Great Expectations, Charles Dickens

Andre writes:


In his novel, Great Expectations, Charles Dickens relies heavily upon setting, one of the elements of fiction. And in this particular book, location makes all of the difference.


At the begging of the novel, we meet Pip, a young working class boy living in a village somewhere in the English countryside. While living the life of a blacksmith’s apprentice and a barely literate schoolboy, Pip secretly dreams of becoming a gentleman. At the time, European countries and governments were ruled and headed by the upper class. This is also particularly true of England, a society notorious for its elite. However, it also had quite a large working class. Pip, being born into it, acknowledges his social position and is taught to accept it, as is the norm in England. His entire life is shaped by the town boundaries and he dare not venture out of it. Had the story not been set in England or in some other European nation, perhaps in a country where birth right did not necessarily dictate the course of your life, Pip might have turned out to be a very different person than the one that Dickens writes about.


Later, Pip’s wish is granted and he is offered the opportunity to become a gentleman. He accepts it, but is forced to live in London. Though I have not read farther, I imagine that Pip and his view of the world will be shaped by his new home. Obviously, the great city and and small village are in stark contrast with one another and I am curious to see how Pip will cope with life in such a large metropolis, in particular, the initial transition and reactions to life in London. Later, as Pip is being raised, the aristocracy will have a heavy hand in bringing the boy up and culturing him, but Pip will have to make some decisions on his own. How his surroundings have molded him will be reflected in his choices.