Comparing Chapter 1 of Great Expectations where Pip first meets the convict, with Chapter 39 where the convict returns.
In this assignment I will be comparing Chapter 1 of Great Expectations where Pip first meets the convict, with Chapter 39 where the convict returns.
Charles Dickens wrote Great Expectations in 1860-1861 when he was in London. It is set in the mid nineteenth century, in Kent, and London. The basic plot of Great Expectations is:
Pip, a young orphan living with his sister and her husband in the marshes of Kent, sits in a cemetery one evening looking at his parents' tombstones. Suddenly, an escaped convict springs up from behind a tombstone, grabs Pip, and orders him to bring him food and a file for his leg irons. Pip obeys, but the fearsome convict is soon captured anyway. The convict protects Pip by claiming to have stolen the items himself. One day his uncle takes him to Miss Havishams house to play. A few years later he is apprenticed to his sisters husband. One-day pip is told that he is to live in London and has great expectations thanks to a secret friend. A couple of years after this the convict comes back to pip and tells him that he is the person that has been supplying all the money to him and that ever since Pip help him he promised himself that he would make Pip a gentleman. Pip is appalled at this but helps the convict to escape back to Australia. Before the convict escapes he is caught is put back into prison, he gets ill and dies. Before he dies he tells Pip that he has a daughter who was put up for adoption when she was a baby. Pip believes this to be Estella (who he used to play with at miss Havishams house and is in love with her). Miss havisham has died and has left her money to the pockets. Pip decides to go abroad with his friend to work. After some have past Pip comes back home where he goes to Miss Havishams old house where he finds Estella. He finds her coldness and hardness has been replaced with a sad kindness. The couple leave the house hand in hand.
Dickens changed the ending of the story. The original ending had Pip and Estella meeting outside miss Havishams talking a while and then going there separate ways. Dickens based some of the book on his own experiences; apart from David Copperfield this story is the most autobiographical book he wrote.
I will now compare the different circumstances of the two main characters two chapters:
In chapter 1 we see Pip as a young boy visiting his parents graves. He is small and frightened by the convict. He is terrified by what the convict says will happen to him if he doesn't do what the convict wants.
"`You get me a file.' He tilted me again. `And you get me wittles.' He tilted me again. `You bring 'em both to me.' He tilted me again. `Or I'll have your heart and liver out.' He tilted me again."
The convict has escaped from prison and is hiding in the graveyard where Pip is. He was dressed in "all in coarse grey, with a great iron on his leg. A man with no hat, and with broken shoes, and with an old rag tied round his head." He was covered in mud and was soaked in water. "A man who had been soaked in water, and smothered in mud, and lamed by stones, and cut by flints, and stung by nettles, and torn by briars; who limped, and shivered, and glared and growled; and whose teeth chattered in his head as he seized me by the chin." He was desperate for food and would do anything to get some.
In chapter 39 we see Pip when he is 23 years old, living in London thanks to a secret friend. He has all the money he needs to live a life of luxury. He resents seeing the stranger who has turned up on his doorstep, but he thinks he has seen the man before. When he finally realises that it is the convict who this stranger is, he wants him gone. Pip doesn't want the convict touching him and keeps backing away from him when the convict goes to touch him. "At a change in his manner as if he were even going to embrace me, I laid a hand upon his breast and put him away."
The convict has risked his life to come back from Australia to see Pip and tell him the answer Pip wanted to know. He is a changed man he now lives in New South Wales Australia where he is a very good sheep farmer. He has made a lot of money and has given every last bit of it to Pip so he could become a gentleman it was his way of thanking Pip for his kindness when he was a young boy." Yes, Pip, dear boy, I've made a gentleman on you!" The convict sees Pip as a son he never had. "`Look'ee here, Pip. I'm your second father. You're my son -- more to me nor any son."
Now I will compare the different settings of the two chapters:
In chapter 1 we are taken to a graveyard it is overgrown with weeds, and is the resting place of Pips father, mother, and his bothers. "At such a time I found out for certain, that this bleak place overgrown with nettles was the churchyard; and that Philip Pirrip, late of this parish, and also Georgiana wife of the above, were dead and buried; and that Alexander, Bartholomew, Abraham, Tobias, and Roger, infant children of the aforesaid, were also dead and buried;" It is very dark and there is flat land beyond the graveyard which is cut with dykes, mounds, and gates with cattle feeding on the land, the land is referred to as the mashes with a river by it. "Dark flat wilderness beyond the churchyard, intersected with dykes and mounds and gates, with scattered cattle feeding on it, was the marshes."
Whereas in chapter 39 we are taken to Pips new house "near the river" in London, it is a very horrible night it is raining very hard and a storm is picking up. The streets are covered in mud. The wind was stripping roofs of their lead and tiles; it had been like it for a few days. "It was wretched weather; stormy and wet, stormy and wet; and mud, mud, mud, deep in all the streets. Day after day, a vast heavy veil had been driving over London from the East, and it drove still, as if ...
