Analysis: “Great Expectations” (1861) [Part III]

This is pretty much an analysis of the last third of the book. If you wanna see the first two thirds, see Parts I and II.

Section I: Characterization

Upon learning that Magwitch is his benefactor, Pip is worried for his safety and, in a way, pities him for his ungentlemanly behavior. His affection toward him is both sympathetic and repugnant, as “Words cannot tell what a sense I had, at the time, of the dreadful mystery that he was to me” (p. 358). At one point, “Every hour so increased my abhorrence of him,” (p. 358) and he doesn’t want any more of his money, but near his death, Pip remains loyal to him throughout his futile escape out of the country to his imprisonment. On the other hand, his perception of Joe is that of forgiving, though he is also happy for the man for learning how to write and marrying Biddy, for who he wants but cannot have. In this particular section, he becomes a closer friend to Herbert, anonymously offering him more money to keep his business going, and the latter has helped him try to send Magwitch away. Pip places trust in Miss Havisham to keep giving money to Herbert and is generous towards her, forgiving her for her mistakes and saving her from a fire. His relationship with Estella is once again struggling because she does not love him as much as he loves her. He has “loved [Estella] ever since I first saw you in this house,” (p. 384) though he knows Miss Havisham has tortured him ever since he became her servant/pawn, but she reacts coldly. What hurts him even more is the fact she married Bentley Drummle, for which he tries to push away from his mind, being that he passionately hates him. Nevertheless, in the end, he reunites with her after eleven years, after Drummle and Miss Havisham have died, and as they hold hands, he apperceives to never be separated from her again.

For most of the novel, Estella has been a cold-hearted, harsh woman, adopted by Miss Havisham to wreck the lives of men. Her personality never really changes, as “there are sentiments, fancies — I don’t know how to call them — which I am not able to comprehend” (p. 384). The man she marries is Bentley Drummle, but she does not care for him either, reacting indifferently when admitting she would marry him in front of Pip. However, once married, Drummle apparently “used her with great cruelty,” (p. 514) and her life fell apart. Furthermore, her early life also affected her future, as she was raised by two poor parents: Magwitch and Molly. However, at the age of three, she was raised by the wealthy Miss Havisham, taught to be cold, which led to her choosing bad choices down the road. By the end, she realizes what she had become and changes her outlook in life. Estella trusted her inner consciousness “when suffering has been stronger than all other teaching, and has taught me to understand what your heart used to be” (p. 516). She has become kinder and more friendly and wants to start her life anew on the grounds of Satis House. So, in a way, she sympathizes what Pip has gone through in his life, as Pip has done for her.

After Compeyson left her on her wedding day, Miss Havisham’s primary goal in life was to get revenge on men. Like Estella, she is a static character for the first three-fourths or so of the novel as a cold woman. She encloses herself in Satis House, away from all light, save her candle light, and wears her wedding dress every day, as she is inclines to never forget her torment. As a result, she adopts Estella to “save her from misery like my own” (p 424), but as she matured to be more beautiful, Havisham’s cruelness assimilated into Estella. Her quest to find the ideal boy for Estella to break men’s hearts turned out to be Pip, for who would later change her life. When Pip comes over to Satis House to express his love for Estella, and the latter replies unaffectionately, Miss Havisham held her heart and, after the argument, “seemed all resolved into a ghastly stare of pity and remorse” (p 387). This implies the start of her redemption of her mistakes, as she feels penitence for Pip. Miss Havisham would later call Pip back, only to finalize Pip’s request to give money to Herbert. However, when Pip forgives her, she drops to her knees and cries uncontrollably, feeling condemned for her iniquitous wrongdoings. Afterwards, her dress catches on fire and she is badly burned with her last words being, “Take the pencil and write under my name, ‘I forgive her,'” (p. 429) indicating her sentiments and apologies towards Pip.

