CHARACTER ANALYSIS

Estella

Like Joe and Pip, Estella's name is a reflection on her character. Estella, like a star (stellar), is cold and distant. After all, she has been reared from the tender age of three to conduct herself without emotion. Her bewitching beauty captures Pip's heart and as a young boy, he is infatuated her. Somehow, despite her cruelty to Pip, she becomes the star of his expectations. Critics have often dismissed Estella as a twodimensional character without the tug of emotions. Quite to the contrary, Estella is the successful product of Miss Havisham's upbringing in that she truly does what the old lady raised her to do, but she seems to struggle with it. After all, she seems to warn Pip repeatedly as if she does not want to hurt him. It seems fair to say that beneath that heart of ice is a simple girl who is honest enough to try and explain to others her lack of feeling. Ironically, even Miss Havisham, who has made her the way she is, finds her coldness and lack of love unbearable.

In the end, Estella is redeemed by this hidden goodness. She becomes Drummle's victim, then overcomes that situation to remarry. Pip meets her one final time and they part as friends. Of all the characters, Estella is remarkable for the perceived commentary she makes on social and class distinctions. She is the daughter of a murderer and a convict. By all practical considerations of society in that time, she is a flawed creature. But it is not her bloodline that tarnishes Estella; instead, it is her vicious and indifferent upbringing. In short, she is ruined by circumstances and not by birth.

Miss Havisham

Miss Havisham has lived to be one of the most memorable characters created by Dickens, both for her bizarre appearance and her eccentric behaviors. Betrayed by her lover on her wedding day, she literally freezes time in Satis House. All the clocks have been stopped at twenty minutes to nine, the exact time at which her fiancé had abandoned her. She wears her wedding dress the rest of her life, till it is yellowed with age and drooping on her thin frame. She remains in one shoe, since she had not yet put the other one on. And the cake is left on the table to rot. She is vivid, dressed in satins and lace and adorned with jewels. She confesses not to have seen the daylight in years and has no account of the days or the months or even the years that she has spent in seclusion.

Embittered by the deception of her lover, Miss Havisham seeks to take revenge on the male species. She adopts a girl, Estella, and raises her up with the intention of wreaking revenge on men. Ironically, Miss Havisham has succeeded so well, Estella cannot even love her. Toward the end of her life, Miss Havisham repents of her bitterness and tries to mend the hearts she has broken. She realizes that she is responsible for the suffering of both Estella and Pip. She is redeemed somewhat by her decision to sponsor Herbert Pocket in his career and by the way she begs Pip to forgive her.

Mrs. Joe

What is most interesting about her is that her actual name, Georgiana Maria, is uttered by chance by a character in the 58th chapter, long after her death. All through the book she is called Mrs. Joe. For the most part, she is an unpleasant woman who abuses Pip and makes him feel like a burden. The serious attack by Orlick impairs her speech, hearing, and sight, and she is bedridden for the rest of her life. She is a frustrated woman who has a history of arguing with others, so it becomes difficult to find her attacker. In a sense, she is a victim of her own cruelty, much like Drummle (who is later killed by a horse he abuses). Her illness restores peace and happiness in the house.

Biddy Wopsle

Biddy is a complete antithesis of Mrs. Joe. She is calm, friendly, down to earth and loving. She also becomes Pip's friend at the evening school where Pip studies. The school belongs to her grandmother. Biddy promises Pip that she will help him become an "uncommon" gentleman and teach him all that she learns. Pip trusts her and often confides in her. In the initial stages of her friendship with Pip, she develops an infatuation for him. She knows that Pip loves Estella. She remarks that she is glad to be Pip's trusted friend and would be happy to remain so. Pip feels immense admiration for her. At the end, when Biddy marries Joe, Pip realizes that he is not worthy of her. Though he had meant to ask her to marry him, he is glad that Joe did first.

Mr. Jaggers

Jaggers is a powerful and interesting character. As a criminal defense lawyer, he represents a profession that Dickens strongly detested. His unsavory career is reflected in the ominous aura of his office, the dubious nature of his clients, and his mannerism of frequently washing his hands, symbolic of washing the guilt of his underworld clients from his hands.

He is a harsh, businesslike man; everything about him seems fierce and frightening. In the end, though, Jaggers becomes more complex by his admission that he wanted to help Estella when she was a child of three. He pleads with Pip not to ruin her life by telling her who her parents were. Though it contradicts everything he has seemed to stand for, it enriches his character, making him seem more real for his paradoxical behaviors.

Wemmick

Wemmick is Mr. Jaggers' clerk and one of the most universally good characters in the novel. Interestingly, however, he lives a dual life. At the office, he is stern and officious, in keeping with the nature of his business for Jaggers. At home in Walworth, he is jovial and friendly. He lives with his father, the extremely hard-of-hearing man known as the Aged P. And he is in love with a girl, Miss Skiffins. Wemmick becomes a close friend of Pip's and advises him on the matter of smuggling Magwitch out of England. When Pip's life is gloomy with despair, Wemmick surprises him by escorting him to his own marriage with Miss Skiffins.

Herbert Pocket

Herbert is a simple and uncomplicated character. He becomes Pip's most loyal friend in London. They first meet as young boys at Miss Havisham's house when Herbert dares Pip to fight, and is promptly knocked down.

As their friendship develops, Herbert helps and supports Pip through hard times. He is a hard-working boy with aspirations of business success that Pip finds unlikely. Later, however, in appreciation of his friendship, Pip secretly extends financial help to Herbert in order to make his dreams a reality. Later, when Pip has realized the futility of his own great expectations, he follows Herbert's example and even works for him as a clerk. All along, Herbert has been practical while Pip was lost in his dreams. He is a good stabling influence on Pip.

Table of Contents | Printable Version | Barron's Booknotes