The English satirist Charles Churchill once said: “Keep up appearances; there is a test. The world will honor you for the rest. This was initially an attack on unreliable politicians and the lies they tend to tell. This can also apply to various real-life situations as well as fictional literature. Appearances tend to be deceiving and do not always reflect reality. This leads to a betrayal of trust that can have disastrous consequences, such as the separation of married couples or the irreparable breakdown of treasured friendships. In Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, Magwitch and his former partner in crime, Compeyson, show that people are not always who they seem. Because Magwitch and Compeyson hide their true identities, they live lives based on lies. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay When Magwitch commits crimes, he does it to survive. He “first becomes aware of [himself], in Essex, a turnip thief for [his] living” (340; ch. 42). Although stealing is illegal, Magwitch doesn't have the luxuries most people have and has no choice but to steal whatever he needs. However, after an encounter with Pip in the swamps while escaping from prison, Magwitch decides to change his life and become a gentleman. Magwitch manages to accumulate a large sum of money, but “no varnish can hide the grain of the wood; and that the more varnish [we put], the more the grain will be expressed” (320; ch. 39). Being a gentleman isn't just about money. It's also about social elegance, which is a skill that is learned over time. Realizing this, Magwitch decides to focus on giving Pip a chance to be the man he couldn't be, knowing that he will be in trouble if he is ever found out. Compeyson, for his part, hides his identity for a much more nefarious purpose. . In order to steal Miss Havisham's wealth, "he [practices] his affection in this systematic manner, that he [obtains] large sums of money from her...under the pretense that when he [is] her ​​husband, he must own and manage it. all” (320; ch. 39). After successfully making Miss Havisham fall in love with him, Compeyson extracts money from her. To rub salt in the wound, he leaves Miss Havisham on what was supposed to be their wedding day. He is even described as having “no more heart than an iron file, he [is] cold as death, and he [has] the head of the Devil” (342; ch. 42). He is the cause of most of the conflicts that arise in history and has caused misery wherever he has gone. When Compeyson is on trial, Magwitch remarks "first of all what a gentleman Compeyson looks like [with] his curly hair, his black clothes, and his white handkerchief, and what sort of a wretch [Magwitch looks]. When the prosecution [opens] and the evidence [is] summarized, in advance, [he notices] how much it all [weighs] on [Magwitch], and how light it all feels on [Compeyson ]” (345; ch. 42). By pretending to be a gentleman, Compeyson manages to fool the justice system into giving him a lighter sentence than Magwitch, despite being the main culprit. Compeyson continually uses trickery and deception to get what he wants.Keep in mind: this is just a sample.Get a custom paper from our expert writers now.Get a custom essayMagwitch and Compeyson use deception for two completely different reasons. While Magwitch uses it to fit in and be.