Critically comment on Dickens' portrayal of Pip's childhood days in Great Expectations.

Critically comment on Dickens' portrayal of Pip's childhood days in Great Expectations.

In the beginning chapters of ‘Great Expectations’, Dickens paints a vivid picture of childhood.  The reader is able to enter Pips mind and see the world through the eyes of a child.  The word “pip” itself is a seed from a plant.  Seeds need to be nurtured if they are to grow and flourish.  Dickens believed that children have certain needs, these included to be free from abuse and to be able to know and imagine. Through his portrayal of child characters in the novel, Dickens’ social commentary shows that childhood is a bad, lonely and twisted period when adults rarely and inadequately provide for important needs that children have.

In the first chapter of the book we learn that Pip is an orphan with no friends and no caring family. When Pip tells us his name and how he cannot pronounce the word “Pirrip” we discover how poorly educated he is. We also learn how Pip’s imagination and childhood naivety affect his take on life; although most of his family died, Pip does not treat this as a major catastrophe but instead this secludes him and makes him use his imagination even more. Through these opening accounts of Pip, we can instantly see that Dickens treats childhood as an isolated and formative period. Perhaps this reflects Dickens’ own personal childhood..................................................................................................................................................................

TO GET COMPLETE STUDY MATERIAL JOIN NSOU ENGLISH COACHING

SHARE

Milan Tomic

Hi. I’m Designer of Blog Magic. I’m CEO/Founder of ThemeXpose. I’m Creative Art Director, Web Designer, UI/UX Designer, Interaction Designer, Industrial Designer, Web Developer, Business Enthusiast, StartUp Enthusiast, Speaker, Writer and Photographer. Inspired to make things looks better.

• 
• 
• 
• 
•