Great Expectations: Themes (AQA GCSE English Literature)

Exam responses that are led by ideas are more likely to reach the highest levels of the mark scheme. Exploring the ideas of the text, specifically in relation to the question being asked, will help to increase your fluency and assurance in writing about the novel.

Below are some ideas which could be explored in Great Expectations. This list is not exhaustive and you are encouraged to identify other ideas within the novel.

• Guilt and Shame
• Social Class
• Ambition and Self-improvement
• Integrity and Reputation

Guilt is a significant theme in Great Expectations and plays a major part in Pip's life. Dickens places Pip in a world layered with guilt in Great Expectations to show the reader the effect that environment has on his development. 

Knowledge and evidence:

• As the narrator, Pip is overtly critical of his past actions and harshly condemns himself for them, while barely acknowledging his good deeds
• As a child, Pip possesses a heightened sense of guilt, but also has enough awareness to question the opinions of Mrs Joe, Hubble and Pumblechook
• Pip is constantly reminded by his elders that he lacks gratitude, though he also recognises the unfairness of these accusations:
  • Similarly, Joe also recognises that coming to Pip's defence will only result in further mistreatment
• Mrs Joe is characterised by her harsh and unfeeling attitude towards Pip and she frequently reprimands him for seemingly trivial acts:
  • She persistently instils feelings of guilt within him, which are not only tied to his misconduct but also to his dependence on her
  • Further, this sense of guilt is reinforced by Pumblechook’s bullying behaviour
• Pip has legitimate reasons to feel remorse in his first dealings with Magwitch in Volume I:
  • Having been coerced by Magwitch to commit a theft at the forge, Pip is overcome with a sense of guilt for having committed a crime
  • He is unable to confide in Joe as he harbours the mistaken belief that Joe would cease to love and respect him
• With no expectations, Joe gives Pip the chance to follow in his footsteps and become an apprentice craftsman:
  • At first, Pip is content with this life, eagerly anticipating the day he will become Joe's apprentice
• However, after his initial visit to Satis House, Pip feels ashamed of his social status:
  • He not only denounces himself but also the environment that has moulded him into who he is
• When Pip goes to London, he continually grapples with his feelings of guilt:
  • Dickens highlights this by repeatedly mentioning Pip’s misgivings and his personal betrayals
• Pip becomes increasing aware and ashamed of Joe's inadequacies, specifically his inability to read and his lack of social ease when talking with Miss Havisham:
  • Pip feels compelled to conceal Joe from his London friends, even though he is aware of their insignificance to him
  • He experiences some mild pangs of guilt for mistreating Joe, but these are outweighed by his desire to maintain his social standing
• Pip also becomes repelled by memories of his interactions with Magwitch:
  • He fixates on the low social status of Magwitch and how that might affect Estella’s perception of him
• Pip has feelings of guilt following the assault on Mrs Joe due to the fact that the weapon used was the leg-iron of the convict he had assisted:
  • This is further compounded by the fact that he has never revealed the full truth about this incident to Joe
• The reunion with Estella in the final chapter of the novel could indicate that Pip is now liberated from the guilt and shame that troubled him in his youth, as well as the social aspirations that arose as a result of those emotions
• As a character, Miss Havisham becomes overwhelmed with anguish over the guilt that weighs heavily on her for the harm she caused to Estella and Pip
• When Pip confronts Havisham regarding the magnitude of her actions, she provides an explanation without attempting to justify her behaviour, before finally requesting his forgiveness:
  • Her eventual redemption is illustrated through her remorse for her actions and her attempt to redress the balance of her wrongdoings

What is Dickens's intention?

• Dickens effectively illustrates how the burden of guilt can weigh heavily on a young mind such as Pip
• Dickens suggests that feelings of guilt and shame are a requisite for those characters who have conducted themselves in an arrogant, conceited, cruel or vindictive manner:
  • Through having feelings of remorse, redemption is possible

Dickens explores the class hierarchy of Victorian England throughout Great Expectations.  The exploration of social class is a central aspect of the novel, as it reinforces the overarching moral theme of the narrative.

Knowledge and evidence:

