Great Expectations

Author: Charles Dickens
Publisher:
Publication Date: 1997-03-01
Features: This book introduces Pip, a poor rural orphan, raised by his fiery sister and honest brother-in-law, blacksmith Joe. After arriving at the home of the noble Miss Havisham, Pip becomes enchanted by the extravagance of high society and begins to despise Joe for being kind yet lacking in "refinement," feeling ashamed of his humble origins. Miss Havisham, left half-crazed after being abandoned by her lover, adopts the girl Estella, using her as a tool for revenge against men, teaching her how to use her beauty to torment men. When Pip falls in love with Estella, he is mocked and taunted by her, further fueling his desire to rise above his station and become a "gentleman." At this moment, a mysterious benefactor provides Pip with a fortune, sending him to London to receive the so-called "education of a gentleman." Pip believes Miss Havisham is intentionally nurturing him to fulfill his marriage to Estella, feeling he has finally secured a "great expectations." He lives a life of indulgence and luxury in London. However, his dreams of gentility are soon shattered: the man who financed him is revealed to be not a nobleman but a convict he had helped as a child. Meanwhile, the woman he adores marries someone else. Life finally teaches Pip to recognize the truth, beauty, and ugliness in the world. He returns to Joe, the one who has always cared for and protected him, and even begins to sympathize with the convict.