As simplistic and politically impartial as Victorian novels and their common family themes of love and companionship may seem, there is usually a greater sociopolitical concern inserted into the narrative to that the reader of the time recorded. Paul Thomas Murphy expresses this in Toward a Working Class Canon: Literary Criticism in British Working-class Periodicals, 1816-1858 with "The literary discourse in every working class periodical is both an attempt at influence and the product of influence" (Murphy 13). . The same can be said of Charles Dickens's Great Expectations. The societal nuances within had their own pseudo-manipulative propaganda intentions for the hierarchical dynamics of these lower classes, particularly in regards to the conscious repression of social unrest and the construction of a transparent parallel between Dickens's perception of these poverty-stricken individuals and women. .Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Despite his manipulation, Dickens nevertheless undoubtedly had a rather strong reason for wanting to foster certain dispositions in his audience. For example, an intellectually autonomous lower class was something he greatly feared, as Peter Scheckner explains in his article "Gender and Class in Dickens: Making Connections", something that could spark an organized revolt targeting the upper levels of the social scale. Much of these concerns were perhaps most explicitly expressed in A Tale of Two Cities, where lower-class men and women were equally "portrayed as as crazy and perhaps even more malevolent than the aristocracy they attempt to overthrow” (Scheckner 244). This is not to say that Dickens intended to antagonize the lower classes in any way – so many of his upright and endearing characters reside in the lower classes – but only that he depicted them in a way that appeased their rebellion potentially fermenting. Perhaps it is best in the introductory line of Scheckner's essay, that "Charles Dickens preferred workers in the same way he preferred Victorian women: grateful for favors received, humble, patient, and passive » (Scheckner 236). It is precisely these sentiments that are reflected in much of Great Expectations, aimed largely at appeasing the potentially unruly. It should not be said, however, that Dickens's apprehension was more akin to unfounded paranoia. In fact, at age twelve, Dickens knew firsthand how the working class thought and operated, working ten hours at Warren's Blacking Warehouse in London to support himself and his family after his father's imprisonment. In an utterly squalid establishment, his experience working under such harsh conditions gave him an all-too-dark awareness of the trials and tribulations of the working class, so much so that as an adult he "became a source of both creative energy and concern for the themes of alienation and betrayal that would emerge notably in David Copperfield and in Great Expectations” (Cody), to name just a few of his influenced works. This is how he gained such a deep understanding of how challenged, vulnerable and malleable the working class really was. Besides the older members who made up the working class, Great Expectations also aimed its societal commentary at younger readers who were also born into such a working class. situationeconomic. With Pip being seven years old at the beginning of the novel, the reader sees his entire character journey transition into adulthood, through his adolescence and into his young adulthood. So people closer to Pip's age range were more likely to understand his plight. It is not surprising that this notion is relevant given Dickens's writing styles and preferences. As David Paroissien states in his essay "Ideology, Pedagogy, and Demonology: The Arguments Against Industrialized Education in Dickens's Fiction" Dickens "firmly believed in the capacity of imaginative literature to encourage salutary habits of mind in young readers growing up in an era dominated by industrial and manufacturing concerns” (Paroissien 261). Perhaps the strongest insight into Dickens' view of the lower classes. came up with the characterizations of his female characters in Great Expectations. With the exception of Biddy – whom he considered the "true" representation of womanhood – most of the female characters in Great Expectations embody the way the lower classes were inclined to behave, according to Dickens. Scheckner singles out Mrs. Joe, who "when she asserts herself too much, she becomes very unattractive and may even deserve a hard slap on the head - which she receives, as we know, from Orlick" (Scheckner 240). As stark as the concept is, it's hard to ignore the arrogant and excessive consequences imposed on the women of Great Expectations who confront the men: Molly is subjected to Mr. Jaggers' employment; Estella is beaten and eventually becomes a widow; Mrs. Joe is so beaten that she becomes an invalid; and Mrs. Havisham is burned alive. Furthermore, although Dickens undoubtedly favored justifying the struggle of the lower classes, he nevertheless believed that "women should be advised by understanding men", "workers should appeal to those in authority to save them from themselves, from the fires of society.” rebellion that rages in their hearts, sometimes out of