Great Expectation pg.1-55

As you well know, our class started reading Charles Dickens’ novel “Great Expectations” this week. Although I became somewhat apprehensive about reading it, I have found that Dickens portrays many emotions through many characters, making this book very interesting.
I was so surprised that the author opened on the scene where Pip is approached and threatened by a home-less man. I thought to myself, “Isn’t this crazy!” My first question is why was Pip in the graveyard anyways? Yes, I know Pip is basically an orphan but wouldn’t a kid have a better hangout spot than that? Secondly, when the man demands Pip to steal from his sister and her husband, what is the file for? We later see the hobo filing down his foot or something, but I would really like to know why. My first guess would be that he got hurt, maybe in a war, and it was a cheap medical procedure at the time.

I found it rather interesting the way Pip compared the homeless man eating food to a large dog guzzling down. [pg. 14] Although I have never spent much time around homeless people, I’m thinking that it isn’t far from the truth. The author writes, “I now noticed a decided similarity between the dog’s way of eating, and the man’s”.

I despise the character Mrs. Joe, who has raised Pip “by hand”. [Which I have decided means I-beat-my-own-kid-and-you-should-praise-me-for-it.] It does seem that other people expect Pip to be thankful for this upbringing. This Mrs. Joe cruelly beats both her husband, Joe, and her brother, Pip. Personally, I believe ever so much that it is wrong, but maybe that’s just me.
For Pip’s sake I’m so thankful that Dickens made a character such as Joe that will listen to Pip, praise him for his accomplishments, and will give him advice, even if it isn’t always that accurate. Pip says at one part of the story “He always aided and comforted me when he could, and he always did so at dinnertime by giving me gravy.” Then the author uses one of our smiley face tricks—the power of repetition. [Joe gave me gravy.]

The absolute strangest character to me, and probably to a lot of other people, is Miss Havisham. I really wonder what her deal is. She wears a faded wedding dress, faded everything actually, and is in an isolated room with no windows. All of her clocks are stopped at a specific time and I really wonder why. I’m thinking that she is mentally stuck at her wedding day but I could be wrong.

Dickens’ style of writing isn’t one I’m used to but I’m starting to think that this is a book that I will ever so much enjoy.