The Theme of Corruption of Money
Discuss the importance of Joe Gargery and the life of the forge in the presentation of the central issues of Great Expectations.
“Great Expectations” by Charles Dickens is a novel about a young boy, named Pip, who’s expectations are raised from being a blacksmiths apprentice to being a gentleman after he is adopted by an unknown benefactor. As a result of this Pip leaves his childhood home of the forge and his father figure, Joe Gargery. The novel explores the key themes of corruption of money, love and heartbreak, and pride. The following essay aims to discuss the importance of Joe Gargery and the life of the forge in relation to the key themes of the novel.
The theme of corruption of money is seen mostly in the main character Pip. Throughout the novel Pip experiences the corruption of money in various forms. In his childhood he is familiar with a man called Mr Pumblechook, a man who has plentiful money and generally flaunts this fact. In these early stages Pip sees how money has corrupted this man and believes this behaviour to be ridiculous. However upon receiving his expectations we see Pip acting in the same frivolous manner showing how easily he has been corrupted by money. Even before receiving his expectations Pip wishes to be a gentleman. This is only after spending time with Miss Havisham a rich woman who lives nearby. Joe Gargery is the opposite of Pip in this respect. Though he is only working class, and therefore wouldn’t have much money, he is uncorrupted by money and is the moral compass of the story. There are many points in the novel where dickens shows how Joe is unaffected by the corruption of money. At the start of the novel Pip steals a pie for an escaped convict upon his capture the convict claims he stole the pie from the blacksmiths. Joe is unconcerned about this, and the expense of the pie, “God knows you're welcome to it – so far as it was ever mine…We don’t know what you have done, but we wouldn’t have you starve to death for it” this
“Great Expectations” by Charles Dickens is a novel about a young boy, named Pip, who’s expectations are raised from being a blacksmiths apprentice to being a gentleman after he is adopted by an unknown benefactor. As a result of this Pip leaves his childhood home of the forge and his father figure, Joe Gargery. The novel explores the key themes of corruption of money, love and heartbreak, and pride. The following essay aims to discuss the importance of Joe Gargery and the life of the forge in relation to the key themes of the novel.
The theme of corruption of money is seen mostly in the main character Pip. Throughout the novel Pip experiences the corruption of money in various forms. In his childhood he is familiar with a man called Mr Pumblechook, a man who has plentiful money and generally flaunts this fact. In these early stages Pip sees how money has corrupted this man and believes this behaviour to be ridiculous. However upon receiving his expectations we see Pip acting in the same frivolous manner showing how easily he has been corrupted by money. Even before receiving his expectations Pip wishes to be a gentleman. This is only after spending time with Miss Havisham a rich woman who lives nearby. Joe Gargery is the opposite of Pip in this respect. Though he is only working class, and therefore wouldn’t have much money, he is uncorrupted by money and is the moral compass of the story. There are many points in the novel where dickens shows how Joe is unaffected by the corruption of money. At the start of the novel Pip steals a pie for an escaped convict upon his capture the convict claims he stole the pie from the blacksmiths. Joe is unconcerned about this, and the expense of the pie, “God knows you're welcome to it – so far as it was ever mine…We don’t know what you have done, but we wouldn’t have you starve to death for it” this