Books I read in Lockdown: Great Expectations (BIG SPOILERS)

**"I have been broken and bent, but - I hope - into a better shape" (page 553-4)

Oh, Great Expectations, my dear friend, what a pleasure it was to read you again!! 

I love classic literature and Great Expectations is one of my absolute favourite classics and probably one of my favourite books in general; I'm so glad I decided to re-read this. I first read it at college as one of my set texts for A-level English Language & Literature and I really enjoyed it then; it was a great text to study because it has so many themes and so many links between all the characters, but I have to say I enjoyed it even more the second time around and outside of study (it's nice to be able to read a book and not need to analyse every word!). The whole surrounding message of this book is so beautiful and it's one of the most amazing coming of age novels out there in my opinion; Pip is loveable despite being so, so appalling at times and even Miss Havisham has a charm about her that you can't help falling in love with. Dickens' writing can be at times a little hard and lengthy but then, if you were paying yourself by the word, you'd write long books too, but his writing is also so poignant and Great Expectations has some of my all time favourite book quotes. I love that this book is split into 3 volumes - not only does it follow through Pip's life really effectively, it also makes it so much easier to tackle as a reader. The nature of Dickens' writing and his books can easily and understandably be daunting but this book is split into the 3 volumes, with around 20 chapters per volume - definitely more manageable!

Volume 1:

In regards to language and character, most of my favourite parts of this book are contained in the first volume. The language that surrounds Pip at the beginning is just so innocent and it is his child-like observations, especially in his descriptions of his sister Mrs Joe looking like she has scrubbed herself with a nutmeg grater, that provide humour and create a small, and sweet child. At first Pip appears humble and generous, even going to the extent of stealing from his sister's pantry to feed the convict and stealing from Joe's forge in order to free the convict of his shackles and the reader feels sympathy for Pip when he is tormented by his crimes and becomes paranoid about being arrested; remembering that he is still just the small boy who had been given " most tremendous dip and roll so that the church jumped over its own weather-cock" (page 6) a short time earlier under duress from his convict. However, painfully, what there was of kind, modest Pip lasts a very short time and by the end of the first volume he is already behaving with vanity and pride, insulting everyone who loves him dearly. His treatment of Biddy is harsh and patronising, and he very quickly thinks himself above the townsmen to the extent where he cannot be seen in his new clothes by them.

Also, the first volume very quickly allows us to get the measure of other characters. Our enemies and our favourites are almost instantly established due to Dickens' excellent descriptions of Pip's acquaintances most of whom have personalities to match their hysterical physical appearances. Mrs Joe is a sharp and aggressive woman like the pins in her apron whilst Joe, like his kind face, is very fair and much calmer. Dolge Orlick, like his physical nature, is a sly, dodgy man who comes off a bit creepy, Miss Havisham of course has a heart to match her clothes and her house where time stands still and Mr Pumblechook a "large hard-breathing middle aged slow man" (page 28) is indeed overbearing and no where near as intellectual as he would have you believe. I enjoy that in Dickens' writing so many things are symbolic and he really takes good advantage of techniques like foreshadowing and pathetic fallacy to create the perfect atmospheres for events. The pathetic fallacy of the mist on the marshes used throughout the first volume not only serves to symbolise Pip's shame in his roots with a dark unsettled scene, but by the end with the "all the mists solemnly risen" (page 186) also to foreshadow that despite his good expectations, his fortunes do not truly improve long term.

Volume 2: 

Personally the second volume has a lot of really lovely characters in it and is where most of Pip's development occurs, however it is also my least favourite of the three volumes purely due to the fact it is not quite as dramatic as the others. Something I do love about this volume is that Miss Havisham, if it is possible, gets more disturbing. By this stage she is really tormenting Pip about Estella and on page 276 where she is whispering in Pip's ear "love her, love her, love her" this becomes a creepy  mantra for the following few chapters as Pip hears her pleading voice everywhere he goes. The whole character of Miss H and Satis House and the way in which they torment Pip and introduce a gothic element to Great Expectations is for me one of the reasons I fell in love with the book - as a mixture of realism, gothic, fairytale and coming of age.

