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How Does Pip Present London In Great Expectations

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London and the Change it Mirrors Corruption is a major role in modern life as well as in Charles Dickens’ novel, Great Expectations. Pip, the main character in his novel, experiences this corruption first hand. Through imagery, asyndeton, and the judgement from Pip, Dickens expresses to the reader that London mirrors a big change in Pip. Asyndeton as well as Pip’s Judgment and views on his atmosphere, indicate Pip’s feelings towards London and how the city reflects the developments in him. When Pip first gets to London, he makes very quick judgments about his surroundings and refuses to let up from those opinions. He says, “I was scared by the immensity of London, I think I might have had some faint doubts whether it was not rather ugly, crooked, narrow, and dirty” (Dickens 144). Dickens uses slight asyndeton at the end of the quote when he writes, “ugly, crooked, narrow, and dirty.” This is an indication that Pip’s thoughts are very fast and also exhibits his narrow view of the atmosphere. He is so keen on finding what is wrong …show more content…

Pip meets Joe in London after not seeing him since he left the marshes; Joe treats Pip like an acquaintance instead of a life-long friend when he says, “And so GOD bless you, dear old Pip, old chap, GOD bless you!” (Dickens 201). The repetition of the word “old” is a metaphor for how old Pip and Joe’s relationship is and how it is losing steam. They are no longer friends, they are barely acquaintances, and the change is reflected in this quote. There is also some nervousness shown. The repetition of “GOD bless you” shows that Joe is nervous to be around his former best pal, Pip, because of their social class difference. Joe recognizes the change in Pip which is why he is nervous. In the first few chapters of Pip’s journey to London, he finds himself in a typical neighborhood in the city and

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