The main feature in this novel is the idea of dreams. All the characters in this novel are controlled by there own aspirations and most of these dreams are naïve which causes inconsistency and disenchantment in the novel. In this novel dreams are linked with people from a lower social status with characters wanting better for themselves or others. Briefly speaking, in this novel Mrs Joes dream is for pip (Phillip pirrip) to become a gentleman, a dream based on social snobbery. There is no way of happening as there is little chance of social improvement in Victorian society. Joes dream is for pip to become his blacksmith apprentice and ever the best of friends. With both of these dreams a conflict is to be caused between the husband and wife.
The main character and narrator of the novel, Pip is a man that all through his young life tries to better himself because he is ashamed of who he is, and where he came from. When fortune falls in his lap, Pip is forced to realize that money does not make you happy, and that it cannot buy what he wants most, Estella’s love. Miss Havisham, A woman with a severely broken heart, she lives her life as if time stopped at twenty minutes to nine and daylight does not exist. Her only tender emotions she reserves for her adopted daughter Estella who she raises to break men’s hearts. Pip becomes a toy to her and a boy for Estella to practice on. Abel Magwitch, A convict and Pip’s benefactor; at different times in the story Magwitch is both villain and hero. After the loss of his daughter, Magwitch develops affection for the young boy who brings him food, brandy, and a file. Wanting the boy to be all he couldn’t be, he devotes his life to making money and giving it to the boy to be a gentleman. Magwitch risks his life so he can see Pip.
Phillip pirrip or pip is an orphan raised by his domineering sister and her kind husband, before he had any expectations he was just a simple boy.
“My father’s family name being Pirrip, and my Christian name Phillip, my infant tongue could make of both names nothing longer or more explicit than Pip. So, I called myself Pip, and came to be called Pip.” (Pg. 3) This is the opening statement of Dickens’s novel and it shows us how simple the young Pip was before his expectations ever began. From the day that Miss Havisham invites pip to meet her and her adopted child Estella, pips life is to be changed. After seeing Estella who is a beautiful child pips desire and dream commences and from now on he wants to be a gentleman. As Joe was his best friend and he had the hope that Pip would become his apprentice. The word blacksmith is hated by him. Miss Havisham treats him like himself but he does not accept the fact and although he hates her still he comes back to her. This is mostly for Estella; he is so unconscious that he keeps on going back with the intention that only she is his chance of improvement again just relying on others for support. Further on in the story his dream partly comes true as he has an unknown benefactor who is later presented as Abel Magwitch who in pips young days was a horrific person that pip helped escape. Even though his dream has come true he has one more desire which is to marry Estella but the novel is later twisted with a series of events. Pip has neither the self control nor the experience of becoming a true gentleman, he ends up spending more than what is expected leaving him in debt and later imprisoned now he is back where he started from and also Estella gets married which now his heart is shattered. No improvement has been made in pips fortune, in his life we find that his dreams were shattered even though they came true this maybe because he has imperfection in his personality and does not hesitate and think ahead.
Miss Havisham, her dream is rather alarming as she wants too seek revenge on all male sex the reason for this is because of the cruel treatment she received from her fiancé. Since that day she has been wearing the same bridal clothing and has not removed anything out or out of place in her home. She lives her life vicariously through Estella whom she adopted and is used to break every male’s heart. She invites males from when they are young so slowly there hearts may be broken, eventually her dream also fails as many know about her plans and they tend to ignore her. “Well, I thought I overheard Miss Havisham answer- only it seemed so unlikely- ‘Well, you can break his heart.’” (Pg. 59) Another instance of foreshadowing, this is the first point in the story when the reader can see Miss Havisham’s plot with Estella. Further on her plans come to an end as Estella is married to Drummel who is a cold hearted man and now she is beaten and treated the same as his “animals” as drummel states in the novel also Estella says “he whips his horses, in comparison I’m spared”. Now Estella ends back at Satis house alone just like Miss Havisham, neither the two have succeeded in there dreams.
Abel Magwitch, who is at first a gruesome prisoner that escapes on the marshes where he meets pip. “…for he gave me a look that I did not understand, and it all passed in a moment. But if he had looked at me for an hour, or a day, I could not have remembered his face ever afterwards, as having been more attentive.” (Pg. 37) Pip is talking about his convict after the soldiers catch him. This passage is important to the story because it foreshadows all that is to come. Pip could not interpret what the convict felt for him. He was sent down to Australia where he made a fortune by farming but after all that time he still risked his life and came back to England so he can be pips benefactor, because of the favour pip had done him. Pip does not know who his benefactor is as he couldn’t even imagine it would be Magwitch. “Yes, Pip, dear boy, I’ve made a gentleman on you!” (Pg. 315) Magwitch tells Pip this the first night he comes to his house. It reveals that Magwitch is his benefactor and this one statement totally changes Pips outlook on his good fortune. His dream comes to an end as he is sophisticated and does not realise that he is a convict, the novel ends where he began it as a convict, no improvements has been made in his life also.
All the characters did not go far with there dreams as they too hasty into doing things, firstly pip with all the money he has he squanders it all, Miss Havisham relies on Estella when she is married and beaten and Magwitch who is an escaped convict doesn’t realise that pip cannot become a gentleman as Magwitch himself is not a noble person. All three characters inhabit imperfection in their own personalities and are ruined matters beyond their control. Pip tries to become a gentleman when his benefactor is not a nobleman and his origin is a blacksmith, Miss Havisham adopts Estella to take her revenge through Estella and Magwitch is trying to be pips father which he can never be, none realise and are expecting too much of themselves. All characters are linked in this way that they could try to use any means to make there dreams come true but it will not work as somewhere at some point there will be a tun over as they are imperfect in some ways.
All their dreams are unreal and because of this they act unusually and behave the way they shouldn’t. Their expectations are far too great for them too control over and from this they fail into fulfilling their dreams and aspirations. This novel is a mirror image of dickens and from this he wanted for the middle and upper classes to understand the life’s of the working class people and also children along with the difficulties and hardship they had to go through.
