Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

[MrsAmyM]

I have to admit I never liked this one. A lot of the charactors are so unlikable.

[Titanoboa92]

I really liked this book. It was interesting reading about Pip's experiences and the effects they had on his life and his views. Its twists were surprising and kept me hooked.

[mama22]

I haven't read this book but have read other book from Charles Dickens he is a great author

[jesuisamylea]

Dickens is a very extraordinary writer, however Great Expectations took me a long while to read because my attention span wasn't good enough! All in all though, the plot was fantastic along with his exquisite writing skills!

[quill_begotten]

I haven't read any of Dickens' books except the very short compressed versions of Oliver Twist and David Copperfield when I was a kid. I enjoy many of the movies based on his stories but the movie I saw of Great Expectations left me with a bad feeling, unlike all the others I'd seen. Maybe it was the way it was interpreted in the modernized film, but I've always been skeptical about reading it ever since. I think I'll give it a try anyways after seeing all these comments. It's probably not fair to judge the book by the movie anyways, I've definitely read books before that I really enjoyed but hated the movie versions.

[hedda gabler 46]

Great Expectations is one of Dicken's more later and a bit more bleaker than the other books like Nicholas Nickleby, Martin Chuzzlewit or even say Bleak House. That is primarily because the resolutions (or to use jargon 'denoument') in the other titles are very idealized and good being rewarded in weird and wonderful ways by sort of fantastically kind characters who have money! Great Expectations is different .The ending is a bit more realistic I would say in the quality of non-definite ending.The protagonist ,very human and emotionally blind,abused by his sister and you've got the deep exploration into domestic violence between the Gargerys. Miss Havisham ,one the mos interesting psychological studies...warped and twisted due to dissappointed love actually displays the symptoms of clinical manic depression,highs and lows,mood swings. Then Magwitch who's a goodie but his motives are self serving as well. He uses and manipulates a human being with money,sort of plays God in trying to convert Pip into a gentleman. Which he doesn't. Not really as Pip remains shallow,selfish and suffers from the most massive inferiorty complex

[Alpona]

Amazing!

[Timea]

This is one of my favorite books Pip's transformation is indeed great to watch, but at times it is frustrating too... also, there are a lot of captivating characters and the ending made me cry...

[youngs90]

This is one of those books that everybody had to read in high school. We all hated it then but now realize what a treasure this book really is. Dickens was a wonderful writer. Some things we just don't appreciate until much later in life. I need to read this book again.

[florajavier]

This is one of my all-time favorite books. Although, I must say that, even though I appreciate Pip's growth and the roundness of his character, I find him to be the least sympathetic. Perhaps it's because it's impossible to read this tale without falling in love with Joe for his straightforward goodness and unconditional love for Pip, who then breaks our hearts by the way he treats Joe. But then I also feel for Ms. Havisham, for what she goes through--- how she is hopelessly broken and twisted. Even Estella, who does not know any better, a prisoner of her upbringing for she is raised and bred to be no other than the person that she is, draws sympathy in my opinion. It is only Pip's character that I did not appreciate much.

[hedda gabler 46]

This is one of my all-time favorite books. Although, I must say that, even though I appreciate Pip's growth and the roundness of his character, I find him to be the least sympathetic. Perhaps it's because it's impossible to read this tale without falling in love with Joe for his straightforward goodness and unconditional love for Pip, who then breaks our hearts by the way he treats Joe.

But then I also feel for Ms. Havisham, for what she goes through--- how she is hopelessly broken and twisted. Even Estella, who does not know any better, a prisoner of her upbringing for she is raised and bred to be no other than the person that she is, draws sympathy in my opinion. It is only Pip's character that I did not appreciate much.

True Estella is a product of her upbringing and Dickens presents us with an intriguing study into how a warped mind turns around and uses a young mind for purposes of its own and how Estella's very core of being is brainwashed and moulded into an equally emotionally stunted persona as Miss Havisham herself.There are a few interesting points that i picked up on,that one; Miss Havisham might have been prone to this obsessive disorder as we know later that she pursued the wicked young man against the wishes of her father,two;the fact that she cant get over it is indicative of a warped persona triggered because of the cataclysmic event of betrayal.She's not totally without it...we see how she manipulates her relatives whomshe knows are after her money etc... Joe's character is also flawed because his abject behaviour before his wife is not normal and then we see that he has been through a traumatic childhood,abuse and violence.its just wonerful wonderful stuff and the more i read GE the more i appreciate the genius of Dickens

[Fran]

@florajavier
I think Dickens in GE sets up a parallel between Miss Havisham's reaction to being betrayed by her fiancé & the way Joe responds to a not discimilar betrayal by Pip. There is a touch of the it's not what happens to you but how you respond in all of Dickens books.

@hedda gabler 46
Dickens characters always remind me of the saying "every childhood lasts a lifetime" & the extent to which childhood trauma impacts adult life would not have been recognised in Dickens time.

[hedda gabler 46]

@florajavier

I think Dickens in GE sets up a parallel between Miss Havisham's reaction to being betrayed by her fiancé & the way Joe responds to a not discimilar betrayal by Pip. There is a touch of the it's not what happens to you but how you respond in all of Dickens books.

Yes that's true that's a main sort of theme in his books isnt it. as in David Copperfield,Dora can't cope with practical life but Agnes can and Copperfield does feel aggrieved about the weakness of his mother in front of Mr.Murdstone and wishes she had coped with it in a different way.

[GeraldineMcClintock]

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens is another example of what is so great about the classics. The Miss Havisham's character is to me as much a central character as Pip or Estella is.

Miss Havisham's character whose whole existence is shaped by one event in her life. This one event causes a deep bitterness and resentment that reshapes not only her life, but, the life of Estella as well and sucks any happiness from her ward.

Havisham's hatred for the man who did her wrong and the life that she was deprived is what she sets out to deprive Estella of any glimpse of the happiness she herself couldn't have.

Then there is the character of 'Pip', who is reshaped in a more positive way but, is drawn back into the web of unhappiness that comes from his affection for Estella. As Estella grows to adulthood it is apparent that 'Havisham' has re-created Estella in her own bitter and unhappy image.

Austen's and Dicken's characters both in 'Emma' and 'Great Expectations but, also in their other books and stories are very deep and complicated characters. Many of their central characters are emotionally inadequate in one respect or another, This allows the characters to show growth and change as the stories are weaved and concluded.

[joe_paul17]

I recall reading Great Expectations, Charles Dickens original when i was doing my A levels.
It was brilliant, and added to that when your studying , you tend to do more analysis and references which frankly for me made the reading awesome.
Oh and used to watch this really old BBC adaption of the same. Pretty good actually.