Mental Disorders In Charles Dickens Great Expectations

While reading a fictional book unless the character is specifically stated to already have one, readers don’t consider the characters to of these books to have a mental disorder, or that the author that wrote the book could have one either. Some authors, such as Charles Dickens, were around in a time that they didn’t have the capability of diagnosing mental disorders. What about the characters in these authors stories? Readers don’t think anything can be wrong with them, but what if the characters were real life people? Pip Pirrip; a fictional character in Charles Dickens, Great Expectations. Facing hard times growing up in the marshes of Kent in the mid 1800’s, all Pip wants is to be a gentlemen with good fortunes. Trying to keep it a secret …show more content…
Pip had a goal on becoming a gentlemen and at times didn’t care who he hurt to obtain this goal. To be narcissistic is to have a deep need for admiration and lacks empathy for others (Mayo Clinic Staff), “I enlarged upon knowing nothing and wanting to know everything in the hope that she might offer some help towards that desirable end. But she did not; on the contrary, she seemed to prefer my being ignorant. Neither did she give me any money.” (Dickens 73). Pip dropped hints in hopes Mrs. Havisham would contribute and even spent more and more time over there even though he was miserable over half the time. Pip starts becoming snobby and selfish when an anonymous person donates their fortunes to him becoming a gentlemen and moving to London. Narcissistic personality disorder involves arrogant behavior (Bushman). “‘Now Biddy’, I said ‘ I am very sorry to see this in you. I did not expect to see this in you. You are envious, Biddy and grudging. You are dissatisfied on account of my rise in fortune and you can’t help showing it.’” (Dickens 116). He started thinking Biddy and Joe were getting Jealous and started treating them rudely. He was pushing away two people who cared about him the most, all because he was letting his fortunes go to his head. After he was in London he started looking down upon Joe and almost acting as if he was a nuisance. People with this disorder criticize, gripe, and complain about almost everything …show more content…
Most likely caused by the adults in his life such as Mrs. Joe, Mr. Pumblechook, Mr. Wopsle, or Mrs. Havisham constantly crumbling his self esteem. Without them Pip would most likely have been more open and gregarious in conversation or small talk. As for his signs of narcissistic personality disorder, this most likely started when his sister and Mr. Pumblechook put the idea in his head of going off to Mrs. Havisham’s to become a gentlemen. They made him think he was possibly inheriting some of her fortunes. he wouldn’t have been as rude and snobby when he went off to London if he would have stayed in Kent and helped Mr. Joe as a Blacksmith, and he would have realized he had all he needed in life right there at home. Although he would have had to work hard to make ends meet he still could have been happy in life. It isn’t Pip’s fault that he was born in a lower class but sometimes you are to deal with the cards that you are dealt. Charles Dickens actually did make a name for himself even though he had the same circumstances as the fictional character he created. With all his rapidly developed wealth though came consequences and he never forgot the hard times of his childhood. Based on the following, readers could realistically diagnose characters of books and the authors of those books with mental disorders. A lot of authors base their characters on their