• Dickens depicts characters from various classes in Great Expectations:
  • The lowly Magwitch
  • The working-class Joe and Biddy
  • The middle-class Pumblechook
  • The very affluent Miss Havisham
• In the opening chapters of the novel, Dickens presents Pip's circumstances as being miserly and lacking in opportunities because of his social class:
  • Dickens does this in order to convey how understandable his desire to escape it is
• The relationships between Pip and Joe, Miss Havisham and Estella are largely based around social class:
  • When Pip goes to Satis House, he is informed that he is merely a “common labouring-boy” 
  • Following his meeting with Estella and Miss Havisham, Pip begins to reject his working-class life, declaring: “I want to be a gentleman”
• Further, Pip’s apprenticeship, which he once viewed as an excellent opportunity, now feels like a difficult burden he must carry
• Pip imagines Satis House as a picturesque representation of everything he desires, which stands in stark contrast to his humble background on the marshes:
  • The trips to Satis House intensify Pip's sense of inadequacy by heightening his sense of societal inferiority
  • Despite his attempts to keep Satis House and his old life separate, they are continually intertwined throughout the novel
• Due to his fortuitous wealth and position, Pip now regards Miss Havisham's social standards as the only ones that offer both dignity and a sense of pride
• Despite being treated as an equal by Joe, Pip begins to develop a condescending attitude towards him, at least internally
• In contrast, Joe takes pride in his position on the social hierarchy as he is a skilled craftsman who finds true enjoyment in working with his hands:
  • His acceptance of his way of life is symbolised through his affinity for the forge, as well as his clothing and pipe
• Joe is portrayed as a typical working-class character and his use of language is closely related to his trade:
  • His use of colloquial expressions and metaphors, such as "life is made of ever so many partings welded together," demonstrate his limited education beyond his work
  • Nevertheless, he displays genuine empathy and thoughtfulness which contradicts the vulgar depictions of the lower class which were propagated by some of the Victorian upper class
• By depicting Pip's severe misjudgements and conduct, Dickens conveys the moral failings of the upper-class society that Pip is now a part of
• Dickens illustrates how the life of an upper-class gentleman can lead to idleness and moral decay:
  • These harmful influences negatively impact the inner pure intentions of Pip
• The reader sympathises with Pip's predicament, as he is often ridiculed and snubbed by higher-class characters, such as Drummle, solely because of his humble origins
• Magwitch's life of oppression, terror, starvation, and the dreaded prison ships is vastly beyond Pip's social world, causing Pip to initially respond with fear and compassion, which later turns to revulsion
• By the end of the novel, Pip comes to the realisation that the value of money and social status pales in comparison to the significance of affection, devotion, and inner worth
• Pip also realises that one's social status does not determine their true character:
  • For example, Drummle and Compeyson who belong to the upper class are cruel and vindictive, while individuals like Magwitch, a convicted criminal, possess a kindness and compassion
• Although at very opposite ends of the class system, both Miss Havisham and Magwitch are repeatedly contrasted throughout the novel:
  • Although they never meet, Pip frequently associates them together and highlights the differences between their respective social worlds
  • Despite their differing class backgrounds, both individuals share the commonality of being deceived by Compeyson and respond similarly to his cruelty by adopting a child and attempting to shape them

What is Dickens's intention?

• Dickens conveys his message through the underlying moral theme which emphasises the significance of affection, loyalty, and conscience over social status, wealth, and class
• By connecting the two worlds of the novel, Dickens implies that the wealth and status enjoyed by the elite is made possible by the systematic exclusion and exploitation of the working population

The title of the novel chiefly centres around Pip’s yearning for self-improvement, as he harbours "great expectations" regarding his future, and maintains a conviction in the possibility of his own upward mobility.

Knowledge and evidence:

• Pip is an idealistic character who seeks something better than what he has:
  • He yearns for self-improvement and aspires to become a prosperous gentleman
  • He also longs to learn how to read and to improve his moral inadequacies 
• His initial encounter with Estella and Miss Havisham leads him to confuse arrogance and meanness with superiority:
  • Along with Estella's beauty, this ignites an obsessive admiration that drives Pip's pursuit of social status instead of honesty and integrity 
  • His ambition to become an apprentice, the idea of which previously cherished by both Pip and Joe, is now deemed unworthy
• Ambition and self-improvement are the driving forces behind much of Pip's actions, both positively and negatively, and are manifested in three ways: moral, social, and educational
• Pip's key focus is on achieving moral self-improvement, for whenever he behaves immorally, he experiences intense guilt:
  • Pip feels obligated to help the convict and resorts to committing a crime, which intensifies his innate sense of guilt
  • Similarly, when he leaves for London, he is remorseful for treating Joe and Biddy so terribly
• Pip also has a strong desire for social advancement, which is driven in part by his love for Estella:
  • Ironically, Pip's life as a gentleman is no more gratifying or morally superior to his former life as Joe’s apprentice
• Furthermore, Pip's aspiration for social advancement is also closely linked to his desire to improve his education and marry Estella:
  • To him, becoming a gentleman requires a thorough education and as long as he remains an uneducated country boy, his dream of climbing the social ladder will remain out of reach
• Although Pip has high hopes and great expectations, his ambitions ultimately lead to loneliness and despair:
  • This is evident not only from the narrative he recounts but also through the remorseful and ironic tone he employs
• Pip eventually comes to understand self-improvement and ambition as a more complex process:
• He gains a valuable lesson through Joe, Biddy and Magwitch and appreciates that it is one's conscience and affection that truly matter, rather than ambitions for social standing or wealth
• Other characters presented as being ambitious are contrasted with Pip and shown to be affected in different ways: 
  • For example, despite his cruel background, Magwitch’s ambition enables him to reinvent himself for the better, becoming both a prosperous man and Pip's benefactor
  • For example, Biddy becomes an educated woman and a schoolmistress and is content with her modest ambitions, by taking advantage of every opportunity to improve herself 
• As a character, Joe could be viewed as not being overtly affected by ambition, though he does learn how to read:
• • As a skilled blacksmith, he takes pride in his craftsmanship and does not harbour ambitions for anything more
• Dickens also deliberately focuses his attention on characters who have acquired their fortune through trade and commerce, rather than those in the nobility or aristocracy with inherited wealth:
• • For example, Miss Havisham’s father acquired his aristocratic position simply from the fact that he was a wholesaler who made money
  • By doing so, Dickens connects social class with the concept of hard work and self-advancement, reinforcing the novel's central themes of ambition and self-improvement

