Great Expectations Essay, Research Paper

The day-laborer in Joe’s forge, Orlick is a slouching, embodiment of evil,

he is malicious and shrewd, hurting people simply because he enjoys it. He is

responsible for the attack on Pip’s sister, and he will later almost succeed in

his attempt to murder Pip. Mrs. Joe { Pip’s sister and Joe’s wife, known only as

"Mrs. Joe" throughout the novel. Mrs. Joe is a stern and overbearing

gure to both Pip and Joe{ she keeps a spotless household, and frequently menaces

her husband and her brother with her cane, which she calls "Tickler."

She also forces them to drink a foul-tasting concoction called tar-water. Mrs.

Joe is petty and ambitious; her fondest wish is to be something more than the

wife of the village blacksmith. Uncle Pumblechook { Pip’s pompous, arrogant

uncle. He is actually Joe’s uncle, and therefore Pip’s "uncle-in-law,"

but Pip and his sister both call him "Uncle Pumblechook." A merchant

obsessed with money, Pumblechook is re- sponsible for arranging Pip’s rst

meeting with Miss Havisham. Throughout the rest of the novel, he will

shamelessly take credit for Pip’s rise, even though he has nothing to do with

it. Compeyson { A criminal, and the former partner of Magwitch. Compeyson is

responsible for Magwitch’s capture at the end of the novel. Overall Summary Pip,

a young orphan living with his sister and her husband in the marshes of Kent,

sits in a cemetery one evening looking at his parents’ tombstones. Suddenly, an

escaped convict springs up from behind a tombstone, grabs Pip, and orders him to

bring him food and a le for his leg irons. Pip obeys, but the fearsome convict

is soon captured. The convict protects Pip by claiming to have stolen the items

himself. One day Pip is taken to play at Satis House, the home of the wealthy

dowager Miss Havisham, who was left at the altar on her wedding day and now

wears an old wedding dress everywhere she goes. During his visit, he meets a

beautiful young girl named Estella, who treats him coldly and con- temptuously.

Nevertheless, he falls in love with her and dreams of becoming a wealthy

gentleman so that he might be worthy of her. Pip is apprenticed to his

brother-in-law Joe Gargery, the village black- smith.