Social And Financial Status In Great Expectations By Charles Dickens

Reflection In the book, "Great Expectations," social and financial status play a big role throughout the story. The author of the book, Charles Dickens, displays through his work how the wealthy tend to be held in higher respects for the money they have while the lower class are often seen as uneducated people with no redeeming benefactors. He also raises the question on social status, and often demonstrates how social status in a large town relates to how well people treat a person and how this can affect how people view that person throughout the community. In addition to this, he makes the reader realize that whether a person is wealthy or poor, there is always going to be another person who judges their life. This is known to be destructive …show more content…
This later on goes to damage Pip's and Joe's relationship as Pip no longer wants to be with Joe because of the fact that Joe is of a low-social class. This issue arises more when Pip received the fortune of the convict and had become a gentlemen. As Pip was not content in simply enjoying his new owned fortune and had instead wanted to win over Estella, his adolescent self-importance causes him to act snobbishly toward Joe and Biddy. In his career as a gentleman, Pip had cover up moments of uncertainty and fear by acting, as he says in Chapter 19, “virtuous and superior." These events had displayed a proper example on how criticism can completely change and ruin the person who receives it, similar to how it did to Pip. Estella's criticism on Pip's life had caused Pip to ignore those who cared for him the most and it had cause him to lose the innocence and kindness he once had. This ultimately ruins Pip as he severs relationships with more and more people because of his new cruel personality. It also puts Pip on the verge of losing almost everything he