What is Dickens's intention?

• Dickens illustrates Pip's journey of enlightenment, primarily through the exploration of ambition and self-improvement
• Dickens demonstrates how this lack of social mobility is unjust and self-perpetuating
• Dickens implies that the lack of social mobility and the Victorian society's rigid class distinctions are responsible for Pip's struggles to fit in

Throughout the novel, Pip undergoes a transformation from being solely focused on securing a reputation for himself to being a character possessing real integrity. Dickens examines the correlation between the seemingly reputable upper-class and the criminal underworld. 

Knowledge and evidence:

• Dickens explores ideas regarding integrity and reputation by examining how different characters place greater importance on how they are perceived by others, rather than on maintaining a sense of morality and decency:
  • For example, Estella, Pumblechook and Mrs Joe belittle people in order to elevate their own self-image in the eyes of others
  • Compeyson appears to be a sophisticated gentleman, but in reality he is responsible for many of the evil deeds which occur throughout the novel
• Characters such as Joe and Biddy are fully characterised by their integrity:
  • As they do not seek validation from others, these characters are presented as self-satisfied and content with their lot
• Great Expectations centres around Pip's aspiration to become a respectable gentleman and explores what it means to be one:
  • This notion is introduced to Pip early in Volume I when he encounters Estella and he becomes anxious to be her social equal
• Dickens deliberately makes the term “gentleman” ambiguous in the novel:
  • While it could refer to someone who displays positive qualities like integrity, truthfulness and honour it could also simply denote one’s belonging to a separate class
• Dickens's ideas about being a gentleman suggest that a man's social standing or class is what defines him and that this is related to social etiquette, dress and speech, as well as the reputation of family and wealth:
  • For example, Pip’s first task as a young man with expectations is to visit the local tailor 
  • This is used to demonstrate his rapid development of false exterior values 
• Pip’s desire for a gentleman’s reputation is associated with isolation and suppression:
  • For Pip, it requires him to disconnect himself from the energy and warmth that the fire at Joe’s forge symbolises
  • He becomes arrogant, belittles Biddy and devises ways to transform Joe into a more suitable companion
• As orphans, Pip and Estella are moulded into something that either deviates from their true selves or assume identities that obscure their authentic self:
  • Pip becomes ungrateful and snobbish, and Estella is transformed into a heartless weapon to be used against men
• Further, they also both differ in their level of perception:
  • While Estella is able to see past Pip's façade, she is oblivious to the fact that beneath her own cold exterior there is a repressed personality
  • Pip acknowledges his own snobbish tendencies, yet despite this self-awareness, he is unable to see beyond Estella's external demeanour 
• Dickens portrays Pip's character as initially accepting the illusion of being a reputable gentleman, only to have it shattered by Magwitch's intrusion
• By idealising Estella’s reputation and vilifying Magwitch’s, Pip has made an error that he must atone for:
  • In order for Pip to recognise the inherent goodness of Magwitch and to reconcile with him, he must understand the humanity of Estella and her father 
• Pip is finally able to recognise Magwitch's intrinsic decency, enabling him to disregard Magwitch's former label as a criminal:
  • Moved by his moral principles, Pip assists Magwitch in avoiding the law and the authorities
  • By observing and appreciating Magwitch's authenticity, Pip has transitioned from an external to an internal standard of evaluating worth and decency
• Further, in the final days of Magwitch's life, Pip demonstrates a profound dedication to him:
  • This act of devotion provides redemption for Pip in the eyes of the reader
  • Pip is fully aware of the societal implications of such an association and the damage it could do to his reputation
• For the reader and eventually Pip, a different perspective to what it means to have integrity is to have all that Joe's character embodies:
  • It ultimately leads Pip to appreciate Joe's and Herbert's simple and contented way of living

What is Dickens's intention?

• Dickens highlights the illusions that can be associated with being a reputable gentleman 

• Dickens conveys how reputation is based merely on one’s appearance or position in society, rather than one’s actual conduct