When Pip first met the convict he felt very scared. He felt scared because of the setting he was in and there was nobody around for miles. Then he hears a voice out of the blue and a figure staggering towards him. It was a man in “course grey” with an iron weight on his leg and was all tattered and dirty. Pip is fearful of his life and this is expressed by Pip saying “O! Don’t cut my throat sir”. You can also tell that Pip is scared as he is trembling when he speaks so the convict has to tell him to speak louder by saying “give it mouth”.
The second time the convict and Pip meet they achieve a certain level of communication when Pip bring him the “wittles” and file.
Pip thought the convict had a “touch of ague” which is more commonly known a milaria. Pip is thinking this because convict couldn’t stop shivering and could only just “keep the neck of the bottle between his teeth” as he was shivering so “violently” he was nearly biting the top of the bottom off.
The convict to which replied “I’m much of your opinion boy” meaning that he thinks that it is just Pips opinion if the convict has “ague”. The convict also gives the impression that he himself does not have the “ague”.
Pip then says, “it is bad about here” for milaria. The convict replies with “I’ll eat my breakfast afore they’re the death of me,”. This gives you the impression on how hungry he is, as he would still eat just before he is about to die and doesn’t care that he is about to die. When Pip said, “ I said I was glad you enjoyed it,” this is when the convict first feels a sense of friendship for the first time, as nobody ever says anything nice to him.
The convict then has Joe’s sympathy when he is getting carried off to the “hulks” in the form of when he apologises for eating his pork pie. Joe says, “we wouldn’t have you starve to death”. This means he would rather that the convict has it and not die than himself have it and be full. These are the only two times the convict has ever felt friendship. Meanwhile the soldiers show no sympathy. It’s just the system.
Magwitch renewed his friendship with Pip when h left Australia to come and see him. He left Australia to come and see how Pip was getting on after he gave him a lot of money to become a gentleman. By doing this he is risking his life.
This friendship was then strengthened when he tells Pip that he is not allowed to return to England and if he were caught he would be sentenced to death. Pip then spends a lot of time trying to smuggle him out of the country and back to Australia. They then get caught but Pip stays with Magwitch through the trial and sentencing, and death.
Dickens has written a book about friendship between two totally different people.
