols of isolation and manipulation.

By acting as an adult when she was still young, she separated herself from Pip and others. This was due in large part to the way Miss Havisham, her stepmother, raised her. She had no emotion, as Miss Havisham used her for revenge on men. On his first visit to the Satis House, Pip overheard Miss Havisham tell Estella «Well? You can break his heart.». By doing what Miss Havisham tells her to, she shows she is just as heartless as her stepmother. She also represents manipulation in how she played with Pip’s feelings, who has strong feelings for her even though he also cannot stand her. She tells Pip «Come here! You may kiss me if you like.». Although the kiss may have meant a lot to Pip, it did not mean anything to Estella as she was just playing with Pip’s emotions.

The character of Magwitch represents the symbols of isolation and the tragic hero. In this case, he was physically isolated from society because he was a convict and was looked upon with disgust. When Magwitch confesses and apologizes to Joe for stealing the food, Joe replies «poor miserable fellow creatur». Magwitch also illustrates the symbol of the tragic hero. Throughout most of thebook, Magwitch is looked down upon by Pip. Magwitch talks about his gratitude for Pip when he helped him as a convict many years ago. «You acted noble, my boy,» said he. «Noble Pip! And I have never forgot it!». He shows why he is a hero when he explains to Pip that he was the benefactor and the one responsible for making him a gentleman and helping him achieve his great expectations. «Yes, Pip, dear boy, I’ve made a gentleman on you! It’s me wot done it!» [359−360]. After his death, however, Pip feels guilt and sadness when he learns what Magwitch spent most of his life trying do. As a result, he shows the readers why he was the tragic hero.

One character who represents the symbols of isolation and manipulation is Miss Havisham. For most of her life, she has refused to let go of her past as she continues to wear her wedding dress and keep her wedding cake. Her decaying dress and cake are symbols of how her life rotted away. It also depicted the state of the Satis House, where she was isolated from the rest of society. The house is used as a metaphor to show how they decayed and crumbled as time passed on. Miss Havisham also illustrates the symbol of manipulation. She had raised Estella as a heartless stepdaughter whose main purpose was to seek revenge on men. This central motivation of revenge resulted from the fact that she was a rejected lover. Her plan is shown when she tells Estella to go play with Pip.

" Well? You can break his heart.". As a result, she made Estella into a human monster with no emotion. Near the end, Miss Havisham dies a hopeless neurotic.

The one character who shows the symbol of how people always want to be someone else but than decide they are better off with whom they are is Pip, the story’s protagonist. As a boy, Pip wishes to be a gentleman. With unknown help from Magwitch the convict, Pip’s dreams come true. After attaining his fortune and his expectations, Pip is miserable. «As I had grown accustomed to my expectations, I had intensibly begun to notice their effect upon myself and those around me.». He noticed the negative effects as he was in debt because of his lavish spending and he also realized how much he neglected Joe and Biddy, his two best friends as a kid. In the end, Pip changes as he becomes a loyal friend to Magwitch in his time of need, tries to repair his relationship with Joe and Biddy, and goes from almost total destruction to moderate business success. He also shows how people gain from giving. The only good fortune from the money he received from his private benefactor, Magwitch, was giving it to Herbert.

As shown from the examples above, symbolism plays an important part in Charles Dickens Great Expectations. Many symbols such as isolation, manipulation, the tragic hero, and wanting to be someone else are present throughout the novel and are brought to life by the characters. People in today’s society must realize that a lot of what we do symbolizes something about us and helps explain who we are as people.

Infatuation and how it compares to and relates to love

There were several themes associated with the novel Great Expectations. One of the most fascinating themes dealt with «infatuation and how it compares to and relates to love» («Infatuation»). Infatuation is basically an obsession, or extravagant affection towards a person. There is really no definite reason behind their passion, therefore this feeling is often short in duration and indicative of faulty judgment. The person doesn’t know what these feelings mean, this is normally why they mistake it for love. Love, on the other hand, is an intense affectionate concern for another person. It is a more selfless and settled feeling. You can compare the difference between love and infatuation with the cliche «All that glitters is not gold», the glitter illusion being infatuation and the gold being love, the real thing. As a person grows and experiences their feelings with many other people, the distinction between love and infatuation becomes more clear. This is because the person can compare feelings they have experienced in the past, with their present feelings.

