Throughout the book the settings reflect Pips moods and hopes; such places as the blacksmiths and Satis house affect Pip's state of thought profoundly. Pip's experiences of suffering and torture, both mental and physical, at the hands of his sister were reflective of the surroundings being both rough and uncultured were amplified by his later experiences at Satis house with Estella and his craving for knowledge that neither the blacksmiths nor his apprentership could for fill. Pip begins to realise that the dull Rochester is not able to accommodate his hunger for wisdom. At this point Pip sees that to become noble and well educated was what he yearned for and a want to be in better circumstances made a need for a better setting becomes apparent and a large part of the story.
"I think I might have had some faint doubts whether it was not really rather ugly and crooked…" as Pip enters London what he sees is a little of a disappointment to him, not the gleaming metropolis he had wished for, and this becomes very clear as he enters little Briton where Jaggers office is located. From Pip arriving at London the settings seem a little of a let-down; Barnards Inn seems quite disappointment for Pip but the emphasis is taken away from this point a little by the arrival of Herbert Pocket. The settings of London's escapades for Pip are an omen for the ultimate futility of his expectations. The way in which Dickens portrays London is a reflection of his real feelings about the city, and in the book London seems to be projected as an epicentre of dirt and filth; not quite the peachy visions that Pip had about the city and in particular the references to Negate seem to point out that some of London is both filthy and depraved as do the quotes on places like little Britain.
It is not just Pips state of mind that is affected or represented but the immediate surroundings; Miss Havishams state of mind and existence is well projected by the bizarreness of her surroundings, in particular the rotting wedding cake on the table at which she wishes her dead body to be placed and her relatives to feast upon her own flesh. The tainted chambers in which she resides equal these insane ideas. "Are you not afraid of a woman who has not seen the light of day since before you were born?" Miss Havisham claims to Pip as he nervously replies in the negative; her 'lair' is covered in cobwebs and the windows are boarded up so no natural light can enter her chamber. The picture presented by Dickens seems quite stereotypical of how the dwellings of an evil or mentally infirm person may live and this adds to the effectiveness of the description of Havisham's house.
Jaggers is another person that is well represented by his setting, his office in little Britain is much as he is, cold, clinical and precise. Jaggers office serves as a monument to his personality and attitude to work; his office is adorned only with a noose and some death masks that have been two of his less fortunate clients. Jaggers un-adorned office serves as testament to his character before Pip even meets Jaggers while he is at work. Jaggers office reflects his personality well; it is almost sterile as he almost without personality and totally without humour. Jagger's office is with only two chairs, a grand one for himself and a comfortable but plainer one for the client, this shows a certain amount of egotism on Jagger's part and perhaps a resentment of his clients for their inferiority to him. The death masks may show that Jaggers is not a totally moral man, and that he is willing to take cases that are blatantly guilty and he is not afraid to admit this.
In conclusion it is obvious that much of the storyline and characterisation is augmented by the setting in which Dickens has placed an event or person. The relationship between setting and storyline has taken a very important part in Dickens's Great Expectations; much more than the superficial role that the setting takes in the vast majority of novels and stories. Perhaps Dickens added much of the relationship between setting and story without realising, or that he inadvertently moulded the characters to the desired settings he had created and knew so well throughout his colourful life.
Nathan Ranamagar 5S
5 Set 1- Mr.Artro Morris
English