Pip’s world is changed forever when the convict, Magwitch, appears. Pip is terrified when Magwitch turns him upside down and shakes him about, this resembles that Pips whole world is being changed or is soon to be. The ending of every chapter is a constant cliff-hanger as in the time it was written it would have been published in the magazine Dickens produced (the ‘All Year Round’) of that time and would need the ending to interest the reader to read the next volume in the magazine.
The next chapter changes the scene. It is a very comic scene but this is where the older Pip starts to narrate and look back on his life. The first time the older Pip talks about his life he describes the terror he was feeling. The terror of the young man who was going to eat his liver and of his sister finding out about the food he has stolen. I think that the narrative of Pip puts the reader on Pip’s side and provides sympathy for him. This helps to understand Dickens’ view on social justice. He dislikes the officious over-class and portrays them as pompous creatures not humans. ‘I saw the miserable creature finger his glass playfully.’ The reader starts to trust the older Pip as he describes things the reader can relate to, about how young people do things because they are afraid of it or the consequences.
Dickens has an immense talent for interesting the reader in the first few chapters of the book. As I have said before, the first chapter shows the catastrophe of Pip’s life. Most of his family are dead apart from his short-tempered sister. He uses this sympathy to grip the reader into the novel. The setting of Pip’s encounter with the convict also reflects his life. It is an aged, drab, isolated graveyard and completely empty. There is also a very strong connection between Pip and convicts, which Dickens introduces slowly. A comic scene in where Dickens introduces this idea is when Pip mouths at Joe ‘What’s a convict?’ and Joe mouths back incomprehensible words, the only word Pip could make out was is own name. Another example of this is when Pip asks Mrs Joe after not understating what Joe said about what a convict is and she replies that all convicts start by asking questions.
An important aspect of the novel is the characters and how they affect the reader. The character Estella is a symbol of Pip’s longing in life. Pip ‘loves’ her but she only returns it as cruelty and hate as she has been twisted by Miss Havisham. Estella’s grace and wealth are the complete opposite of Pip’s life; she criticizes Pip’s ‘coarse’ hands and his lower class, uneducated background. This starts of Pip’s desire to become a gentleman as he is no longer satisfied with his status of life. Estella is cruel and uninterested in him this leaves the reader disliking the Havishams and inquiring about their life and what will happen to them. Pips brother-in-law, Joe, represents the life that Pip does not want to lead. A poor but honest life. My views on Pip are that he is very ungrateful towards Joe. The older Pip talks about Joe as being foolish. He doesn’t appreciate Joe and the kindness that he gives him. This attaches sympathy for him as he is a ‘fellow sufferer’ but has a kind heart. Pip doesn’t take his life with Joe for granted, he always wants to be something better but he doesn’t realise that his life with Joe and Biddy is the nicest life to lead. This leaves the reader knowing that in the long term and short term the characters will play a part in the novel and wondering what that part will be.
The atmosphere and places that Dickens creates reflects the mood and life of the characters. When the pursuit of the convicts interrupts their Christmas dinner, they charge off through the marshes to find Magwitch. There is a sense of urgency and anticipation which keeps us wanting to know what happens. The description of the marshes is always described as bleak and dead. ‘…shudder of the dying day in every blade of grass, there was no break in the bleak stillness of the marshes.’ There is also the violent and destructive atmosphere of Magwitch fighting with another convict. There is a tense feeling as they argue with one another and it is clear to the reader that Magwitch and this other convict have a history of treachery. This keeps the reader intrigued as to what will happen to those characters. A crucial part in the work of fiction is when Pip meets Miss Havisham. The room is described as aged and discoloured. The older Pip narrates through this scene, giving it a more detailed description of his feelings to the reader ‘, or the strangest lady I will ever see.’ There is a very sinister atmosphere with a sense of mystery about Miss Havisham. All the clocks have stopped at twenty minutes to nine and she still wears her old bridal dress. The reader is intrigued by the description and the setting of the scene it leave them thinking, why does this aged woman live like this? Why have the clocks stopped at twenty minuets to nine? Moreover, this makes them want to carry on reading to find out those the life of this character.
The plot of the story keeps the reader enticed through out Dickens’ book. There are lot of cliff hangers at the end of the chapters as it was written in a series of pieces, Dickens wanted to keep the reader hooked and wanting to find out what happens. There is also a lot of tension and climax, for example when Pip steals the food and needs to get it to the convict. The reader is given lots of small tense moments that build up over the whole novel. Miss Havisham’s story is an example of this. Her character and story behind it is only revealed in the third volume of the book. The reader is drip fed the information and slowly then they see that everything is connected. ‘I got up and went downstairs; every board upon the way, and every crack in every board, calling after me, “Stop thief” and “Get up Mrs. Joe!”’ The reader is drawn in by Pip’s fears and the suspense of the situation. They want to find out if Pip will succeed or fail and this intrigues them into wanting to uncover more.
A famous Victorian author, Wilkie Collins, said that to capture the reader’s interest you have to ‘Make ‘em laugh, make ‘em cry, make ‘em wait’ Dickens certainly uses all the attributes to make the reader interested. The opening chapters use a tense and daunting perspective on Pips life; this draws the reader in by using emotions such as sympathy and pity. These are also used through out the novel as I have already explained. He uses humour along side Pips terrible life such in chapter two. There is a lot of ambiguity in the later chapters as the reader wants to find out about what happens to the characters in the book. Overall Dickens uses all of these points, emotions of the reader, mystery behind characters, humour and a very interesting story line to capture the reader’s interest.