In Great Expectations we see how Pip’s infatuation for Estella is «short in duration», as most infatuations are. Despite the fact that Estella is arrogant and rude, Pip is not only infatuated with her beauty and wealth, but also almost envies it. In fact the humiliation Estella puts Pip through, causes Pip to feel very lowly of himself and the way he has been brought up. This causes Pip’s expectations to change from expecting to be Joe’s blacksmith apprentice, to studying to become a gentlemen noticed and admired by Estella. As years pass, Estella continues to play with Pip’s heart, and Pip continues to unconditionally have feelings for her. Later, Estella marries a man named Bently Drummle, only causing Pip to, yet again, confess his love to Estella. Estella tells Pip «I know what you mean as form of words, but nothing more.» This basically means that Estella can hear what Pip is telling her, but she doesn’t see how he could love her. Regardless of that, and the fact that Estella is to be married, Pip still continues to fantasize about Estella. Soon, Pip starts to learn more about her, and her past, through Miss Havisham. These talks with Pip helps make Miss Havisham into a kinder and happier person. Feeling that he cannot have Estella, and that the world around him has changed, Pip decides to propose to Biddy. He really has no reason why he wants to marry Biddy, except for the fact that he’s feeling loss and lost, and vulnerable. Yet in his search to find her, he finds something else. To his surprise, Biddy is already married, to Joe! Pip leaves not yet reconciled with neither Biddy nor Joe. Eleven years later, Pip visits Biddy and Joe. He finally reconciles with them and meets their son, little Pip. This shows that Pip has grown, and is ready to start a new, happier beginning with the people from his past. Later, Pip goes to the Satis House and sees Estella for the first time in years. For the first time, he saw the saddened, softened light of once proud eyes, and felt the friendly touch of then once insensible hand. This, of course, means Estella has changed as well. Her experience with her failed marriage with Drummle has showed her how to feels to be hurt. Suffering all those years was a stronger effect than Miss Havisham’s teachings. These experiences have given her the heart to understand what Pip’s heart used to be. Though it is not really clear whether the two characters do eventually fall in love, in the end they both have found a state of happiness.

Another good example of a character’s experience distinguishing love and infatuation is with Dickens' character, Biddy. Though Pip has always seen his relationship with Biddy as brother and sister like, Biddy has seen it in a whole different way. She has always had a tremendous crush on Pip, but she doesn’t really know why she feels this way about him. Maybe it’s because they grew up with one another, and spent time with one another, but she really has no definite answer. These factors allow this crush to apparently fall under the category of infatuation. Throughout most of Great Expectations she tries to pursue Pip, but he never falls for her. The reason being that he’s not only not interested in Biddy, but also because he is continually trying to be the kind of gentlemen that will make Estella notice him. To add to that he leaves for London. These actions made by Pip eventually become factors that make Biddy realize that the «strong» feelings that Pip has for Estella will always be a part of his character. She will always hold a place in his heart. This also makes Biddy realize she really has no definite reason why she likes Pip so much. Meanwhile, with Pip gone, Biddy and Joe find that they have more time to spend with one another. Biddy teaches Joe to read and write. With their relationship at a higher level, they realize they share many of the same values and morals. This causes the two characters to begin to become closer. Biddy’s experiences with Pip and Joe has made her realize what love and happiness really is, and she finds those feelings in Joe.

In conclusion, love and infatuation have both their positive and negative effects. Infatuation may mislead you to believe that’s you’re in love. But most importantly it provides «experience for people to grow and learn about what kind of qualities they cherish and what kind of people they like to spend time with» («Infatuation»). Infatuation also teaches us that it is truly what is in the inside that counts. In the long run, it is what is skin deep keeps that keeps old feelings seem so new. As both of the relationships analyzed above show, infatuation helps you realize that passion without reason is just a waste of time. So, why settle for all that glitters, when you can have gold?

Pip's Portrait in Great Expectation

One of the most important and common tools that authors use to illustrate the themes of their works is a character that undergoes several major changes throughout the story. In Great Expectations, Charles Dickens introduces the reader to many intriguing and memorable characters, including the eccentric recluse, Miss Havisham, the shrewd and careful lawyer, Mr. Jaggers, and the benevolent convict, Abel Magwitch. However, without a doubt, Great Expectations is the story of Pip and his initial dreams and resulting disappointments that eventually lead to him becoming a genuinely good man. The significant changes that Pip’s character goes through are very important to one of the novel’s many themes. Dickens uses Pip’s deterioration from an innocent boy into an arrogant gentleman and his redemption as a good-natured person to illustrate the idea that unrealistic hopes and expectations can lead to undesirable traits.