In volume two for me, Pip is at the height of his selfishness. He is distressed at the idea of Joe visiting, he is spending money so excessively that he is getting not only himself but his friend Herbert Pocket into extreme debt but also having the audacity to allude that he has regrets and misses home because "there was no fire like the forge fire" (page 312). Herbert is by far my favourite character in the novel and I love everything from the physical description of him to the wise head on young shoulders that he seems to have that manages to get Pip thinking rationally. From the start he is a laid back, charming gentleman with his strawberries that he is squashing under his arm and his need to "combat the door as if it were a wild beast" (page 202) and he quickly becomes just the sort of friend that Pip needs to keep him somewhat grounded. Due to his kind nature it is Herbert (besides Joe) that I have the most sympathy for when he gets mixed up in Pip's overly luxurious and headstrong life. Whilst Herbert is also trying to further himself and 'look about him' as he says, the big difference between himself and Pip is that Herbert appears to be working for his limited money (as various menial clerks etc) whilst Pip is living solely on the fortune from his unknown benefactor. Therefore I feel sympathy for him when Pip starts getting them both into debts beyond Herbert's income and the length of time it takes for Pip to feel bad about it. Despite Pip beginning to recognise the ways in which he has changed in this volume, I have little compassion for him due to his complete neglect of Joe and his proudly boasting of "spending as much money as we could" (page 314.

Volume 3:

Onto by far the most dramatic of the three volumes. As far as Pip is concerned I still feel very little sympathy for him in this volume as he has by this point begun to believe that despite the way he has behaved and has treated Joe and Biddy, that as he hasn't had his own way, he is now entitled to his old life back. Whichever way you look at Pip, he always believes he is entitled to something! The most shocking thing about him in the volume is the moment he decides that as Estella has married, he will settle for Biddy and try to persuade her that he will be a good choice for her; telling her on page 540 that "dear Biddy, if you can tell me that you will go through the world with me... I will try hard to make it a better world for you" and plainly disregarding her earlier wish to remain proud of her class and not wanting to 'better' her position. Perhaps the most selfish element of Pip is not in fact his wish to leave the forge and become a gentleman, but his desperation to drag his acquaintances upwards into a class to which they don't wish to belong and have no respect at all for their pride. 

But Pip aside, this is a stunning volume. Many connections start to be made between characters and every one Pip has seen along his journey turns out to be greatly significant. People you would have originally thought to be minor side characters such as 'the man on the stairs' and Mr Jagger's housemaid actually prove vital to plot and to Pip's change of fortune. There is also the scene of the fire at Satis House which does redeem Pip slightly for all his poor behaviour in his act of selflessness and bravery in saving Miss H and suffering badly as a result with burns - which of course Herbert tends and nurses. The scene is also so symbolic of the way in which Pip's life has turned out; he anticipated huge success but really, Miss Havisham's burnt clothes "falling in a black shower" (page 460) around them better sums up his fortunes. Finally of course the heartbreaking end to this novel is the death of a treasured character, but the blow is also softened by Pip being forced to settle for an average life and income, having not got his own way in the end, and having neither Estella or Biddy to share his life with. 

My combined and final views on this great book are mixed. I adore the story and a lot of the characters are lovely (Herbert, Joe, Biddy) but some of the characters do great on me by the end of what is quite a long book. Mr Pumblechook starts funny but becomes draining very quickly and I cannot confess to understand how Pip continues to associate with him if he grates on Pip as much he claims. His mannerisms are excessive and some passages containing him are much too long for me and these mannerisms being over used eventually gives a feel of a not very well rounded character, heavily reliant on one trait and punchline. 

I love the combination of genres - realism, gothic, fairytale, - and the over arching theme of Bildungsroman (a novel dealing with formative years and spiritual education) but it is a shame that Pip began somewhat selfish and entitled and despite all he experience, ends up much the same and I think personally whilst his comeuppance is satisfying, I would have liked a better ending for Pip. Whilst it can be argued Pip did change from innocent to experienced; right from the start he was proud, entitled (going to Miss Havisham in hope of his expectations being raised) and never that admirable a character in the first place. 

Finally, whilst I love the connections that are made consistently throughout the novel and that every character becomes key to a part of the plot along the way, by volume three the amount of coincidences does become considerably excessive and loses its tact along the way. 

However, I do absolutely adore this book and it lead me onto reading more Dickens since studying it and I am a big fan of his books and will continue to be despite the few issues I found on re-reading this one.                          As you can see, I do confess to be quite a big fan...

For me, Great Expectations gets 4.5 stars, which is still a great rating!

⭐⭐⭐⭐ + 1/2

** all quotes and page numbers mentioned in this post are in reference to Charles Dickens, 'Great Expectations' (Penguin Books, England, 2015) ISBN 978-0-241-25660-2

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