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Whereas in chapter 39 we are taken to Pips new house "near the river" in London, it is a very horrible night it is raining very hard and a storm is picking up. The streets are covered in mud. The wind was stripping roofs of their lead and tiles; it had been like it for a few days. "It was wretched weather; stormy and wet, stormy and wet; and mud, mud, mud, deep in all the streets. Day after day, a vast heavy veil had been driving over London from the East, and it drove still, as if in the East there were an Eternity of cloud and wind. So furious had been the gusts, that high buildings in town had had the lead stripped off their roofs". Also trees had been torn up and windmills had their sails stripped off. Outside was not a good place to be. Pip is in his living room reading and the smoke from the fire is being blown back into the room because of the wind. "Occasionally, the smoke came rolling down the chimney as though it could not bear to go out into such a night"
I will now compare the presentation of the two chapters:
In chapter 1 we see Pip as a young boy he is in the graveyard at his parents gravestone crying. He comes across a very innocent boy, and very frightened and so we are made to feel sorry for him. "Growing afraid of it all and beginning to cry, was Pip". We aren't given much information about Pip in this first chapter but we are given a lot about the convict.
The convict is a fearful man who is dressed in his prison clothes. "A fearful man, all in coarse grey, with a great iron on his leg. A man with no hat, and with broken shoes, and with an old rag tied round his head. A man who had been soaked in water, and smothered in mud, and lamed by stones, and cut by flints, and stung by nettles, and torn by briars; who limped, and shivered, and glared and growled; and whose teeth chattered in his head as he seized me by the chin." He comes across as very dangerous, and evil man who will do anything to get what he needs and wants. "You fail, or you go from my words in any partickler, no matter how small it is, and your heart and your liver shall be tore out, roasted and ate."
In chapter 39 things change. Pip is now a rich man thanks to his secret friend, and is living a good life. He has everything thing he wants. When the convict turns up we see a different side to Pip. He is very harsh to the convict; he treats him as a mad stranger and has to force himself to be touched by him. "Stayi' said I. `Keep off! If you are grateful to me for what I did when I was a little child, I hope you have shown your gratitude by mending your way of life. If you have come here to thank me, it was not necessary. Still, however you have found me out, there must be something good in the feeling that has brought you here, and I will not repulse you;" After a while Pip does slowly feel some kindness towards the convict, and apologises for his actions
"`that you will not think I spoke harshly to you just now. I had no intention of doing it, and I am sorry for it if I did. I wish you well, and happy!" It is in this chapter that Pip realises what he has become and what he has become is a snob, and he hates himself for it.
The convict on the other hand is a changed man. He is very glad to see Pip, and doesn't mind what Pip does to him them they first start talking in the room. "But you're not to blame for that -- neither on us is to blame for that." He is very happy to see Pip even though he has risked his life, and he is dieing to tell Pip the answer to the question that Pip wanted to know since he was sent to London. Also we get the impression that he is very emotional because one minute he is crying and the next he is telling Pip in a low voice that no one must know he is here. "Saw with amazement that his eyes were full of tears." "Because, look'ee here, dear boy,' he said, dropping his voice, and laying a long finger on my breast in an impressive manner, `caution is necessary."
We learn a lot about nineteenth century life from the two chapters. In chapter one we learn that country life is very basic, and people lead very basic and easy lives. Also I think people mostly children have to do what they are told, and are easily frightened into doing something for someone. In the nineteenth century I think this part of the country wasn't a nice place to be because of the prison ships (hulks) and by the way the land has been described to the reader. "That this bleak place overgrown with nettles was the churchyard;".
In chapter 39 we see life in London. We learn that the streets aren't in good conditions because when it rains they get caked in mud. "Mud, mud, mud, deep in all the streets". There are many high buildings in London, and when it's very stormy their roof tiles get blown off. "High buildings in town had had the lead stripped off their roofs" In the streets there were streetlights, which had to be lit each night. "Saw that the lamps in the court were blown out". I get the impression people in London are much richer than the people in the country from these two chapters, the people in London have the money to buy themselves a better lifestyle. I get this impression by the way the buildings are described, and the way the there are streetlights in the streets. People in the country wouldn't have tall buildings with lead on the roofs and there wouldn't be any streetlights.
I think that Dickens wanted us to believe that there are two types of gentleman the kind Pip believes he will become before he goes to London and then there's the kind of gentleman that Pip turns into. Pips first impressions of a gentleman are someone with wealth, "breeding", education, and social status. This idea soon changes when Pip gets to London. He tries to be a gentleman when he reaches London but soon realises that he has a lot to learn and soon he starts to hate his past, the way he was brought up. After time he begins to hate Joe and the way he makes his living, but when Magwitch tells him who gave the order for him to become a gentleman, he starts to think about himself and what he has become. Then he remembers where his roots are, and who his family are. This is when he realises there's two types of gentleman the good type that he wanted to become and the bad type the one he has become. Only when he helps to save Magwitchs life by putting his own in danger he becomes a true gentleman. Also I think Dickens wanted us to remember where are roots are and who our true family and friends, by the time we had finished reading the book.
