In the novel “Great Expectation”, the protagonist who went by the name Pip takes the readers along his journey on the different lifestyles he experienced. Through his journey, Pip’s demeanor changed slightly. Instantly Pip status changed when he became a wealthy man. His character changed from once a humble man to being vain. Pip changed his identity to climb the social ladder. Social Class often determined how people are treated. Pip was able to keep his humanistic ideals for people, although his social status had changed.
Pip was desperate to demonstrate his compassion for people despite their social status. He treated people the same despite their socio-economic level. He refused to make choices that would change his empathy for people. Pip stayed with his morals and remained grounded but with his new social status and the perception that he was to become a gentleman, which prompted the devastation of this new social hierarchy and the restrictions and arrangements he has to endure to become the new and improved Pip.
Pip showed that through all these social changes, he remained grounded referring to the term of a static character, which is a character that stays the same throughout the story. Pip’s journey can also be related to the novel “Fiction: Reading, Reacting, Writing” that defines what a static character is as follows: “A static character may face the same challenges a dynamic character might encounter but will remain essentially unchanged” (Laurie G. Kirszner, Stephen R. Mandell 91).
Pip character was described as grounded, or a static character can also be interpreted in in the article “Disenchantment: The Formation, Distortion, and Transformation of Identity in Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations. ” According to Disenchantment: The Formation, Distortion, and Transformation of Identity in Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations states, “Pip’s nature were mostly innocent, his nurture leaves much to be desired, resulting in a distortion of his identity.
A sad and universal truism of human nature is that people’s impressions of themselves are generally formed or at least influenced by how others view them, and while Joe, Pip’s sister’s husband, has always been a kind presence in Pip’s life, Joe is more of an equal than a father, and a child without parents is a child without an inherited meta-narrative to which he can connect his identity”(Christoph 49). In this scene, Pip and his friends tried to get Magwitch away from London.
Just before the escape attempt, Pip was called to a shadowy meeting in the marshes, where he encountered the vengeful and evil Orlick. Orlick was on a vengeful path of killing Pip, and as he was about to die at the hands of Orlick, he recognizes the need to change. He came to terms with the unenviable, he needs to change his missteps. Pipi and his friends planned an escape route but just before the escape attempt, Pip was called to a shadowy meeting in the marshes, where he encountered the vengeful and evil Orlick.
Orlick was on the verge of killing Pip when he recognized the direction he needed to take to change and rectify his missteps . In reality, Pip at long last comprehended his past development and recognized the need for preservation of his character, given that an individual’s personality is mostly made from the impressions of other. Pip facing death once again becomes very malaise.
In chapter LVII, he states, “That I had a fever and was avoided, that I endured enormously, that I frequently lost my reason, that the time appeared to be relentless, that I puzzled outlandish presences with my own particular personality; that I was a block in the house-divider, but then importuning to be discharged from the jazzed put where the manufacturers had set me; that I was a steel light emission incomprehensible motor, conflicting and spinning over an inlet, but that I beseeched in my own individual to have the motor halted, and my part in it pounded off; that I went through these periods of infection.
After I had turned the most exceedingly bad purpose of my ailment, I started to notice that while the various components changed, this one consistent feature did not change (514)”. Pip’s rising body temperature and the severe fever overtaking his body, he sees a vision of himself. The vision demonstrates his old character being expunged and supplant with the fresh new formation of himself. This formation can be seen in the Bildungsroman genre.
Tobis Boes’s article states, “The first edition of Franco Moretti’s The Way of the World: The Bildungsroman in European Culture appeared in English translation in 1987. In this far-reaching and broadly comparative study, Moretti makes a bold claim for the Bildungsroman as the “‘symbolic form’ of modernity” (236). He argues that the defining characteristic of the novel of formation is to be found not in the protagonist’s organic or accretive growth, but rather in his youth”(236). The Bildungsroman genre can be seen in The Great Expectation’s novel characterizes what truly atters in life and the coming of age. Along the way, Pip encounters the world’s brutality but learns to acknowledge that he too has added to the affliction of others. Pip eventually leaves home to go to London for his gentlemen ship. The trip to London was set with misery, both rationally and spiritually, which he needed to experience to reach his ending goals of achievement development. In an earlier scene in the chapter, Pip was given an internship to become a gentleman, he believed it was important for Joe to learn how to write.
Pip encouraged his female friend Biddy to teach Joe how to write. At a pivotal movement, during this time he became an upper-class citizen. He believed it would be unfair of him to teach Joe because he felt superior to Joe who was in a lower class position. Pip states that he will give the community “a gallon of condescension, upon everybody in the village ”(Dickens 161). He fulfilled his purpose as Biddy teaches Joe how to read and write. In another fulfillment goal, his friend Herbert donated money before he lost his fortune, found out Ms. Havisham had died and had left Herbert and his family most of her fortune.
Pip righteous recovery begins in a prior scene when the mists, which secured his unique ethical values, give him his old consciousness of perceiving the correct worth of essential morality. Pip attempts to fix every one of his associations with the individuals he abused and adored. Pip connects with his old friend Herbert who was struggling to find a job. Pip finds him work regardless of the possibility that he might have to put up his own money to fund him the job.
Pip likewise does his best to try to assist Magwitch from escaping the police officers. In spite the fact Magwitch does not get away, Pip makes Magwitch happy before he passed on letting him know that he had a little girl’s name. The girl’s name was Estella who he admired, regardless if she was discourteous to Pip. Pip guises with Miss Havisham discover the mistake she made. She was grateful that Pip had demonstrated to her kindness and wanted to give Pip some funds to help him pay off his obligations.
Pip refused to take the money and realized her attempts to pay off his obligations. Nevertheless, Joe pays Pip’s obligations and once again, he was in good standings. Along the way, Pip was introduced to Joe and Biddy son baby Pip, this symbolic image represented Pip’s resurrection of his old person. Pip settled all his issues with all his love ones without any conditions. Pip confronted his issues choosing to live his life righteously. Pip’s conduct resembled a man of honor making him think before harming the general population although they believe he should change.
The experience he underwent made him take in many valuable lectures, which allow him to develop into a mature man. Before this apprenticeship experiences Pip was a mature boy but after his experiences, he transformed into a mature man. This addresses his development and advancement of his character. It is much harder to be respected and watch over a character total static. Since Pip committed errors, Pips favorable choices were valuable emphasizing his imperfections, making Pip a more practical and more outstanding character.