In the beginning of the novel, Pip is characterized as a harmless, caring boy, who draws much sympathy from the reader even though he is at that point content with his common life. The reader most likely develops warm and sympathetic feelings toward Pip after only the first two pages of the novel, which introduce the fact that Pip’s parents are «dead and buried» and that the orphan has never seen «any likeness of either of them» .Pip's confrontation with the convict presents his harmless, innocent nature. As Magwitch first seizes the young boy, Pip simply responds, «Oh! Don’t cut my throat, sir, O Pray don’t do it sir» (p. 2). Then, Pip is forced into submitting to the convict’s demands, mainly due to his naive fear of Magwitch’s fictitious companion who «has a secret way peculiar to himself of getting at a boy, and at his heart, and at his liver». Even though he aids the convict, the reader’s sympathy for Pip soon increases, as his robbery of his own home weighs greatly on his conscience. He seems to sincerely regret his actions and the fact that he «had been too cowardly to avoid doing what I knew to be wrong». Approximately one year after his encounter with the convict, Pip is still shown to be an innocent, caring boy. One night, when Pip and Joe are alone at the forge, Joe explains his various reasons for enduring Mrs. Joe’s constant abuse. After their conversation, Pip realizes that he cares deeply for Joe and appreciates everything that the blacksmith does for him. Also, he develops «a new admiration of Joe from that night» and «a new sensation of feeling conscious that I was looking up to Joe in my heart». Unfortunately, as Pip develops unrealistic hopes and expectations for his life, these positive characteristics are replaced by undesirable ones.

The expectations that cause Pip’s character to become less likable are those that he develops after being introduced to Miss Havisham and Estella. During his first visit to the Satis House, Estella, who considers herself much too refined and well-bred to associate with a common boy, scorns Pip. On the other hand, Pip seems to fall in love with Estella during that first meeting. He even admits to Miss Havisham that he thinks her adopted daughter is not only «very proud» and «very insulting,» but also «very pretty» and that he should «like to see her again». After just one afternoon at the Satis House, Pip develops a desire to become more acceptable to Estella, in hopes that her callous attitude toward him would change. As a result, while walking back to the forge, Pip begins to feel ashamed of his life. His mind is filled with regretful thoughts such as «that I was a common laboring-boy; that my hands were coarse; that my boots were thick; and generally that I was in a low-lived bad way». Pip realizes that his personality and outlook on his life is changing.

When his visits to the Satis House cease and he is apprenticed to Joe, Pip becomes even more deeply ashamed of his position in society because he believes that it will ruin his hopes of Estella loving him. He constantly worries that Estella will see him at the «unlucky hour» when he is at his «grimiest and commonest», but he endures his shame with an irrational hope, «that perhaps Miss Havisham was going to make my fortune when my time was out». Then, when Mr. Jaggers informs Pip of the «great expectations» that have been placed on him, Pip thinks, without a doubt, «Miss Havisham was going to make my fortune on a grand scale». Also, he begins to believe that Miss Havisham has destined him to be married to Estella. Almost immediately, Pip’s ego grows tremendously, and he becomes arrogant as he looks down on his «common,» yet caring and loyal friends. For example, in a private conversation with Biddy, Pip tells his good friend that Joe «is rather backward in some things. In addition, when Pip is finally ready to depart for London, he tells Joe that he «wished to walk away all alone» because he privately fears the «contrast there would be between me and Joe» .

As the arrogant and ungrateful Pip continues to believe that Miss Havisham has chosen him to be the recipient of her money and, hopefully, of Estella’s hand in marriage, he also continues to be ashamed of and look down on his past life. On one occasion, Pip receives word that Joe will be visiting London and would like to see him. However, Pip is not at all overjoyed to receive this news. In fact, he looks forward to Joe’s visit «with considerable disturbance, some mortification, and a keen sense of incongruity,» and he states that he «certainly would have paid money» in order to keep Joe away. Pip is distraught over the prospect of others, especially Bentley Drummle, seeing him with the common blacksmith. After Joe’s departure, Pip decides that he should return to the forge, but the next day, he resolves to stay at the Blue Boar Inn, rather than at his old home. His snobbish reasoning is simply, «I should be an inconvenience at Joe’s; I was not expected, and my bed would not be ready». Then, Pip is so concerned with gaining Estella’s favour that he visits Miss Havisham’s home and returns to London while never stopping at the forge.

The negative attitudes and traits that Pip develops as a result of his unrealistic expectations are portrayed in ways other than his view of his past life. In London, while living as a «gentleman,» Pip has trouble managing his new way of life. During a dinner with other gentlemen, Pip has an irrational confrontation with his nemesis, Drummle. After Drummle proposes a toast to Estella, who has allowed «the Spider» to attach himself to her, Pip loses control of his emotions and accuses him of lying. Drummle is then able to provide proof that he has danced with Estella on several occasions, and Pip is forced to apologize for his outrageous actions. However, he and Drummle sit «snorting at one another for an hour» because Pip can «not endure the thought of her stooping to that hound». For many years, Pip had believed that he and Estella were destined to be married, but now his hopes and expectations are just beginning to fade.

