Around the time Great Expectations was written a lot of children were dying at young age due to quite a lot of diseases going about. This could mean that Great Expectations suggests to us that Pip is lucky to avoid catching anything that would put his life in danger. Being a rather small sized child, he could have had more chance of catching something, as he could be weak or even scrawny, catching disease would hav surely gave him the same fate as his brothers and sisters. That outcome being dying at a young age, as all of his brothers and sisters passed away whilst still children. Dickens refers to Pip as “ that small bundle of shivers; he then goes on to say that Pip beings to cry with it all, this is as he is reading the tombstone. This once again makes us feel sorry for young Pip. This also gives us the impression that the tombstone he is reading is towering over him like some kind of stone giant. Making Pip feel small and wear, and also giving the reader a very vivid image of what is happening at the precise moment in time.
To give a greater sense of terror felt by Pip after his meeting with the convict, Dickens uses the darkness of Gothic-like descriptions of the scene. “ He hugged his shuddering body in both his arms”, “ he limped towards the low church wall”. Immediately, that suggests to the reader the intense feeling of cold and dampness of possibly bleakness ( often associated with Dickens work ). The mention of “ picking his way through nettles and brambles that bound the green mounds” this gives the impression of hostile surroundings, therefore adding to the bleakness of the scene. The more frightening aspect of this setting, by far, is the comparison used to “ the hands of dead people stretching upwards from their graves trying to grab his ankles and then pull him in “. The scene that immediately follows the graveyard is that of the marshes. The fact that they are described as a long black horizontal line, with the sky being a row of angry red lines and dense black lines intermixed. This gives the reader a sense of the total desolation of the place - black, cold and damp. The mention of the graveyard in such detail and the cold and damp weather setting suggests the total feeling of isolation that Pip must have felt. Not only his feeling of isolation but also the suggestion that the churchyard scene so isolated in its own location. With the mention of a low church wall along with the undergrowth and the tombstones and then further on the marshes. Dickens concentrates totally on the churchyard and marsh-land settings with no suggestion of any other buildings or people in sight, apart from the cattle mentioned in the distance. The use of the gothic genre sets a very scary and desolate scene early in the story, its darkness works well in trying to imagine the terror felt by Pip. Once he starts to ran away the reader can almost share his relief as this isolated place is pushed further away from him.
Pip thinks he is alone in the church yard, looking at the graves of his parents and family. The setting is very cold and bleak with a strong sense of sadness and desolation. As he beings to cry, A voice shouts cut “ hold your noise,” suddenly a man appears from among the graves this is the introduction of the convict. “ Keep still you little devil, or I’ll cut your throat” these few four words provide the character and the reader with shock and horror. The convict is described in fearful way, imagine being a small young boy being confronted by this giant of a man. The description of the convict is very graphic, dressed in “ coarse grey”, “with a great iron on his leg.” His shoes are broken and he wears an old rag around his head. He is soaking wet, covered in mud, with cuts and nettles stings on him. He “ limped and shivered, glared at the ground” The convict towerd over Pip and was portrayed as a daunting figure. The description which Dickens of the convict in certain scenes chosen to conjure up the gothic and almost frightening image of this man. Pips reaction to the convict was complete shock and terror, this could also be passed through imagery to the reader. He was frozen with the fear when the convict threatened to cut his throat. The convict picks Pip up and turns him up-side down, whilst saying “ what fat cheeks you ha’ got”, “Darn me if I ‘em” This creates the image of the convict being a giant as he can just pick a young child so easily, without effort. This part of Chapter one also strongly puts across the aggressive nature of the convict, make us feel once again that little but more sorry for Pip
In Chapter 39 of Great Expectation the role of Pip and the convict reverse, where Pip, because of his status and wealth, is in control. The convict, although still a frightening sight appears more humble and less aggressive. Pip finds him totally repugnant and he seems more aggressive to the convict by what he thinks of him. This suggests that Pip could be “ getting his own back “. Pip is now in a position of deciding whether the convict lives or dies. He could easily turn him into the police and that would mean death by hanging. He does not turn the convict in, still showing us the sweet humble harmless Pip of Chapter one. But Pip is still in a absolute position of power over the convict despite this.
The setting provides us with a frightening scene. Firstly, Pip is all alone and hears a voice that should not be there. Secondly it is Eleven O’clock at night and there is a storm brewing, some of the lamps have blown and making it very dark and with a howling wind also. “ I heard a footstep on the stair”. “ There is someone down there, is there not ?” “Yes”
Pip is now twenty three years old, he is in a position of wealth and knowledge and lives in London, near Saint Paul’s Cathedral. The convict is described as roughly dressed with “ long iron grey hair “. He looked about sixty but seemed strong with a very weathered appearance. Initially the convict has the same effect on Pip as he did in Chapter one. The shock of hearing someone on the stairs, which is just re-instating the shock from Chapter one between the two characters. Pip, after seeing the convict holding out his hands to him, is filled with amazement. This differs from the fear Pip felt when he first met the convict Pip has resentment for him and initially thinks he is mad.
After the convict tells Pip and the money he is filled with abhorrence, dread and repugnance for hi,. Pip can’t stand him, the closeness of the convict makes his blood run cold. Think Pip should have been a little more appreciative of all that the convict had suffered in order to give him wealth and status. I could understand the “initial shock” of the news but after that Pip should have considered that, if not for the convict, he would not be in the position he is in now.
Dickens’ message about social class indicates to he that everyone has the potential to make something of themselves, weather they are rich or poor, advantaged or disadvantaged. If people work hard dedication to a particular goal it can be achieved. This is illustrated by the convicts dedicated efforts to earn money in order to make life better for Pip. Also Pips ability to learn and improve his life. Pip started out very poor orphaned and through a chance meeting with a strange man his life would change for the better.
Dickens was such a good person to write about social class because he saw the poor and disadvantaged as a daily basis. He could compare it to his own situation as he was educated and mixed with there more well off as well as mixing with the poor. He saw all of the injustices that the social class system brought about.