Blog No. 3
[Realizations and Predictions]
Estella, who had always been obedient and under Miss Havisham's control, suddenly opposes her master in chapter 38.
"You should know,"said Estella. "I am what you have made me. Take all the praise, take all the blame; take all the success, take all the failure; in short, take me." (p.304)
Estella realizes that she had been taken advantage of all along and is finally fed up; leaving her feeling infuriated and resentful. She has reached realization where she wants to become more independent and no longer wants to be used by Miss Havisham as a revenge to men. I believe Miss Havisham will learn to understand Estella, who is longing freedom, and let her go. Estella may be able to make her own path and future, thus finding true love and freedom to love or reject whoever she likes.
Pip has finally come to his senses and realizes that he does not have any chance of being with Estella. Her perfect beauty had blinded him all along; denying his ability to see her true image and bad characteristics. I think he will discover that Estella is not for him, and he will stop trying to become someone that he is not for her.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Pip and Estella .
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Pumblechook .
Blog No. 2
[ Name Description ]
The name Pumblechook reveals the character's personality. "Pumble" is very similar to "pubble", which means pudgy or fat. "Chook" is a slang term used to call pigs.
"It's five-and-twenty pound, Mum," echoed that basest of swindlers, Pumblechook, rising to shake hands with her; "and it's no more than your merits (as I said when my opinion was asked), and I wish you joy of the money!" (p.104)
This quote is stated after Pip brings home his earnings from Mrs. Havisham. This shows how Uncle Pumblechook loves money and wealth and is greedy like a pig. Therefore, the name pumblechook, similar to the definition of being a pig, describes his personality.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Pip.
Blog No. 1
[Character Development Analysis]
"...I felt fearfully sensible of the great convenience that the Hulks were handy for me. I was clearly on my way there. I had begun by asking questions, and I was going to rob Mrs. Joe."
It's difficult to understand Pip's youth with his lengthy description and sophisticated vocabulary, but this passage assures me that he still has the mind of a child. First I was extremely puzzled when I discovered that Pip calls his own sister Mrs. Joe, and not by her first name. That just tells us how much he has to respect her, as she continues to make her excuses of how she had brought him up "by hand"; leaving him feeling guilty for ever being alive and having to be a tremendous burden. Her controlling, malicious personality and abusive actions towards Pip and Joe make it impossible for them to build up proper self-esteems and confidence. Especially for Pip, lack of love and being oppressed at such a young age pressures him to mature quicker. Although his words reach a high level of maturity, his thoughts are still in their early development.
Later when he comes across a strange, hungry man, he is threatened to fetch some food. Pip decides to unwillingly steal from Mrs. Joe because he believes in the mysterious "hungry convict" who will come to eat his heart and liver if not given anything to eat, but obviously, the whole idea was just a deception to frighten him. Pip's childish mind causes him to be more afraid of a fictional character than reality; which is being caught and beaten by Mrs. Joe and then being sent to the Hulks for life. However, aside from the fear, I believe Pip helps the poor convict because of his sympathetic personality. He understands how it feels to be famished and helpless.
