Symbolism: |
the use of symbols (things that represent or stand for something else) to represent ideas or qualities
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One of the primary symbols in Great Expectations is Mrs. Joe's Apron. The apron represents Mrs. Joe's life as a housewife. The apron not only represents that she is a housewife, but that that won't ever change, regardless of her goals, or expectations, of becoming a wealthy, high class woman who doesn't have to constantly work all day. She spends all of her time in the apron, as well of all of her time taking care of the house and Pip and Joe, and she did this all up until the day she died.
"She was tall and bony, and almost always wore a coarse apron, fastened over her figure behind with two loops, and having a square impregnable bib in front, that was stuck full of pins and needles. She made it a powerful merit in herself, and a strong reproach against Joe, that she wore this apron so much. Though I really see no reason why she should have worn it at all; or why, if she did wear it at all, she should not have taken it off, every day of her life."
"She was tall and bony, and almost always wore a coarse apron, fastened over her figure behind with two loops, and having a square impregnable bib in front, that was stuck full of pins and needles. She made it a powerful merit in herself, and a strong reproach against Joe, that she wore this apron so much. Though I really see no reason why she should have worn it at all; or why, if she did wear it at all, she should not have taken it off, every day of her life."
Irony: |
the expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.
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Convict or Philanthropist: One big example of irony in Great Expectations is the Convict. He starts off the book as a poor man who needed a seven year old to steal his next meal, and seems like the last person likely to ever be successful. But, rather than Miss Havisham being Pip's benefactor, as he suspected, it ends up being none other than the lowest of the low class convict, after he came into money on Australia, as a sheep herder. The convict even goes as far as to burn money in front of Pip, to show him how little he cares about it.
"The Tickler": Another example of irony is the "Tickler"; Mrs. Joe's stick that she uses to beat Pip, and it's name. The Tickler's name is ironic, simply because tickling is usually seen as something playful and fun, rather than something with a connotation of pain and suffering.
"The Tickler": Another example of irony is the "Tickler"; Mrs. Joe's stick that she uses to beat Pip, and it's name. The Tickler's name is ironic, simply because tickling is usually seen as something playful and fun, rather than something with a connotation of pain and suffering.
Parallel
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using the same pattern of words to show that two or more ideas have the same level of importance. This can happen at the word, phrase, or clause level.
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Ours was the marsh country, down by the river, within, as the river wound, twenty miles of the sea. My first most vivid and broad impression of the identity of things seems to me to have been gained on a memorable raw afternoon towards evening. At such a time I found out for certain that this bleak place overgrown with nettles was the churchyard; and that Philip Pirrip, late of this 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; and that the dark flat wilderness beyond the churchyard, intersected with dikes and mounds and gates, with scattered cattle feeding on it, was the marshes; and that the low leaden line beyond was the river; and that the distant savage lair from which the wind was rushing was the sea; and that the small bundle of shivers growing afraid of it all and beginning to cry, was Pip.
This paragraph from the first chapter of Great Expectations (PG.1) is full of examples of parallel structure and how Dickens uses it. In the red and purple, Dickens uses parallel structure in a grammatical sense to by repeating the same phrases. In the Orange,Dickens uses parallel structure when saying that the marsh has dikes and mounds and gates.
This paragraph from the first chapter of Great Expectations (PG.1) is full of examples of parallel structure and how Dickens uses it. In the red and purple, Dickens uses parallel structure in a grammatical sense to by repeating the same phrases. In the Orange,Dickens uses parallel structure when saying that the marsh has dikes and mounds and gates.
Diction:
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the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing
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Pip: Dickens chooses to name Pip "Pip" to represent him as being small like the seeds, or "pips", of an orange. Pip's name isn't only to show that he is small physically, but also that he's kind of weak and tends to be played with or teased, or not taken seriously.
"You young dog," said the man, licking his lips, "what fat cheeks you ha' got." I believe they were fat, though I was at that time undersized for my years, and not strong. "Darn me if I couldn't eat em," said the man, with a threatening shake of his head, "and if I han't half a mind to't!" I earnestly expressed my hope that he wouldn't, and held tighter to the tombstone on which he had put me; partly, to keep myself upon it; partly, to keep myself from crying."
"You young dog," said the man, licking his lips, "what fat cheeks you ha' got." I believe they were fat, though I was at that time undersized for my years, and not strong. "Darn me if I couldn't eat em," said the man, with a threatening shake of his head, "and if I han't half a mind to't!" I earnestly expressed my hope that he wouldn't, and held tighter to the tombstone on which he had put me; partly, to keep myself upon it; partly, to keep myself from crying."
Motifs: |
a recurring subject, theme, idea, etc.
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Doubles: Although it isn't the most prominent or noticeable example of a motif, Great Expectations if filled with doubles. Yep, that's right, doubles. Throughout Great Expectations, Dickens uses doubles of things, in order to show intricate dramatic symmetry throughout the entire story. For example, in the marsh, at the beginning of the book; there are two convicts, Compeyson and Magwitch, and two young women who Pip seeks interest in. Or the two secret Benefactors; Magwitch for Pip, and Pip for Herbert, or the two characters who seek to mold children into what they seek in life, Magwitch in advocating Pip's becoming a Gentleman, and Miss Havisham in making Estella into an "Ice Princess", to break the hearts of Pip and other men. These doubles may not serve as an obvious motif or theme, but they all ultimately serve to shape the story in Great Expectations.