Section II: Plot

As Pip is bewildered that Abel Magwitch (Provis) was his secret benefactor and that he intends to stay in London, the former no longer wants to receive money from him but promises to help him from getting caught (i.e. disguising him) nevertheless. After five days with him, Herbert finally returns home, and Pip explains to him about Magwitch, and they both agree to send him away where he won’t get caught. At this point, Pip wants to know Magwitch’s history, and the latter reveals that the convict he fought with early in the novel is Compeyson, Miss Havisham’s half-brother’s accomplice. Pip later goes back to Miss Havisham and Estella for the last time and tells the latter his passionate love for her, though she cruelly responds, saying she is going to marry Bentley Drummle. Going back home, he finds out that Compeyson is hunting for Magwitch, so Wemmick has hidden him at Clara’s home, and there, he confabulates with Herbert on their plans to send Magwitch away. Meanwhile, his debts are rising, and he goes over to Mr. Jaggers’ house for dinner where he concludes that Molly, the housekeeper, is Estella’s mother. He later returns to Miss Havisham, who begs him for forgiveness for Estella breaking his heart, and when he starts to leave, the old woman is set on fire and Pip saves her, consequently getting burned himself. Back home, Herbert divulges more information about Magwitch’s lover, which confirms that Molly and Magwitch are Estella’s parents. Pip receives a letter some days later, warning to tell of Magwitch’s identity if he did not meet him at the marshes. Pip eventually does this and, once there, is threatened by Orlick, who wants to kill him for coming between him and Biddy, but Trabb’s boy and Herbert arrives just on time and saves him. When the morning arrives, Pip and Herbert, along with Startop, start their plan on sending Magwitch away and row downriver to a German steamer until a police boat stops them. On it is also Compeyson, for which Magwitch gets into a brutal fight with, murdering him, getting arrested, and being mortally injured in the process. While imprisoned, Magwitch dies at the hands of Pip, and the latter follows suit on being ill, but Joe helps him recover, telling him that Miss Havisham has died and paying his debts. So as the years pass by, Joe and Biddy marry, Pip is working hard, and, at the end, he meets Estella at Satis House, holding hands with her.

Section III: Vocabulary

1) Prolix – adjective – 1. extended to great, unneccessary, or tedious length; long and wordy: As there was full an hour and a half between me and daylight, I dozed again; now waking up uneasily, with prolix conversations about nothing in my ears. . . (P. 348)

2) Extenuated – verb – 1. to represent (a fault, offense, etc.) as less serious: The road would be none the smoother for it, the end would be none the better for it, he would not be helped, nor I extenuated. (P. 374)

3) Incursion – noun – 1. a hostile entrance into or invasion of a place or territory, esp. a sudden one; raid: How long we might have remained in this ridiculous position it is impossible to say, but for the incursion of three thriving farmers — laid on by the waiter, I think — who came into the coffee-room unbuttoning their great-coats and rubbing their hands, and before whom, as they charged at the fire, we were obliged to give away. (P. 379)

4) Postern – noun – 1. a back door or gate: The little servant happening to be entering the fortress with two hot rolls, I passed through the postern and crossed the drawbridge, in her company, and so without announcement into the presence of Wemmick as he was making tea for himself and the Aged. (P. 390)

5) Superannuated – adjective – 1. retired because of age or infirmity: . . . along a series of wooden frames set in the ground, that looked like superannuated haymaking-rakes which had grown old and lost most of their teeth. (P. 397)

6) Gout – noun – 1. an acute, recurrent disease characterized by painful inflammation of the joints, chiefly those in the feet in hands, and esp. in the great toe, and by an excess of uric acid in the blood: ‘Yes,’ returned Herbert, ‘and you may suppose how mild it makes his gout.’ (P. 398)

7) Wharf – noun – 1. a structure built on the shore of or projecting into a harbor, stream, etc., so that vessels may be moored alongside to load or unload or to lie at rest; quay; pier: I had again left my boat at the wharf below Bridge. . . (P. 411)

8) Decanter – noun – 1. a vessel, usually an ornamental glass bottle, for holding and serving wine, brandy, or the like: ‘So, here’s to Mrs. Bentley Drummle,’ said Mr. Jaggers, taking a decanter of choicer wine from his dumb-waiter, and filing for each of us and for himself, ‘and may the question of supremacy be settled to the lady’s satisfaction!’ (P. 414)

