At the beginning of the extract Pip finds himself in a large room, probably larger than the house he lives in, this shows the difference in social class- between Havisham and Pip. Pip is amazed by the size of the room and the luxurious items in the house, something he dreams to have one day. Pip sees, ‘rich materials- satins, and lace’- items only affordable by the rich. We feel sorry for Pip when he sees these extravagant items that he cannot afford. Although at this point of the extract we have hope for Pip, that he will please Havisham and she will take to him like she did to Estella.
When Pip enters he finds the house is ‘well lighted with wax candles’. ‘No glimpse of daylight’ was seen, for Pip and the lower class candles were expensive and only used at night, they were considered lavish. So when Pip enters and finds that Havisham’s house is well lit with candles we pity him, although Havisham has everything she is very wasteful.
We pity Pip when he goes to meet Havisham- an old lady. Pip like any other child would be uncomfortable and nervous when he goes to meet a strange lady, who is very peculiar. The description of Havisham’s house builds up tension in Pip and the reader. ‘No glimpse of daylight’, gloomy and dark room is very unsettling and terrifying for a child of such age. Phrases such as; ‘Gilded looking glass’ create a depressing mood for the reader, this is setting used by Dickens to gain sympathy for Pip. As the reader we sympathise with Pip because as we read we can feel the pressure and nervousness from Dickens’ description.
Pip is uncomfortable in Havisham’s house and observes a lot of detail. We sympathise with Pip- the young infant in a way is being tested. We pity Pip when he sees all the desirable things Havisham has; ‘dressed in rich materials- satins, and lace, and silks- all of white’. These desirable things Pip would never be able to afford as a blacksmiths relative. This line draws an obvious border between the two social classes. We feel sorry for Pip because he is under pressure, to please Havisham in order to secure his future.
We sympathise with Pip when he enters Havisham’s dressing room- she is cold and unwelcoming for example, ‘come close’ making him uneasy and afraid. When Havisham addresses him he is very respectful, addressing her ‘ma’am’ because of her social class, age and wealth. His characteristics even stand out in the punctuation; ‘Come- to play’ the part of the phrase as if it were an after thought shows his unsophisticated characteristic. He stands there in front of Havisham fearful of her, ‘avoiding her eyes’, we pity his innocence. Havisham talks to Pip in sharp tone. ‘Broken!’ is the phrase Havisham uses to describe her heart, a child would be scared and frightened of Havisham. He notices Havisham is stuck in a time warp- odd thing for child to witness. We as the reader begin to question why Havisham is in a time warp and how it will affect Pip.
Havisham tempts, indirectly, Pip- using Estella. Estella looks down at Pip, because he is of the lower class and age. We know Estella is young it says ‘young bosom’. Estella addresses Pip in a harsh, rude and arrogant manner as if he were an animal. This makes us pity him- Pips self-esteem being low as it were went lower. Estella kept addressing him as ‘boy’ to emphasise on the class difference and age. The emphasis of social status turns into pity for Pip. Dickens shows effective use of dialogue. We pity Pip; he does not deserve to be treated like this.
Dickens uses emphasis effectively by turning it into sympathy for Pip. Dickens uses Havisham’s tactics against men successfully against Pip- to make him feel low and worthless. Pip is judged by Estella in a ruthless tone and manner. ‘Coarse hands….thick boots’, Pip shows emotion here, Dickens makes Pip believe he has got ‘coarse hands and thick boots’. Estella’s words mean something to Pip and affect him largely, for example he says ‘ashamed of my hands before; began to consider them a very indifferent pair’. Estella’s contempt for Pip that it wasn’t long before Pip was contempt with himself.
Estella begins to judge by the common phrases Pip uses, for example ‘he calls the knaves, jacks, this boy!’ Havisham does not protect him. Dickens builds up anticipation in Pip that Havisham might be a sort of loving, kind hearted grand mother sort to him- but instead a spiteful, evil creature. Dickens also built anticipation in the readers, but when the true Havisham comes out not only is Pip hurt but the readers too.
Pip nervousness remains till the end, making him misdeal the cards and being called a ‘stupid, clumsy labouring boy’. Estella’s character is harsh and obstinate; she does not have any feelings. Dickens gets sympathy for Pip whenever he is with Estella, as he finds her attractive but very arrogant. We, the readers, question ‘why does Pip like Estella even thought she is arrogant and rude towards him?’ We feel sorry for Pip; he tries to hide his feelings, although she continues to break his heart.
Dickens makes Estella bring out Pip’s emotions in order to gain sympathy from the readers. ‘Clumsy labouring- boy’ one of the successful phrases Dickens uses to gain pity for Pip. Near the end of the extract Pip still believes Estella- that he has coarse hands and boots. Estella treats Pip in disgust as if he were a ‘dog in disgrace’. Pips childish emotion open fully in the end of extract when he cries, gaining a lot of sympathy as he is a innocent, angelic orphaned child who wants nothing more then to be loved and cared for.
When Pip is told to wait outside for food, he begins to detest his upbringing, he wishes he was more ‘genteelly brought up’- to meet Estella’s standards. We sympathise the most at the end of the extract where Pip’s emotions and feeling ‘pour’ out. For example ‘leaned my forehead on it and cried’. We feel sorry for him that the ‘strength’ of Estella’s bitterness would hurt Pip to that extent.
Dickens uses punctuation well re-enforcing the mood and tone. He uses punctuation and voice to create Pips vulnerability. He bases Pips childhood on the mishaps rather then the good moments- which is why he gains the viewers sympathy for Pip effectively.
