The weather helps sets the scene and brings it all together, by making the reader anxious and curious about what’s going to happen next, through using language such as “savage” and “dark flat wilderness”. These words are very negative and unpleasant; hence it brings up curiosity as to why it’s like that. Overall the setting of the first meeting is very pessimistic and sinister. This makes the setting seem very unappealing, causing the reader build up interest as to why the setting is such and also comes to understand that something’s about to happen, therefore whatever it is, it won’t be something good when taking into account and reflecting back at the overall setting, including the weather.
This use of subtle contrast from Dickin’s is in my view very clever as it stands almost as a metaphor for the context of the novel. In the Victorian era the amount of money possessed by each individual was a measure of your popularity and status. Despite this it did not always bring you happiness and contentment. The use of dismal and moody atmospheric description clearly symbolises how not everything is what it seems, as Pip and Magwitch, are not in the end foes as it seems they are going to be in the initial stages of the novel, but instead friends, with respect and understanding for each other.
Many years later, the second meeting takes place at Pip’s home down in Garden-court, in London. Once again, the weather coincidently repeats itself just like chapter one’s setting of the first meeting, “wretched weather; stormy and wet, stormy, and wet; and mud, mud, mud, deep in all the streets” is described as “a vast heavy veil” which has been around for quite a while. We could suspect that each time Magwitch and Pip are about to meet, the weather acts as an indication of trouble brewing before the meeting has commenced. This is because the weather alters by deteriorating to damp, murky, and stormy, setting the mood or emotion of the meeting that is to take place. All in all, Charles Dickens has created the setting to be very disturbing and eerie, simply by using a savage array of negative words like “wretched” and “savage”, causing the setting to appear in a negative light. This makes the reader concerned and question what is to happen next in the meeting between Pip and Magwitch, for the second time.
The very first meeting with Pip and Magwitch shows just how different and unique the two characters are when compared to one and other.
The story is told by Pip as a grown man, explaining and looking back at his past using his “infant tongue” to tell the story. However, in the second meeting Pip is no longer a boy, but a mature man who is “three-and-twenty years of age” whom is narrator and protagonist of the novel, Great Expectations.
Magwitch in the first meeting was a middle-aged man, however in the second he’s an old man, “his age was about sixty.” Pip as a young boy is week and a “small bundle of shivers growing afraid of it all and beginning to cry.” From this we can tell Pip is small, vulnerable and very scared as he helplessly begins to cry in fear. This also tells us Pip’s not well at defending himself, as he does nothing, but break out into tears. On the other hand, Magwitch is an escaped convict dressed in “all in coarse grey, with a great iron on his leg…A man who had been soaked in water… smothered in mud… cut by flints… limped, and shivered, and glared and growled; and whose teeth chattered in his head as he seized me by the chin.” It is evident from this that Magwitch is a tough man who presumably has been through a lot and is still standing alive in desperation, for freedom being a run away convict.
During the first meeting Pip is seized by Magwitch and is “turned upside down” with out much struggle or effort and is then “seated on a high tombstone, trembling”. Magwitch then grabs Pip “by both hands” and tilts him “back as far as he could hold” allowing Magwitch to look “most powerfully down” into Pip eyes, making Pip look “ most helplessly in to his”. This tells the reader how powerful Magwitch is in comparison to Pip, who is a vulnerable and helpless little boy. It also helps emphasise that Magwitch is a strong man and can be very intimidating as he kept tilting Pip over after each question - “After each question he tilted me over a little more, so as to give me a greater sense of helplessness and danger”. Pip says himself that he felt helpless and in danger, therefore it can only mean that Magwitch is far more powerful that Pip himself. Pip on his first meeting with Magwitch evoked his negative qualities as Magwitch being a convict on the run and the fact he’s threatening Pip in order to get him self free.
