Great Expectations by Charles Dickens Book Analysis Essay

Our Society has many different types of people that believe and hold value to different things. Some people value love, loyalty, friendship, and other emotions. These people tend to care less about material items such as money, clothes, and luxury goods. However, other people care about the amount of money they have and their physical appearance. Society views people highly that have money and frowns upon those that do not. In Great Expectations, Charles Dickens uses loving and greedy characters that affect the life altering decisions that Pip must make. This book shows two prominently consistent concepts, showing love to people with a gentle heart or leading them down the cold path of fame and riches. Pip experienced love and contentment from Joe in his life but that joy had vanished when he met Miss Havisham and Estella. Joe tells Pip that “[They will] always [be] friends, and [that he would] be the last to tell upon [him]” (Dickens 10). Pip has grown up surrounded by Joe's love so he has been nothing but selfless and kind towards others. This is evident by his actions. When Pip visits his family's grave in a cemetery he meets a convict, Able Magwitch, from a nearby prison. The prisoner asks him to bring him a file and some food. Pip does so and the next day, soldiers come to his house to arrest Joe because they believe that Joe had helped the convict escape. The soldiers searched the grounds surrounding the prison to find the convict. After they found him in a ditch, they questioned the convict in the presence of the Gargery’s. Pip did not tell the truth, in fact he did not say anything to the soldiers. This shows Pip’s kindness and loyalty to the convict, even though everyone strongly agreed that he should have been in prison. Pip chose to show mercy to the convict without knowing why he was there or his intentions. Joe influenced Pip to have a kind heart.

Unfortunately, we see Pip’s love for others fade into a dark and twisted cold upon his heart. This occurs when he meets Miss Havisham at Mr. Wopsle’s request. When Pip meets Miss Havisham for the first time she asks him to play in front of her alone. Pip asks why and she states that “ ‘[She was] tired,’ [and] ‘ [Wanted] diversion[.] [she was] done with men and women.’ “(Dickens 60). This hints at Miss Havisham’s twisted ways of coercing people into who she wants them to become, a passionless and money driven person. When Pip discovers that his benefactor was not Miss Havisham he questions her as to why he led her on. “ ‘But when I fell into the mistake I have so long remained in, at least you led me on?’ said I. ‘Yes,’ she returned, again nodding steadily. ‘I let you go on.’ ‘Was that kind?’ ‘Who am I,’ cried Miss Havisham, striking her stick upon the floor, and flashing into wrath so suddenly that Estella glanced up at her in surprise, ‘who am I, for God's sake, that I should be kind?’ “ (Dickens 381) This truly expresses Miss Havisham’ psychological thinking and how rooted the importance of money and the suffering of others affects her. Pip suffered going through this because he was making certain decisions and assumptions based on the idea that Miss Havisham was his benefactor. Pip assumed that “Miss Havisham meant [them] for one another.” (Dickens 383) This proves how Miss Havisham affected Pip’s life by letting him be filled with hope that he would marry Estella and watch as his dreams became crushed in front of her eyes and be okay with it for the time being.

As Pip became aqant in his internship in London, he met Mr. Wemmick. Mr. Wemmick is the assistant of Mr. Jaggers, Pip’s manager. Mr. Wemmirk keeps his “work life” and “home life” very separate. This separation is to the point where he almost has a completely different personality at his job then at his home. When Pip goes to his house for the first time, he immediately notices the change in Mr. Wemmick’s personality. He is no long cold and harsh, like he is in the presence of Mr. Jaggers, his boss. His 81 year old deaf father lives with him and everyday he fires off a cannon because it is the only noise loud enough that his father can hear. When Mr. Wemmick fired the cannon, his father exclaimed “ ‘He’s fired! I heerd him!’ “ (Dickens 219) This shows that Mr. Wemmick cares for his father and is being compassionate towards him. Mr. Wemmick does not need to go through the process of firing a cannon so that his father can hear one loud blow. Yet, he does this because he is a caring and kind man. He also states that “[his father will] be eighty-two [his] next birthday…[and that he] has [the] notion of firing eighty-two times.” This further pushes his true love for his father. Pip is away in London and no longer has the support of Joe and Biddy, because they are so far away. Mr. Wemmick replaces this love so Pip is still experiencing love and joy from others in London.

Throughout Charles Dickens' Great Expectations, Pip has experienced people that care for the amount of money they have or the amount of love they give. He has presided in both of these atmospheres at a certain period of time in his life. Pip made assumptions and made decisions in his life based off of the people around him in his life. These decisions affected him throughout his entire life.