9) Brambles – noun – 1. a prickly shrub or bush: Now, Mr. Jaggers showed that she had struggled through a great lot of brambles which were not as high as her face. . . (P. 418)

10) Commiseration – noun – 1. to feel or express sorrow or sympathy for; emphasize with; pity: It has inspired me with great commiseration, and I hope I understand it and its influences. (P. 425)

Section IV: Symbol

Joe Gargery represents the symbolic value of good and wisdom in the novel. His unconditional love for Pip sets the standard of what decency he has after succumbing to the influence of Estella and Miss Havisham. Even when Pip is embarrassed from and cold to him, Joe is still sympathetic and kind to him. His generous personality helps Pip persevere through his struggles, as it reveals what good is left in him. Joe saves Pip from his illness as well, so he is sort of like the latter’s guardian angel when nobody was there to help him. The character also shows that money doesn’t buy happiness because Joe is happy left alone in his house instead of in London, which he is unhappy of. He tends to stay away from trouble, like the verbal fight between Orlick and Mrs. Joe, but does what he has to do to protect his loved ones. Joe is also the embodiment of honesty, as Pip found that “There was some hope in this piece of wisdom, and it rather encouraged me,” (p. 74) when Joe advised him to never lie. This drives Pip to become a better person and would later influence his actions in his future. What makes him one of Dickens’ great good characters is the fact that he’s benevolent to all of his loved ones, even though he was raised with a harsh childhood, uneducated, and is poor.

Section V: Epiphany

One epiphany Pip experiences is when he learns Magwitch was his benefactor instead of Miss Havisham. This causes him to realize that social class is not a significant factor in one’s overall life because even Magwitch, who was once poor, was able to work his way to the top while living a difficult, unsatisfactory life. Another is that money does not amount to happiness, as Pip realizes when he returns home after his recovery from his illness. He sees that Joe is very happy the way he is, as uneducated and unwealthy, but still managing to earn a living and marrying Biddy. However, his life’s efforts in trying to achieve the high standard actually denied him of a happy life he always thought a wealthy gentleman would have. When Orlick kidnaps Pip, the latter’s “mind, with inconceivable rapidity, followed out all the consequences of such a death,” (p. 452) as he envisages all that would happen after he dies. He recognizes the effects of his actions on other people’s lives and that all of his goals are shattered. In the end, Pip goes back to hard-working and turns out to be happy living along with Herbert and his wife, more so than when he was wealthy. He also reunites with Estella, sees in her that she has truly changed, and learns that people can change. Subsuquently, Pip comes to accept his present life and lets go of the past as he moves on to better things in the outlook of his future.

Miss Havisham experiences her epiphany when Pip visits her house and a feud between him and Estella arises. At the time, Pip admits his passionate love for her and Estella retorts coldly, so Miss Havisham feels sympathy for him, having experienced a heartbreak once in her life before. Although she initially wanted to save Estella from misery, the latter’s beauty gnawed away any hope of saving her and instead made Miss Havisham a cruel, heartless woman set out on revenge. But when Pip came along, she realized that her quest for revenge caused Pip’s heart to be broken reminiscent to that of her own. Miss Havisham “dropped to her knees. . . with her folded hands raised to me in the manner in which. . . they must often have been raised to heaven from her mother’s side” (p. 423). This shows that she wants Pip to forgive her, which he does, but she knows that the past and what she has done cannot be mended. The theme of the destructive nature of revenge is additionally implied, as Miss Havisham’s revenge has harmed more people than she intended. Many people have suffered because of her acts, but she doesn’t realize it until the end. However, her actions are redeemed when she forgives Pip, even offering to do anything for him. In her final words, Miss Havisham tells Pip to write “I forgive her” in a last act to compensate her wrongdoings in the past.

