Symbolism In Charles Dickens Great Expectations

Pauline Hopkins is right when stating that surroundings influence our lives. If this wasn’t the case then a death would never make us sad and rain on a bad day wouldn’t mean anything. Everything has a result to it, just like everything can be represented a symbol. It just depends on how an author wants their character to portray that outcome or of that “symbol” is really a symbol at all. No matter what it is, with every cause there’s an effect. In every novel or play the cultural, physical, or geographical surroundings will create a character 's disposition. The environment that one is brought up in shapes the characters traits because it is the only thing that has consistently been familiar in their life; to them, if it’s familiar, it has to be correct. …show more content…
The more the atmosphere is described as positive and happy the more you can expect the character’s traits to be the same. If the character has been taught to be happy-go-lucky, live off of optimistic quotes, and bask in the glorious sun, they won’t be the antagonist in the story.
In “Great Expectations”, Pip meets Magwitch in the cemetery while visiting his parents graves. By the word “cemetery”, the reader can immediately see that the geographical surroundings aren’t pleasant. Charles Dickens makes a point of this by describing the atmosphere as wet, dark, and gloomy. Pip meets a convict named Magwitch who threatens him and makes him steal. The surroundings in the cemetery and the traits of Magwitch are the same at this point in the novel. Magwitch being a convict, the reader associates him with crime and as a villain, the surroundings in the cemetery confirm the reader’s