In comparison to the first meeting, in the second Pip is no longer as frightened of Magwitch, as he was during his first encounter. He lets Magwitch come inside to his home, “I took him into the room I had just left.” In first meeting Pip is a boy, although in the second he is a gentleman, and it was Magwitch who did this for him, “I've made a gentleman on you!” Magwitch in the second meeting is no longer a convict; he is a feeble yet caring man as it was him who made “Pip, dear boy…a gentleman on you! It's me wot has done it!” Pip now finds out who really is his benefactor, he then realises how he changed “I began to think, that I began fully to know how wretched I was.” Here we see the characters change, Magwitch changes for good no longer a convict, as went to Australia where he worked in sheep ranching and earned himself a large fortune. He remembers Pips kindness and help down at the marches and decides to uses it to repay Pip, by using his wealth to make Pip a gentleman. Pip now realises that his mysterious benefactor was not Miss Havisham, but Magwitch. He now understands that he’d changed into a snob thinking all along that Miss Havisham who was his benefactor and it was because of that he thought he had to marry Estella.
At the very beginning we learn about Pips family and how his is an orphan living with is older sister who is married to a “blacksmith.” This tells us that Pips is a working class boy without any education and is illiterate, also later on in the story he asks Biddy to teach him as he thinks “the best step I could take towards making myself uncommon was to get everything out of Biddy.” From his thoughts it is clear that he wishes to be like Biddy and have all the knowledge and education she has. Pip being a working class boy without any education tells us that he would not know to speak formal English, simply because of the society he is brought up in. Despite this, fifteen years later Pip no longer is in such a society or class. Pip is educated; he’s a wealthy gentleman, who speaks formal English and “has a taste for reading”, showing that his education is a big part of his high society life in London. As a result of the high status he is preoccupies with being a gentleman, and he doesn’t realise how much he has changed. Pip goes through a rapid metamorphosis from being a polite working class boy, to a gentleman of high class.
Magwitch during his first meeting is an escaped convict, he speaks informal and colloquial English "Now lookee here." This evidently points out that he is from a low class society and is therefore uneducated, and is a working class man. Magwitch when talking to Pip is extremely vicious to him and very threatening, “Keep still, you little devil, or I'll cut your throat!” The use of exclamation marks used in most of his sentences, makes you think of him as a rude and foul person, and this makes the reader instinctively dislike Magwitch. However, in the second meeting with Pip, Magwitch is now much nicer to Pip, “I wish to come in, Master.” Although no longer being a convict he is still a working class man, “I've been a sheep-farmer, stock-breeder” and still speaks informal English with his previous accent saying words like “spec'lated” or “o'yourn”, indicating no change in social class. However, in comparison to the first meeting Magwitch was much more compassionate to Pip, he was in some what way describable pleased or honoured to see Pip, “wot, if I gets liberty and money, I'll make that boy a gentleman!' And I done it.” It is at this point in the novel we find out that the money Magwitch earned was used for Pip to become a gentleman. This tells us why Magwitch is so proud to see what he though and dreamt of finally came true. “I've made a gentleman on you!” He feels pleased that his money was used as desired, also that he finally gets to thank the boy who helped him escape by providing him with a file and filling his hunger with food. Here we see the real Magwitch, he is caring yet a feeble man, who’s thoughts and best wishes are with others in his kind heart, and with such, expresses his thanks and gratitude to others by repaying them with more than what words could say and that only money could do.
At the first meeting, Pip is not very inclined with Magwitch; he’s being threatened by him and cannot do much about it, as he is so small and vulnerable. On the other hand Magwitch is far bigger, and appears far more powerful. “…Took me by both arms, and tilted me back as far as he could hold me; so that his eyes looked most powerfully down into mine, and mine looked most helplessly up into his.” This tells us clearly that Magwitch compared to Pip is far more powerful and Pip remains helpless. From this we can tell the Pip and Magwitch are not friends by the way Pip is grabbed. Also the very first thing that is said in this meeting is, “Keep still, you little devil, or I'll cut your throat!” Magwitch says this in a harsh manner, to a young Pip. This isn’t the best way in which to initiate a conversation or making a friend, so from this we can tell that the start to this relationship is very poor, and it’s very negative due to the treats made by Magwitch.
