Response Journals to Great Expectations

Dickens has described women in a different way. Mrs. Joe raised Pip by the hand, quite literally. He couldn't do anything correct, and was hit and shoved unnecessarily (such as the use of Tickler when he came home late). She is what I have termed a "husband-beater". This is very unusual for the time period of the book. At the time, many people were of the opinion that women were the weaker sex. So having the "weaker" be physically abusive towards the "stronger" was unheard of. It probably happened in real life, as in today, but it wasn't talked about then. Even today husband-beaters are not widely discussed. Great Expectations probably raised quite a few eyebrows in its first publishing for portraying a woman in such a dominant role.

Mrs. Joe brings me to another point. I feel so sorry for Joe and Pip. Joe is so whipped. All his wife has to do is look at him to get him to do what she wants. Pip is also pushed around in much the same way. Their treatment led them to having a close relationship though. They shared things that friends share, such as the sign of their fingers in a cross to warn each other of Mrs. Joe being in a cross mood. After the convict was taken to the Hulk, and everyone thought he had stolen the missing food, Joe was the only person Pip would confess to. This shows that in addition to closeness, they share trust.

What is going on with Mrs. Havisham? The way her room and attire was described (all white, one shoe on, the clock and watch stopped at the exact same time, etc.) gave the impression that she is in some sort of mental time warp. Given that and the fact that she was in a bridal gown makes me think that on some day (probably near her wedding) at twenty to nine, some traumatic event happened involving her. She then went into some sort of psychotic episode. Regardless of the reason why she was dressed in such a manner and why the clocks were stopped, it is mentioned for a reason. Maybe it is foreshadowing something.

The book has certain comments that show Pip was a little kid when this first part happened. For instance, at Christmas Dinner he admitted that Mr. Whopsle's Roman nose aggravated him so much that he could not concentrate on anything else. Also, it seems to have shifts into the voice of an adult looking back on childhood.

Response Journal #2

I feel that the book has reached a place where I can finally identify with Pip. When he took Biddy into his confidence, he mentioned that he was not happy with where he was in life. He went even further to say "Well, then, understand once for all that I never shall or can be comfortable... unless I can lead a very different sort of life..." I fully understand exactly what he means by that, because I have felt that way myself. He was content enough once upon a time, but after seeing how wealthy people live being a blacksmith wasn't enough. It seems that he wondered why he should settle for a small house in a village when he could have a mansion in a large town, and 'live it up'. In this same conversation with Biddy, Pip wonders to himself about why he cannot get Estelle out of his head. He knows she would make him miserable if she were near (by putting him down) and Biddy made the point that she was not worth winning over. He wants what he cannot have; maybe because of the fact he cannot have it. It is in human nature to have some sort of fascination with an unattainable thing. This sort of characteristic makes Pip more believable.

Mrs. Joe's near death is a bit puzzling. Dickens could have meant that overbearing and abusive women would get what's coming to them. Or it could simply be that she needed to be in the background when Pip left for London. A third possibility is that it gave Pip a chance to evaluate the reasons behind her temper. Mr. Pumblechook did say that despite her anger she was probably well-intentioned.

To put a cap on the "first stage of Pip's expectations", this part was largely about the expectations towards what Mrs. Havisham would do for him. When Pip first started visiting Mrs. Havisham, Mrs. Joe and Mr. Pumblechook often discussed what she was doing and would do to improve Pip's life. And throughout this first part of the novel, Pip wondered that himself- especially towards the latter section.

Response Journal #3

This section shows a growth in Pip. He develops a certain mind set about money. He learns that money is fun, and that spending it is enjoyable. After he becomes somewhat accustomed to his new life in London he mentions that in a few months he spent an "almost fabulous" amount of money. He spent most of that money on furniture, clothing and other material objects, suggesting that he is (or is on his way to being) materialistic. There are so many things he could have put his money toward, such as a fund benefiting the poor. Considering this, I believe he has not yet reached the maturity (or moral) level that often comes along with being charitable.

Also, his financial situation is still new to him. Pip might be simply exploring his new world the way a toddler would explore a new surrounding.Pip also has realized the power of money. Earlier in the novel he didn't want to go through town in his new clothes because he didn't want people to stare. At that time he had some grasp of the power of money. He knew that many are gravitated towards it, and towards those who have it. When he first gets to London, and a minister of justice approaches him he pays the man a shilling to go away. He wanted the man to go away because his appearance was poor and his clothes were extremely dirty. This exhibits two things: Pip now thinks he can pay any annoying person to go away, and he doesn't want indigent people around him.

Response Journal #4

How Wimmick treats the Aged is very important to me. Maybe not so much to the book, but still important. He is 80-something and hard of hearing, yet he is treated as an equal. Wimmick listens to him read the paper aloud because the Aged enjoys it. The Aged is given the responsibility of making toast, and there are the signs that flip down when Wemmick or Miss Skiffins is at the door (which makes it easier for him). This contrasts a lot to today, when older people are often put in "the home" or a retirement community. Sometimes that is through their own choice, but when it's not (and they are healthy enough to live normally) it sends a message that older citizens are too much bother and should be shipped off.