Section VI: Irony

When Pip met Magwitch in the marshes, he found that he was a ungentalemanly convict who would kill him if he didn’t bring him food and a file. Later on in life, Pip receives huge amounts of money in his “great expectations.” The ironic result here is that his benefactor is Magwitch and not Miss Havisham, the person he expected it to be. Magwitch felt touched dearly by Pip’s kindness in the marshes that he set out to work hard just to make Pip a gentleman. The effect is that Pip’s becoming of a gentleman has done next to nothing beneficial to him, except realizing truths and experiencing epiphanies. He didn’t need to work hard, so all he’s done is help Herbert and wait for Miss Havisham ro reveal that she’s his benefactor. However, when Magwitch reveals his identity, Pip’s great expectations are no longer great expectations, as he comes to grasp the idea that Miss Havisham was never the one and that she never meant Estella to be with him. Furthermore, it is ironic how this once impoverished, unwell-mannered man was able to become rich while being a former convict, no less. Magwitch returned to Pip after many years and has made a profound impact on him, as the latter has done to the former. Pip even admits to admiring him more that Joe, so that’s another ironic twist between the two since he likes the person who wanted to kill him as a child.

Realizing that Pip has helped no one since his great expectations, he sets out to aid at least one individual in his life. As a secret benefactor, much like Magwitch, Pip sends money to Herbert Pocket to help him in his merchant business and marry Clara. However, when Magwitch tells Pip that he is his benefactor, the latter no longer wants to receive money from him and goes into debt. After Magwitch dies, he was supposed to be arrested for not paying his debts, but a fatal illness resulted in the postponement of his seizure. Then, Joe comes over and helps him recover and pays all of his debts when he’s recuperated from his illness. Beforehand, though, Herbert offered Pip to join him in his business, but he said that he would think about it. So to earn a living and get money, Pip accepted the offer and joined him in merchantry. The irony was that Pip, who initially gave Herbert money to start his business, later worked with Herbert in his business. He turned out to be in debt and had to work, which was what Herbert had to do before Pip gave him money. So their social positions were switched, and Herbert had the greater expectations than Pip, as he succeeded in his business and married.

Section VII: Universality

The novel possesses a universal appeal because people can easily relate to the characters in situations. Back in the Victorian era, people indulged in character-driven novels that focused more on the history and personality of the characters than the plot. Charles Dickens had also already established himself as a really popular author with A Tale of Two Cities and David Copperfield, and the use of serials became common at the time. Today, even though most novels are plot driven, Great Expectations‘ themes of social class, redemption, innocence, etc., are associable to the hardships people face in life everyday. Each character in the novel are diverse in their own way, so different people can identify with them, from Pip who aspires to become a gentleman to Miss Havisham who wants to wreck people’s lives. Joe is the man who works hard in order to provide for his poor family, so that can appeal to all of the hardworking people all around the world. Herbert works hard, too, but works to have enough money to marry his girlfriend and get a business, which could appeal to those who desire to work in the profession they want and get the girl they want. The situations and conflicts the characters encounter are relatable as well, like a kid being forced to do something for bad people. Not only that, but the intricate plot is very satisfying in terms of quality with the cliffhangers on almost every chapter and parallel storylines going along as the plot progresses. The novel ends in an ambiguous note as to whether Pip will marry Estella or not, leaving the audience to decide what they want, while he depicts his newfound optimism regarding the future.

Section VIII: Theme

Among the various important themes in the novel, one is the relationship of money to happiness. This theme is conveyed in different parts at different times in the novel, the earliest being when Pip meets Miss Havisham. Pip was described by Estella as a coarse common boy, which motivates him to strive to become a gentleman. So when he received money from Magwich, his life took a turning point and his great expectations fell short of what he thought it would be. He spent the money ceaselessly on drinks and useless commodities with Herbert and his debts rose like never before. Although he expected to get Estella and become an “uncommon” gentleman, his great expectations barely made him happy. Pip wasn’t able to get Estella and didn’t have an intended career, simply hanging around the streets of London and getting to know secrets. Nothing particular really makes him happy, though, except when he saw the expression on Herbert’s face when he received news about getting money from an anonymous benefactor. However, when he wasn’t wealthy anymore and began to work, he lived happily with Herbert. Another example is Miss Havisham, who, although very wealthy, isn’t living a happy life and instead spends money on Estella to make her more beautiful.