In his next encounter with Magwitch, Pip is relaxing in his home and is all alone, Magwitch arrives at his doorstep, although Pip is yet to realise this. Pip soon realises he knows the stranger at his door, then finds to his surprise it’s the convict he gave ‘food and whittles’ to. In addition to this, he finds out that Magwitch is his mysterious benefactor, and it is he, that he owes thanks to, as he helped him become a gentleman. This changes the way Pip feels about Magwitch, although as a child he never really thought of Magwitch after he saw him being captured and sent back to prison. However Magwitch never forgot the kindness of the boy who gave him what he asked for so harshly. “You're my son - more to me nor any son. I've put away money, only for you to spend.” This tells us that Magwitch never forgot Pip’s generosity after all those years. Pip much more frightened at his first encounter with Magwitch, but now a gown man of “three-and-twenty years of age” no longer fears him, also finding out that he has been he benefactor all this time makes him realise that he is not a bad person. All those years spent being “a sheep-farmer, stock-breeder” earning money that goes only to Pip as thanks for what he gave to him all those year back. This is where the relationship takes a turn, both now no longer hiding the truth but exploring; now know a lot about each other, and therefore are making a positive start to a good relationship. Magwitch is much friendly here, he is more caring towards Pip, “Yes, Pip, dear boy, I've made a gentleman on you!” He’s a changed man and a much nicer man, thus helping the relationship between each other. Although Pip during the second meeting was not too much of a warm welcome as he, living in London is a high society snob; “Stay!" 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.” It was not much of a nice thing to say to someone who repays so generously in all the trouble, he takes it in and admits to himself “I began to think, that I began fully to know how wrecked I was, and how the ship in which I had sailed was gone to pieces.” This is where he finally realises the person he’s changed to. Magwitch changed for the good, although Pips changed for the wrong, although now it’s a bit late as he’s already made a fool of himself in front of Biddy and Joe, “would not have gone back to Joe now, I would not have gone back to Biddy now, for any consideration: simply, I suppose, because my sense of my own worthless conduct to them was greater than every consideration. No wisdom on earth could have given me the comfort that I should have derived from their simplicity and fidelity; but I could never, never, undo what I had done.” In my opinion I think it’s much better than never realising it, now he finally knows his mistakes and he can at least put an end to them, hopefully learn from them and never let it happen again. Over all the relationship of Pip and Magwitch flourishes over time, from negative to positive, and has helped them both understand the better person in them, and each other.
In conclusion, I think that Charles Dickens has written an excellent story containing the themes of romance, action, money, and society. He combines each theme with grace as he is able to link one with another one to. The story is about a boy called Pip and how he grows with many events taking place in his life changing and adapting him. The most obvious point in the story is how money drastically changes people and in this story, Pip, making a ‘snob’ out of him. No amount of money makes you a true gentleman, we can spot this from the way Joe even after being degraded by Pip remains a true friend “I felt impatient of him and out of temper with him; in which condition he heaped coals of fire on my head.” Joe after making a mistake gets Pip very angry in with he rude snatched the hat away “where I took the liberty of laying hands upon it.” Pip being so snobbish and rude finally realises his mistake. Joe even after such events remains a true friend and helps him when he’s ill, and think highly of Joe; “I had never been struck at so keenly, for my thanklessness to Joe, as through the brazen impostor Pumblechook. The falser he, the truer Joe; the meaner he, the nobler Joe.” Joe is the real gentleman, he don’t need money to make him one, simply a kind heart and a caring personality. This story today is very popular as it is relevant to today’s issues, as once again many people think money is everything, this book highlights that being rich and high in society is not necessary and that people should not judge someone by there class or amount of money. They should be judged by their qualities and personality and by who they are not what they have or don’t have. Dickin’s early life is mirrored in Great Expectations and it’s a highly autobiographical novel. Dicken’s writes Pip to be himself, as Pip works in a job he hates, and feels he is too good for the situation on which he lives. Later he experiences success materially in London at a young age, just as Dickin’s did. I think the book has compared the two different characters very well by a mixture of themes making them individual.
