How does chapter 8 prepare the reader for the novel to follow?prose coursework: great expectations by charles dickens

Authors Avatar

anirudh katoch

How does Chapter 8 Prepare the Reader for the Novel to Follow?

HOW DOES CHAPTER 8 PREPARE THE READER FOR THE NOVEL TO FOLLOW?

prose coursework: great expectations by charles dickens

anirudh katoch, king edward vi high school

Charles Dickens, the revolutionary 19th century novelist, wrote a bildungsroman of Phillip Pirrip (Pip) and the reality of his own “Great Expectations” in his pursuit to become a gentleman. In Chapter 8, the reader is introduced to Miss Havisham and Estella and this is where Pip first becomes dissatisfied with the life at the forge.

There were many writers in Dickens’ day whose works are no longer read; this is possibly because Dickens did something idiosyncratically different from his contemporaries. The plot of Great Expectations is quite complex, yet it is the way that Dickens handles the various elements of the plot that makes the novel appealing. For instance, the dexterity of one branch of the plot built up to the point where a major event is about to take place and then the scene modifies to another plot. This control of tension – making the audience wait – is a major component of the author’s craft and can be experienced in this chapter.

The chapter itself is positioned after Pip encounters the convict. This chapter contrasts with the other and acts as an expositional stage of the book. This links with the authorial style of Dickens and how he builds up certain areas of the novel to prepare for other stages of the book. As Chapter 8 sets up the characters and links them together, Dickens is preparing for the end of the novel.

This chapter is significant as it introduces the reader to fundamental characters and themes, which fabricates the intricate web of Pip’s development. A new storyline, focused on Miss Havisham and Estella, is now developed. It establishes relationships between Pip, Miss Havisham and Estella and it prepares the plot for confusion later in the novel.

Miss Havisham is a pathetic character that has withdrawn from the world. By introducing this character, the questions of why she is withdrawn and how this is related to the subplot concerning the convicts are left unanswered. It is not until during Chapters 40-42 that the reader finds out about Miss Havisham’s connection with the convicts.

Dickens is deliberately vague about Miss Havisham’s past. This allows him later to introduce the idea that she might be Pip’s benefactor. From the first point of contact Dickens is creating twists and turns later in the novel.

The eccentricity and eeriness of Miss Havisham fascinates the reader, as she is one of fiction’s strangest”(Ch. 8 p. 46) women. Questions are posed in this chapter about the connection between her and Estella and why is she wearing “bridal dress” (Ch. 8 p. 50). The reader may assume several reasons but their innate inquisitiveness helps propel the novel forward.

This device is used because of the structure of the novel. It was originally printed in weekly instalments. This means that Great Expectations does not have the structure of a conventional novel. Instead of moving towards a general climax, the story has many mini-resolutions of the plot. Each new episode needed a cliffhanger-type ending in order to ensure that the public would buy the next instalment. This has often been seen as a weakness of Charles Dickens’ novels as the story can become repetitive. An advantage of this is that the original reader, if having missed an issue, can have a summary of what has happened. The novel is the Victorian equivalent to soap operas of today.

Nevertheless, as we are introduced to these new characters this will not be the case. While both Estella and Miss Havisham represent bitterness, it is the latter, which injects the morbid decay and darkness into the novel. Dickens may have used Miss Havisham because many Victorians were fascinated by death and organised elaborate funerals. It is an ideal hook for a general audience for the time.

The audience are introduced to Estella and is used as a female counterpart to Pip. Dickens’ use of a girl approximately the same age as Pip but of a higher social position is very interesting. The audience are able to see the dynamics between class and gender during the 19th century, which adds to the intrigue.

This is where Pip meets Estella for the first time. Pip’s initial attraction to the “very pretty” (Ch. 8 p. 45) Estella sets the foundations of unrequited love that seems to be everywhere” (Ch. 8 p. 53) in the novel. Romance is a faithful hook for one to use, and Dickens utilises this early in the novel; maybe to ensure his work has an audience or to expand his target audience to the younger generation.

Estella “a beautiful young lady” (Ch. 17 p. 106), and Pip is inexplicably drawn to her. Not only because of her appearance, but Estella represents something to aspire to – the upper classes. Yet, one finds it utterly ironic that Estella was born into the lowest level of society – the daughter of the coarse convict, Magwitch.

Therefore, when she reacts to him so negatively, full of insults and “disdain” (Ch. 8 p. 49), Pip is crushed simply because he is a “common-labouring boy” (Ch. 8 p. 49).

Dickens uses Estella as his generalised impression of the “common” (Ch. 8 p. 49) upper-class young woman. Many people would become more interested with the novel because this behaviour was regarded to be the norm. The realism of the novel (besides from Dickens’ grotesque style which is used for comic or dramatic effect) would “delight” (Ch. 8 p. 52) audiences of the time. It is ironic that Dickens changed the ending (which is stylistically better) from the original – more realistic – ending. This was because an unhappy ending was uncommon for novels in Victorian times.  

The juxtaposition of Pip and Estella is essential to the novel and for the reader. They are physically, morally and economically at different ends of the spectrum which makes this chapter significant.

Pip’s view on life has changed because of his encounter with Miss Havisham and Estella. We see Pip contemplate the injustice of life however “small” (Ch. 8 p. 52). The injustice overwhelms him at first, but this turns into his determination to make himself something strong enough to combat the injustice – by becoming a gentleman. The desire to be uncommon is born and follows him most of his life.

Pip’s desire for advancement largely overshadows his basic goodness. After receiving his mysterious fortune, his idealistic wishes seem to be justified, and he gives himself over to a gentlemanly life of idleness. This alteration of thought changes the character and plot. This chapter is vital to strengthen Dickens satire on Victorian “Great Expectations” and its superficial empty façade.

The settings in Chapter 8 consist of Satis House, Miss Havisham’s room and the dilapidated Brewery, which influence the characters, atmosphere and the reader’s perception of the action.

Satis House is the fictional structure whose existence personifies the soul of Miss Havisham, allegorically if not in reality. In Satis House, Dickens creates a magnificent Gothic setting whose various elements symbolise Pip’s romantic precipitation of the upper class and many other themes of the book.

Join now!

The name Satis House comes from Latin: sufficient or enough. It is located in the word satisfied. The house, which was probably built in the peak of the Industrial Revolution, which started in England during the 16th century.  At the property’s pinnacle (when Miss Havisham’s father was alive) it probably had a lively, busy productive air.

However, due to Miss Havisham’s rage and disappointment because of her lover’s betrayal she and her property lays in despair and disrepair. The crumbling, decrepit stones of the house, as well as the darkness and dust that pervade it represents the general decadence of ...

This is a preview of the whole essay