The Impact Of The Victorian Era In Great Expectations By Charles Dickens

The Victorian Era was a time of wide extremes. elegant city streets, gas lamps, and in contrast grinding poverty. It was also a time of exploration and invention. With their pioneer spirit wild frontier towns were born across the world. and with their flare and ingenuity the Victorians took with them their values and elegance. (Matthew Arnold) Though Victorian period was influenced by the reform act 1832 and subsequent acts, yet this period also marked by extreme diversities with the industrial reforms, cultural progress, scientific advancement on one hand and poverty and wars on the other.

Great Expectations Comment on Dickens' use of setting focusing on the opening graveyard scene and the scenes with Miss Havisham set in the Satis house. GCSE Coursework 'Great Expectations' Comment on Dickens' use of setting focusing on the opening graveyard scene and the scenes with Miss Havisham set in the Satis house As a skilled writer Dickens has chosen a perfect setting in which corresponds to the involvement of his characters. The dark isolated graveyard associates with death, and provides a backdrop that is very similar to the appearance of a criminal, in the society in Dickens' time. Dickens describes the marshes as being a dark, flat wilderness.

The Victorian Era or the romantic period was a time in which Queen Victoria ruled the throne. The Victorian period formally began in 1837 the year in which Victoria became the Queen of England and ended in 1901 the year in which she was laid to rest. In this paper, I will discuss Queen Victoria’s life or what we all know to be “The Victorian Era.” I will highlight some of the most powerful events that occurred during this time, the many reforms that were passed during Queen Victoria’s ruling, I will discuss the political, cultural, and social developments of this time period. I will speak about some inventions of the Victorian Era, and the two main political parties better known as the Tory and Whigs that were popular during this age. You will discover what imperialism is, the commonwealth, The British Monarch and why and how Victoria was such a remarkable monarch. I will even tell you some of the most interesting facts that I have learned to be true about Queen Victoria.

Written during the Victorian Era (1850-1900) Charles Dickens's Great Expectations has echoes of Victorian Morality all throughout the novel. When looked up in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, morality is defined as "the evaluation of or means of evaluating human conduct as a set of ideas of right and wrong and as a set of customs of a given society, class, or social groups which regulate relationships and prescribes modes of behavior to enhance the groups survival." Although the Victorian Era occurred over one hundred years ago, the given definition is clearly portrayed through the use of several morally different characters. These characters are shown over a lengthy period of time and at many different stages in

2. Briefly describe the convict. What evidence is there that the convict has "human" qualities and is not merely a criminal? The convict is a fearful man all in coarse gray, with a great iron on his leg, no hat, with

1.) England's Victorian era occurred during 1837 through 1901.” the Victorian age was characterized by rapid change and developments in nearly every area, from advances in medical, scientific and technological knowledge to changes in population growth and location. over time, this rapid transformation deeply affected the country’s mood, an age that began with confidence and optimism. the Victorian era was in age of paradox and power. social class was most important during that time.there was the working class with men and women performing labor. the middle class where men worked to clean, and the upper class where money and land was inherited.”

Charles Dickens, author of Great Expectations, provides a perfect example of the hope of class mobility. The novel portrays very diverse and varied social classes which spread from a diligent, hardworking peasant (Joe) to a good-natured middle class man (Mr. Wemmick) to a rich, beautiful young girl (Estella). Pip, in particular, elevates in the social pyramid from a common boy to a gentleman with great expectations. With his rise in society, he also alters his attitude, from being a caring child to an apathetic gentleman. During this process, Pip learns how he should act and how to become a real gentleman. Social mobility and wealth, furthermore, carves a disposition and how a character is looked upon.

“And as to the condition on which you hold your advancement in life—namely, that you are not to inquire or discuss to whom you owe it—you may be very sure that it will never be encroached upon, or even approached by me, or by any one belonging to me.” (Dickens, 177). This excerpt foretells the main theme of the novel, Pip’s journey of self-improvement.

‘Victoria was the longest reigning British monarch and the figurehead of a vast empire. She oversaw huge changes in British society and gave her name to an age.’ When Queen Victoria assumed the British throne in 1837 at the tender age of 18, she became an associated symbol with the rapid changes that the nation of Great Britain endured to be a powerful, industrial nation that ‘boasted an empire that stretched across the globe’ . She endured many challenges during her reign, however, proved that she possessed great stability and remained a character of ‘virtue , honour, prosperity and, tradition’ to lead a powerful nation for nearly 64 years, for much of the nineteenth century – ‘an era of great social and technological change’ . At birth,

Charles Dickens is a well-known author famous for his skillful and distinctive writing style. One of the novels in which Dickens best demonstrates his masterful style is Great Expectations. In this book, many literary elements are employed to develop a cleverly blended story. To create a unique effect, comedy, tragedy, and garish features are mixed together throughout. The wide array of writing patterns used by Dickens can be found over the course of the entire book and exemplified in many different chapters.

The Victorian Era of the British Empire begins on 20 June 1837, the beginning of Queen Victoria’s reign, and ceases on 22 January 1901, the year of the Queen’s death. The Victorian Era marks the conclusion of the Romantic period, which was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement originating in Europe toward the second half of the 18th century. The Victorian Era was characterized by rapid change—from the advancements in several fields such as medical, scientific and technological. These developments lead to a national self-confidence and optimism leading to the Empire’s economic prosperity.

During the Victorian Era there were many key people alive including Queen Victoria, Florence Nightingale, Benjamin Disraeli, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and Charles Dickens. These were all famous people during the Victorian Era. Some important scientists include Charles Darwin, and Alexander Bell. These were both very important scientist and without them we might not have some of the basic necessities of the modern day. Now you might be wondering to yourself what did these guys, and girls have to do to be so important. Well after reading this you are going to know why these people are famous and what they did to get famous.

In novels, character development, If not always, relies upon the doings and variations of other characters they interact with. In the infamous novel, "Great Expectations", Pip’s brother-in-law, Joe, is considered to be one of the most dependable and loyal characters to Pip, despite having adverse personalities. For example, where Pip is known to be zealous and eager to move forward with things at almost any cost, Joe is more of a steady, content man who would much rather stay in the comfortable quarters living of his own home. As a result, Joe is one of the most bona fide and pleasant characters to the reader in “Great Expectations”. As Pip grows all through the novel, he develops and matures from an ingenuous, young boy to a man of high morality throughout his life. The role of Pip is developed through the positive and negative influences of Joe, because the genuine circumstances and attempts at friendship.

Great Expectations’ main character, Phillip Pirrip- generally known as Pip- had a rough upbringing as a child. His sister, Mrs. Joe had “brought him up by hand”, after their parents and five brothers had all been laid to rest many years ago. Another character, Herbert Pocket experienced a bizarre childhood, though in a different manner. Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations develops through the novel following Pip, a young “common boy” who grew up in the countryside. As he matured so did his love for a girl of higher class, Estella. However, being a common boy, Pip was not good enough for his Estella, thus once he was given an opportunity to become a gentleman in London he seized it without much hesitation. Charles Dickens’ had his own

Explore some of the ways in which Dickens’ attitudes to Victorian society are presented in the opening chapter of Great Expectations.