The characterization of the Aged is also interesting. While some older people are depicted as being grumpy and stubborn, he is depicted as a nice old guy who needs little to please him. The name 'the Aged' may have meaning as well. If he had been called the Old, a much different idea would have been shown. Old can suggest worn, decayed, etc. while Aged can suggest matured, experienced, etc. At the risk of taking this too far, the Aged could hold the meaning that getting older can and/or should be a more pleasant experience than a lot of people think.

Journal #5

One passage that is particularly Dickensian is Pip's arrival in London. Dickens uses the adjectives in his discriptions to depict London as a dirty, grimy place with filthy people in it. For instance, the coachman taking Pip to Little Britain wore a "greasy great-coat", and drove a coach decorated with "old weather-stained pea-green hammercloth, moth eaten into rags". Pip also compared the coach to a straw yard and a rag-shop. Mr. Jaggers's room is described equally as well. It was used in conjunction with such adjectives as "dismal" and contained items like a rusty pistol, two dreadful casts of swollen faces , and a high-backed chair of deadly black horsehair (among other things). Smithfield was "all asmear with filth and fat and blood and foam". The yard in the prison had an area for hanging and whipping, and when Pip learned eight people were going to be killed in a row he thought "this was horrible, and gave me a sickening idea of London". Even Barnard's Inn was less than desirable. It was "dismal", "delapidated", "dusty", smelled of rot, etc. Pip's quote (about London) pretty much sums up what the reader ends up feeling about London.

Journal #6

In this section it has finally occurred to me that Dickens has his characters in the novel for a reason. Characters are not placed for the purpose of having more characters. For instance, both convicts (Magwitch/Provis and Compeyson) are in the first few chapters because they serve obvious purposes later on. Also, Jaggers' housekeeper is suspicioned, by Pip, of being Estella's mother. If that is true then there must be a reason why she is in the story at all. She wouldn't still be floating around with no purpose behind it. Also, certain characters have connections which are probably significant. Young Havisham is identified as Arthur, a man who helped Magwitch and Compeyson with fraudulent papers. Compeyson himself turns out to be Miss Havisham's former lover. Such surprising revelations wouldn't be mentioned if they did not have any significance to the rest of the story.

Journal #7

I found that irony was used in the 'third stage' of Pip's life. One example is when Miss Havisham is covered in white cotton-wool and laid on the table that previously held her wedding cake. Pip makes the statement that when he saw her again she lay where he "had seen her strike her stick, and had heard her say she would lie one day." I think that fact is very ironic. If it had happened the way Miss Havisham wanted, she would be lying on the table dead, which would have made her happy. The funny part is that she is finally laid out on that table, but she is alive and can't fully enjoy it. Another example of irony is when Pip is traveling to the marshes because of the note he received. When he is having dinner, a man is telling Pip all about a young man and how he snubs his earliest benefactor, Mr. Pumblechook. The man doesn't have any idea who he's talking to. The use of that irony allows for Pip to see how people in his hometown are viewing him while maintaining secrecy (regarding his identity).

One symbol was in the very end of chapter 53. When Pip is looking out his window at the river, he mentioned the air was unusually clean and that it seemed as if a veil was lifted both from the river and himself. I think this could signify Pip feeling that his fears and anxieties regarding Magwitch/Provis are gone, like a weight being lifted from his shoulders. Maybe the feeling has something to do with the fact that the day of escape has come.

Journal #8 - final entry

Pip's period of reconciling began when he fell ill and Joe was taking care of him. His attitude towards Joe becomes much different than in the second stage of the novel. In that phase he was rather embarrasses by Joe, and never visited him. While sick, Pip made the comment "as I lay in bed looking at him, it made me, in my weak state, cry again with pleasure to see the pride with which he set about his letter." Obviously he no longer feels that Joe is "simple". He also said "Exactly what he had been in my eyes then, he was in my eyes still.." To me, this clarifies that Pip viewed Joe as he did during childhood.

Pip also mentioned that as he was getting better (from his sickness), Joe slipped back into the attitude he held towards Pip during the second stage. Joe had been treating Pip as if he was a kid again, which he enjoyed. As he got better Joe made himself more distant, even calling Pip 'sir'. Pip was troubled by this, and might have realized that Joe wished Pip had stayed like his childhood self instead of becoming so arrogant.

Another instance that Pip came full circle is when he returned home to visit Joe and Biddy. He wanted so much to know that he was forgiven (for separating himself from them), and I think it's a good thing that he heard what he wanted. Then he had some peace of mind, at least.

A major sign of Pip's growth occurred when he was commenting on Herbert. He said "I was one day enlightened by the reflection that perhaps the inaptitude had never been in him at all, but had been in me." It seems like he used to look down on Herbert's intelligence in a way. Once again, Pip has come full circle in understanding that it was he who was not so smart. He did not know many things about the ways of the world when he first went to London. He finally realized that fact through introspection.

The last big event in Pip's tale is his confrontation with Estella. He needed to see her one more time for closure. Because he was able to say a final good-bye, maybe he was able to rest. I can only assume so, since the book ends with that confrontation.