When Pip finally learns that Abel Magwitch, not Miss Havisham, is his benefactor, his unrealistic expectations cease and his genuinely good nature begins to overcome the negative traits that he had developed. Also, he realizes that he was at fault for his non-realistic hopes. During a visit to the Satis House, Pip is able to hold no harsh feelings toward Miss Havisham for the misfortunes of his life. He refuses her offer to financially compensate him for his unhappy life, and instead, he requests that she provide aid to Herbert’s business situation. Then, he confesses that he can forgive her. Later, Pip revisits Miss Havisham’s room to check on her and finds that she had been too close to the fire, as her aged garments are ignited in flames. Pip immediately risks his own life to save the old woman. She receives serious burns and nerve damage, but she remains alive. Pip is also seriously burned.

Pip’s positive characteristics are also evident in his treatment of his benefactor, the convict Magwitch. Initially after the revelation, Pip’s reaction had been one of shock, disbelief, and even repugnance. However, he realizes and somewhat appreciates that Magwitch had tried to greatly repay him for the practically insignificant favour that Pip had provided for the convict as a child. Over time, Pip’s hard feelings toward his benefactor fade, and at one point he confesses that Magwitch «was softened indefinably, for I could not have said how, and could never afterwards recall how when I tried, but certainly». As he had done while saving Miss Havisham, Pip puts himself through great personal risks and inconveniences to save Magwitch. He is unsuccessful in fleeing the country with Magwitch, but his caring and devotion for the kind convict are unwavering, even though he will not receive any money after Magwitch’s death. Every day, Pip visits him in the infirmary in efforts to comfort Magwitch and to make the prisoner’s last days as peaceful as possible. Pip believes that his visits are somewhat cheering to Magwitch, and he goes to the infirmary every day until the convict’s tranquil death which is almost a blessing.

Just as Pip’s feelings toward Magwitch soften, so does his attitude toward his old life after the burden of his expectations is lifted. Soon after Magwitch dies, Pip becomes seriously ill. When he recovers, he learns that Joe had travelled to London to care for him. As he continues to nurse Pip back to good health, Joe remains formal and awkward around Pip, as he had acted while visiting Pip in London several years earlier. On the other hand, Pip begins to feel as if he had never left the forge. When Joe unexpectedly leaves London to return to the forge, Pip follows him as soon as he is physically able. At the forge, Pip no longer shows any feelings of shame or arrogance because he is now content and cheerful in his old surroundings.

At the conclusion of Great Expectations, the reader most likely finds Pip’s fate acceptable and enjoyable. Earlier in his life, he had changed from an innocent, caring boy into an arrogant young man as a result of his non-realistic hopes and expectations. However, when those expectations come to an end, so do his undesirable traits, as he is shown to be a truly good-natured person. Therefore, it is fitting that, in both of Dickens' final episodes, Pip is happy and content with his life.

Conclusion

Overall, it is clear that I would like to say the following thing about Charles Dickens and his story «Great Expectation». He was simple man; he loved ordinary people from lower classes. He did not evaluate them by their education, job or economic situation. That is why many of his heroes of his novels and especially of Great expectoration were poor, pity men who earned for living hardly but honestly. He believed in better future. This optimism is mentionable in most of his creative works. Capitalist society did not appeal him because he wanted people from lower classes to live less unhappy, less hungry, less insulted. Reading Great expectation of Charles Dickens we meet such problems, social class. 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. He was realistic writer and showed real picture of life with all of its good and bad sides, however, humor, high mood of these stories make us to believe in happy, joyful future. The vitality of Dickens' works is singularly great. They are written with hot human blood. They are popular in the highest sense because their appeal is universal, to the as well as the educated. The humor is superb, and most of it, so far as one can judge, of no ephemeral kind. The pathos is more questionable, but that too, at its simplest and best; and especially when the humor is shot with it — is worthy of a better epithet than excellent. It is supremely touching. Imagination, fancy, wit, eloquence, the keenest observation, the most strenuous endeavor to reach the highest artistic excellence, the largest kindliness, — all these he brought to his life-work. And that work, as I think, will live, it can be prophecy for ever. I choused Great Expectation of Charles Dickens because of the reasons which I gave below.

«My trust in people, who rule, is insignificant. My trust in people, who are being ruled, is boundless».

Bibliography

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