Changing Expectations
~Blog Post #4~
Topic J
By Debra Dunham
In Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, Pip expects and imagines things in a similar way as to how I imagine the near future. For one thing, he believes London to be this magnificent, magical city when in reality, it is dirty. His imagination carries him into a false idea just as I seemingly trick myself into thinking certain things that I know are not real. For instance, I one imagined that I found out that I was the decedent of a lost princess and had the chance to live as one. It was completely imagined and fake, but real in my head. Also, before he meets the convict of his benefactor, he believes it to be Miss Havisham even though it seems entirely improbable, almost impossible.
Estella, the center of Pip's desire to become uncommon, narrows Pip's expectations of himself to being a fine gentleman who can win the heart of the fine lady. He expects to be rich and finds that Joe and Biddy are "quite unfit company" now that he is more well-mannered (250). In a similar way, my expectations of myself are greater than they probably should because my dad had always expected near perfection of me. My mind twisted that into seeing it as 'if I'm not perfect, then I'm not worthy' even though that is not the case. Even now, I strive for perfection, which stresses me out so much that I end up making stupid and thoughtless mistakes. It seems as if Pip's life will take a similar turn, hinted by the way he realizes that he "had deserted Joe," (344). Pip's story will unfold as we come to learn more about his expectations of what life has to offer.
Debra, that is an interesting yet depressing way to look at the novel. However, I can relate. Perfection is difficult to accomplish. Life expects everyone to receive straight A's and to be accepted into schools such as Harvard and Yale. It is hard to be stuck in the middle of four kids in the family. I am number three. My older sister, Natalie, and my younger brother, Ben, always gain straight A's without trying, but school is more difficult for me. I have to study for hours on end and still receive okay grades. Stress plays a large part in my life also. With school, soccer, piano, and a job; I feel stretched thin. I wonder how Pip feels with the pressure on him to accomplish his dreams and become a lawyer. He thinks too highly of himself and stretches himself too far where it is almost impossible to do. Pip expects too much just like I do.
ReplyDeleteElyse and Debra, you both do great jobs of connecting the high expectations Pip has for himself to your own lives. As kids in today's world, many of us strive to be perfect. Pip, though not living in modern times, still had this overwhelming pressure thrust upon him. Especially now that Pip knows the identity of his mysterious benefactor, he might feel an additional amount of pressure to succeed. The fact that Magwitch, the convict, is spending his wealth with Pip could possibly make Pip feel the need to excel even more in his education. Pip knows that the convict is looking to him to be the gentleman that the convict was never able to be. It's like the convict is trying to live a better lifestyle through Pip, kind of like what some parents do with their own kids today. In our society, it's not uncommon for children to be forced into activities and have expectations thrust upon them just because it's what their parents did or it's what their parents were like. Though Magwitch isn't Pip's real father, Magwitch considers himself Pip's "second father", who is now trying to live out an extravagant lifestyle through Pip (309).
ReplyDeleteDebra, I really enjoyed this blog post, and I can see that Pip’s expectations continue to change. Just as you said his expectations changed when Pip met Estella, his expectations also change when he meets his real benefactor, Magwitch. When the old convict comes to Pip’s door that night, Pip did not understand what was going on until Magwitch explained himself. Almost immediately Pip’s mind began to run. He started thinking about his future and what he was going to do. Pip even created a disguise for Magwitch and started calling him, “Uncle Provis” (326). Because Pip knows Magwitch is his benefactor he has learned that he and Estella are not meant to get married in the future. This hurts Pip more than anything. So now he has to change his whole life around to reach his goal of marrying Estella and continue to keep Magwitch a secret.
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