Dickens also uses pathetic fallacy to reinforce how Pips childhood is not the greatest “it was a rimy morning, and very damp” Dickens never refers to the weather as being pleasant and shiny but it is described as gloomy and uninviting. This then reinforces the fact that Pip does not have the best childhood and that he is very lonely. During the first part of great expectations Pip does not talk about any children, he never mentions playing with children. Most children in Pips time would have been playing games, play fighting and care free but as well as this I think that this also contrast with how people in the 1800’s because children could start to walk so Dickson’s could be saying that pip is so useless that he cannot even do work, but Pip was very different as he was curious, sensitive and easily influenced. Pip is the only child except for when he meets Estella.
When Pip was a young child he was sent to Miss Havisham’s to go to play, this is where he met Estella. When Pip gets to the house Estella is to escort him in, when she meets Pip she calls him ‘boy’ repeatedly and looks down on him. Although she does all this Pip still has respect for her as he calls her ‘miss’ even though they are the same age this shows he is an obedient child . As well as this Estella makes fun of Pips ‘course hands’ and calling ‘knaves, jacks’. After Estella says all this to Pip he starts to be ashamed of himself, he cares about what she has to say about him, she dislikes him so much that Pip starts to dislike himself for being so common. He begins to blame Joe and Mrs Joe for being the way he is, and he starts to become ashamed.
Pip has always looked up to Joe, as he felt like Joe was his equal and was the only one that truly cared for him. When Pip visits the Satis house he looks at his lifestyle differently as he feels more like a commoner and he is ashamed of his life style “I had believed that the forge was the glowing road to manhood and independence”. Pip had always wanted to be a blacksmith and believed that when he became a blacksmith he would become a man. Pip starts to blame Joe for the way he is, “all the merit of what I proceed to add was Joe’s”. All that Pip had achieved and learnt from Joe he feels that it was not important to society. Before the visit to Satis house Pip was proud of Joe and his achievement of becoming a blacksmith. This shows easily influenced Pip was because his visit to Satis house changed his view on life and society.
Estella had such a big impact on Pip that he started to take his school life seriously so that he might have a chance to prove to her he could be a man. As pip cared for Joe he felt that he had to teach him all he knew from what he learnt “whatever I acquired, I tried to impart to Joe”this means that what ever Pip learnt about being a gentleman he tried to teach Joe so that he may also become a gentleman. Pip starts to see Joe as a lower class than him “worthy of my society” Pip has becomes a bit of a snob and he is ashamed of the man who brought him up and stood by him. Pip is very patronising towards Joe, although Joe does not want to learn as he is pleased with his life.
Through out the first part of Great Expectations pip is trying to figure himself out, this is also shown in chapter one when Pip is in the grave yard looking at his parents grave stones “I drew a childish conclusion that my mother was freckled and sickly”. Pip is trying to figure out what his parents looked liked, as well as this it reinforces the fact that he is looking at himself from the adults perspective as he says ‘childish conclusion’ because as I child you do not see your conclusions as childish.
I believe Dickens lifestyle influenced his writing because it mirrors his childhood. Pip lived near the marshes so did Dickens. Both Pip and Dickens travelled to London where their lives changed for the better. Great expectation reflects the difference in society, Pip discovers that the world is seen in classes as well as this when Dickens went to London he realised the same thing. Dickens describes his childhood as dark, shameful, miserable, and poor and on his own. When Pip is looking at his younger self he realises that the he had an awful childhood and his sister was very mean to him. In addition Pip was a very lonely child like Dickens, he never had any friends and he never talked of any children. When Pip was a child his father was not around as he was dead, this relates to Dickens because his father went to prison for debt. I believe the reason that Pip’s father is dead is because Dickens felt like his father was dead as he was never there.