How effective is the opening chapter in Charles Dickens' Great Expectations?
Charles Dickens was one of the outstanding writers of the 19th century. He has written many well-known books such as 'The Pickwick Papers', 'David Copperfield' and 'Our Mutual Friend'. He had an unsettled childhood as his father had money problems and he was often moving from town to town. His writing could be interpreted as a reflection on his own life, as his intricate and elaborate story lines usually revolve around themes of poverty and the oppression of children by adults. Education was a big part of Dickens' life. He loved to read and write and always believed in his ambition that one day he would become a journalist. Before his ambition was realised Dickens' worked for a magazine, where his first work was published. As his stories were printed in instalments Dickens' needed a way to make his audience buy the next part of his stories. To do this Dickens' would add to the story a new character or twist to the plot, and each instalment would contain a varied mix of drama and comedy. He kept interest alive in his stories by cleverly alternating and overlapping plots, and he ended each instalment with a mystery or detection element, to keep the reader engaged and wanting more. In each of Dickens stories he usually introduces a strong male lead character, who has a dark and insensitive personality which therefore turns them into lonely and sinister souls. Examples of such characters include Ebenezer Scrooge from 'A Christmas Carol' who is a bitter, hard and unsympathetic businessman with no cares for anyone but himself and Mr Creakle the ignorant and ferocious schoolteacher in 'David Coppefield'. With knowledge of these characters that take lead roles in Dickens' books we can induce that a similar character will be included in 'Great Expectations'.
The title 'Great Expectations' could be interpreted in several forms. Firstly there are the expectations of the characters. In the first chapter we are introduced to Pip, who becomes the hero of the story and Magwitch, an escaped convict. We are interested to know whether Pip or Magwitch have great expectations for themselves, and whether they fulfil them. Does Pip have expectations for himself? Will these change after his meeting with Magwitch? There are also the expectations of the reader. The story forms it's own plot inside the readers head of what they expect to happen to the characters, and the reader wants to know whether these expectations will become truth or whether they change in some way. The scene is set with exciting imagery of the marshland, which is reflected in the ways of Magwitch.
'It was a raw afternoon', 'this bleak place', 'the distant savage lair from which the wind was rushing'.
These descriptions of the scene are complimented by the descriptions we are given of Magwitch.
'A fearful man, all in coarse grey...smothered in mud...stung by nettles...and glared and growled'.
Both the environment and Magwitch lead the reader to expect great things from the story, and so read on to see if they are fulfilled.
'Great Expectations' is written in the style of Bildungsroman. Dickens has written the story as if it were the characters autobiography. It is told in the first person by the main character, who looks back over his childhood and tells the story of how they reached adulthood and found a settled identity. The first paragraph of 'Great Expectations' is written very simply, suggesting that the story is seen through the eyes of a child.
'My fathers 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 known as Pip.'
This introduction is also evidence that the story is in the genre of Bildungsroman and that Pip is looking back on his childhood because he mentions that
'His infant tongue could make of both names nothing longer or more explicit than Pip'.
This suggests that he is now grown up.
Pip is a very imaginative child, even though his parents have been dead since before he can remember, he has drawn out the faces of his mother and father in his mind so that he can picture them whenever he thinks of them.
'The shape of the letters on my father's grave, gave me an odd idea that he was a square, stout, dark man, with curly black hair...I drew a childish conclusion that my mother was freckled and sickly'.
This creativity of Pip makes the reader think of him as very na? and innocent. We get the impression that pip is a very small quiet boy who isn't very strong. Upon his meeting with Magwitch he has to plead with him not to hurt him as he is incapable of defending himself. When asked his name by Magwitch, Pip answers in what must have been a quiet voice, as Magwitch has to ask him to repeat himself.
"'Tell us your name!' said the man'
'Pip Sir'
"'Once more'...'give it mouth'"
Magwitch describes Pip as having 'fat cheeks'. Pip then tells us how he was 'undersized for his years, and not strong', thus making him helpless against Magwitch. Whilst being threatened by Magwitch, Pip is frightened and has to hold tightly onto the gravestone that he has been placed upon to stop himself from crying.
Magwitch, on the other hand, is an escaped convict. He is depicted as very frightening, strong and threatening. The instant that Magwitch is introduced into the storyline we are given a glimpse into his personality.
'Keep still you little devil, or I'll cut your throat!'
