Playing Cards

Playing Cars
-Blog Post 1-
Topic G
April 17, 2015
by Anna Hoffman

In Great Expectations by Charles Dickens the symbol of playing cards shows up a couple of times in the text. When Pip goes to visit Miss Havisham’s manor, he is very confused and feels out of place. Miss Havisham forces Pip to play a game with Estella, and Pip chooses the game “Beggar My Neighbor” in this game the way you win is to have a card that has a higher denomination (58). This is symbolic because Pip is of a low class and Estella and Miss Havisham are considered high class. During their time together, Estella comments on Pip’s class ranking, and it makes Pip feel uncomfortable and he feels defeated. Estella makes comments on Pip’s appearances such as his “coarse hands” and his “thick boots,” which are signs of someone who has to do manual labor (59). She is having fun making Pip feel as low as possible and she makes a game out of this. Because Estella is of a higher class, or in playing card terms, of “higher denomination”, she feels like she will always win. The game continues but when Pip feels like giving up, Miss Havisham tells him, “play the game out” (60). In this particular quote there is some hidden meaning. I am predicting that Pip will run into a few more problems and will want to run away from him. But this will remind him that he needs to stay and finish the game, because no one is ever certain who will win in the beginning. There is always a chance for a game changing event.

Mrs. Joe's Mad Mind

~Blog Post #1~
Topic A
April 17th, 2015
Rachel Bierman

In the first few pages of Great Expectations, the reader learns much about Pip and his home life. Dickens writes, “Philip Pirrip, late of his parish, and also Georgiana wife of the above, were dead and buried; and that Alexander, Bartholomew, Abraham, Tobias, and Roger, infant children of the aforesaid, were also dead and buried” (3). This quote shows not so much what Pip has been through (because he was young at the time of his parents’ passing), but rather what his sister has had to deal with, therefore, giving a possible explanation as to why she is so bitter and rude. The undesirable attitude of Mrs. Joe has a great effect on Pip. The quote can show much significance as to why Mrs. Joe, Pip’s sister, is the way she is, rude and unlikeable. It can be assumed that Mrs. Joe has gone through much hardship in her life by the loss of her parents as well as infant siblings. The responsibility of caring for Pip, while not only a grueling task, also brings back those terrible memories of the times of death within her family. This simple quote shows the great hardship and stress that Mrs. Joe has experienced that is then retaliated on Pip, therefore, building the characters in this novel and foreshadowing future life events for the two. Though Mrs. Joe is hateful towards Pip, the lack of background around her character means that her anger and resentment could have a viable cause, such as the death of her family; except Pip, the little boy she much raise on her own from a young age. 

Put it on to Understand

Topic: G

April 20, 2015

by Debra Dunham

In Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, Pip’s suit, though only mentioned briefly, provides a relatable explanation of his life. A suit is typically worn to appear more respectable at formal occasions or even to wear in the presence of the Lord at Mass. In a similar way, Pip’s life is seemingly all about respecting his sister who brought him “up by the hand,” gave him food, a shelter, and life, yet she barely acknowledged him as being her own (13). Both the suit and his sister create unpleasant times in which Pip is restricted. While his suit literally restricts the “free use” of his of his body, his sister constrains almost every other aspect of his life (23).  From not being able to have light as he goes up to bead, to being constantly reminded of the humility of his sister raising him after his parent’s deaths, Pip doesn’t know the luxuries life can bring.

A nice suit also brings attention to the person wearing it and often offers a good impression that can be left on the surrounding people. Pip’s suit, on the other hand, does not offer this. Other people treat Pip as less than him simply because he is an orphan, and is viewed as “a young offender,” (22). He has no privileges, such as receiving a portion of the money he earns, that even indicates that Pip is taken care of, except for the fact that he is even alive, by his supposed family. His restricted life is well demonstrated by his restraining suit in such a way that even modern readers have a more relatable idea of Pip’s life. 

The Not-So-Great Expectations of a Family

In Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, it is evident that Pip, the main character, has a comparable family life to Liesel from The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Pip, like Liesel, has both parents stripped from him at a young age, and he is forced to live with his sister and her husband, Joe. After arriving at their respective new homes, Pip and Liesel both comment on how strict and grumpy their new mother figures are. Pip frequently calls himself and Joe “fellow-sufferers” for having to deal with Mrs. Joe Gargery (8). He even goes as far to think of stealing from her and running away and similarly, Liesel wants to run away to find her mother.

One person in particular makes them both stay, the father figure. Joe and Hans have resembling personalities; they are both kind, gentle, and responsible. These qualities help them gain their brother-in-law’s/foster child’s trust so that they are able to convince the children that Mrs. Joe Gargery and Rosa are not horrible. Joe tells Pip how his sister is a “fine figure” and that he must appreciate and comprehend all that she has done for him. He points out how naughty he has been in return (46). Likewise, Hans sits Liesel down and explains to her that Rosa is only trying to stay tough in the hard times and that she loves Liesel, but has a funny way of showing it.

Liesel and Pip have homogenous home lives; they are both stripped from their blood parents, they have difficult times getting along with their new mother figures, and they are close to their father figures.

Blog Prompts

Blog Post Topics (Respond to 1 of the prompts below each week):

A.            Select a significant quotation from your reading; explore the significance of that quotation to the development of characters, conflict, theme, etc.

B.            Explore a significant change in an important character.

C.           Explore a significant relationship’s conflicts or growth.

D.           Write about a motif you see developing--where have you noticed it? What does it seem to be revealing about characters or themes?

E.            Explore the significance of a particular setting (not of the whole novel--pick a specific scene).

F.            Explore the significance of a passage with a lot of imagery or description.

G.           Write about a symbol--how does it exist both literally and figuratively? What does it represent?

H.           Explore connections between your book and something you’ve read previously in English class.

I.              Explore connections between the text and your own life.

J.            What is the significance of the book’s title? What