control” (Scheckner 245). Considering that his perception of women was similarly shaped during his dark childhood, with his mother happily choosing to keep young Charles in the warehouse longer than necessary, it becomes increasingly apparent just how much he associated the place of the working class in the place of the working class. Women. Writing the novel itself with all the specific themes implemented would not in itself be enough to communicate them to its target audience. In fact, the morals expressed in the text were so vital and inherently so inferior that Dickens needed an alternative medium to be able to convey them to the appropriate demographic. The method by which he chose to publish Great Expectations – along with other works, such as A Tale of Two Cities – was to publish it in his weekly periodical All the Year Round, in part to stimulate the fanatical fervor of his readership as they became increasingly agitated upon reading the unresolved stories of each published segment, in anticipation of the next one and the further developments of the narrative that would accompany it. Additionally, and more importantly, it was cheaper and easily accessible to the poorer lower classes who made up the majority of its target audience. So the lower class would actually obtain the text that was specifically aimed at them and then unconsciously absorb the morals and socio-political values ​​that Dickens incorporated into the narrative. Although relatively literate – estimates are between sixty and seventy-five percent (Murphy 7) – the lower classes of the Victorian period represented a demographic groupextremely impressionable, but at the same time potentially threatening to the socio-political hierarchy under the right instruction. Lauren Watson expresses this in her article "Mimics, Counterfeits and 'Other' Bad Copies: Forging the Currency of Class and Colonialism in Great Expectations" because "[mimicry] simultaneously marks both the institution and the disintegration of relations of class and colonial within the state. the conflicting economies of capitalism and imperialism” (Watson 493). Just as a widely distributed anarchist text might have incited the working class to rebel, Dickens capitalized on this didactic susceptibility to instill in them what he ardently considered to be politically right or something that reflected his own moral compass from the perspective that these beliefs and values ​​echo the feelings of its readers. One of the themes that Dickens sought to communicate was that:Carolyn Lesjak details in Working Fictions: A Genealogy of the Victorian Novel, that literature of the period often presented this jarring break in the relationship between individual achievements such as social status and monetary value and intimate issues such as family and love in life. This concept is particularly present in Great Expectations, in which Pip continually rejects his common sense in favor of the illusion that his mysterious heritage will lead to upper-class well-being and an intimate romance with the self-proclaimed cold-hearted Estella. However, in doing so, Pip willingly forgoes intimate relationships with his brother-in-law Joe and his guardian Biddy – the only ones who truly love him, humble beginnings and all – which he eventually recognizes after his difficulties. Clearly, Pip's quest to bridge the gap between these two virtues at the ends of the societal spectrum is completely misguided. On the other side of the argument, Dickens inserts another actor into the narrative who acts as a foil to these characterizations in the form of John Wemmick, Mr. Jaggers' employee. Wemmick, unlike Pip, displays his mastery of both of the aforementioned elements. facets of life, having established himself professionally in Mr. Jaggers' office and domestically in his not-so-humble abode – a small castle – caring for his father – fancifully nicknamed the "aged relative" – and entertaining his fiancée Miss Skiffins. In conjunction with these two settings, Wemmick's behavior and bipolarity accommodates both, calculating and lukewarm when in Mr. Jaggers' domain and carefree and jovial when at home. However, Dickens seems to emphasize the importance of family life as it relates to individuality, without simultaneously and cleverly devaluing professional life. Indeed, after analyzing Wemmick's relatively dry state in the presence of Jaggers, Pip says that "there were Wemmick twins and this one wasn't the right one" (Dickens 290). Both pointedly shift their respective positions to match this ideal at the end of the novel, Pip successfully appealing to Wemmick's "right twin" in Jaggers' presence and Pip fully understanding the importance of his epiphany. Nevertheless, Wemmick is supposed to represent the ideal. between humanity and professionalism and is, as Arlene Young says in Culture, Class, and Gender in the Victorian Novel: Gentlemen, Gents, and Working Woman, "a character who remains uncompromisingly lower middle class status" but "nevertheless imposes a certain measure of respect” (Young 100). Dickens uses this theme of innateness as the central element of humanity to instill both a sense of fulfillment and contentment in the lower classes regarding their societal status. However, in turn, these themes have.