He is aggressive towards Pip, and uses his tactic of threat to make Pip obey him. When he asks Pip to bring him food and a file he makes clear to Pip that he is in charge and will decide weather Pip is allowed to live or not.
"'Now lookee here,' he said, 'the question being weather you're to be let to live'"
Magwitch is described as:
'A fearful man, all in coarse grey, with a great iron on his leg. A man with no hat, and with broken shoes, and with an old rag tied round his head. A man who has been soaked in water, and smothered in mud, and lamed by stones, and cut by flints and stung by nettles, and torn by briars; who limped, and shivered, and glared and growled.'
A man of such description is bound to strike fear into such a small boy as Pip.
He is a lot stronger than Pip, so uses this to his advantage. He turns the boy upside down to empty his pockets. Magwitch is a desperate man in need of the help of Pip. He has escaped from jail and is on the run, therefore has no food or resources. He eats the bread that he has found on Pip 'ravenously' as he is starving.
Pip and Magwitch are extreme examples of contrasting appearance and personality. Pip is an innocent, imaginative, helpless child with no worries in the world. Magwitch is a convict; therefore he must have a shady past. He is rugged, strong and totally overpowers Pip. Magwitch uses this power that he has over Pip, to control him and scare him into helping him. Magwitch frightens Pip by being very physical and heavy-handed towards him.
'He seized me by the chin', 'the man...turned me upside down', 'He tilted me back as far as he could hold me'.
These are all examples of Magwitchs' power over Pip. Magwitch needs to rely on Pip as he is the only one who can help him, he is a convict so will be sent back to jail or sent to his death if he is caught. Pip, being a child, doesn't understand this and is only interested in not being killed himself. Magwitchs' tactics to get the help he needs are successful, as he has scared Pip even more by telling him that there is another man hidden with the convict, whom is even more dreadful than himself.
'A boy may lock his door, may be warm in bed, may tuck himself up, may draw the clothes over his head, may think himself comfortable and safe, but that young man will softly creep and creep his way to him and tear him open.'
We do not know whether the man I telling the truth to the child, but any child would not want to find out. This 'young man' whom Magwitch speaks of may be just another tactic to scare the boy and have no reality whatsoever, or this 'young man' may be a split personality of Magwitch himself. If the boy disobeys him then he will find him. The boy has already told the man where he lives so has no reason not to believe that this 'young man' may find him.
The landscape that Dickens has described creates a sombre, frightening mood and atmosphere. This chapter is set in the graveyard of the village church. Surrounding the church is a marsh country. The weather that day was bleak and the wind is said to have come from 'that distant savage lair'. Everything that Dickens has used to describe that day is within the semantic field of horror and death, which adds to the tension of the chapter. In the later part of the chapter, as Magwitch is leaving, Pip looks about himself and sees the land around him.
'The sky was just a row of long angry red lines and dense black lines intermixed.'
The sky reflects the feelings of Magwitch and Pip. Magwitch is a dark sinister character whom is aggressive and desperate and Pip is scared and alone.
Physical objects that can be seen by Pip also add to the atmosphere of the chapter.
'I could faintly make out only two things...the other a gibbet with some chains hanging to it.'
The gibbet is where people are hanged and so creates a sense of horror and fear. One might think that this gibbet has some relation to the rest of the story, and would read on to see if this expectation is true.
For an opening chapter to be effective it needs to have a positive effect on the reader other wise the first chapter is all that they will read. 'Great Expectations'' first chapter has been written well by Dickens. He has introduced the characters and described them well and we get a good understanding of the personalities of both Pip and Magwitch. Dickens uses different techniques to show the two different characters, with Magwitch we discover him mainly, through the medium of speech, and how he acts towards Pip. We find out about Pips character through his actions and how he reacts to Magwitchs' treatments. The atmosphere and landscape that has been described adds to the tension of the chapter and sets the scene well. Dickens has used dark, bleak colours, and has used pathetic fallacy with the wind and weather to create the sense that not everything is as it should be, and something is about to happen, this is very much similar to the opening chapter of Shakespeare's 'Macbeth', where the 3 Witches meet in a derelict place in similar weather conditions. The ending of the chapter is very dramatic, Pips imagination takes over and he imagines that the man he has just spoken to is the pirate who was hung nearby, come back to life.
'The man was limping on towards this latter, as if he were the pirate come back to life, and come down, and going back to hook himself up again.'
The chapter ends with questions which have been left unanswered such as 'Who was Magwitch?' 'Will Pip return with food?' 'Will he keep this meeting secret?' 'Will Magwitch kill Pip?' and so on, thus making the reader want to read on.
Compared to Magwitch, Pip is only a tiny defenceless boy. He is scared by him and also by his own imagination. The reader feels sympathy towards Pip and easily understands how he must be feeling in such a situation.
Overall I think that the opening chapter of this book is extremely effective, and leaves the reader with great expectations.
