Symbolism in Great Expectations
Symbolism is very important in literature as it helps readers to understand a literary work very easily. Symbolism refers to the use of a word, situation, individual, or object to represent something else, for instance, an idea. There are different types of symbolism, such as metaphor and allegory, and various symbols are typically used to represent a specific concept. Dickens has used a number of symbols in his novel “Great Expectations.” The purpose of this paper is to explain the symbolism of fire as used in Dickens’s novel. To achieve this, the paper will discuss the fire incident at Miss Havisham’s home, explain the purpose of this incident in the novel, and discuss its symbolic purpose. In fact, Miss Havisham was the one on fire not her home as she was “shrieking, with a whirl of fire blazing all about her….” (Chapter 49).
The fire incident at Miss Havisham’s home is clearly described in the novel. Miss Havisham wedding dress caught fire in her room, and since Pip was around, he managed to respond just in time. He dashed to the room to save Miss Havisham. Pip used an ancient wedding tablecloth to smother the flames. When Pip pulled out the tablecloth, a rotten wedding cake fell. The …show more content…
The incident described in Chapter 49 is very important in the novel. Although the fire destroyed Miss Havisham, it does not satisfy her search for forgiveness. This is because she continued begging for forgiveness from her bed repeating the three lines described above a number of times in order “she never changed the order of these three sentences….” (Chapter 49). The fire provides punishment for her, and since she begged for forgiveness in her recovery bed, the fire is used here as symbolic of both punishment and purification. The fire incident also purified Pip as he managed to save Miss Havisham, who has offended him in the
Symbolism is very important in literature as it helps readers to understand a literary work very easily. Symbolism refers to the use of a word, situation, individual, or object to represent something else, for instance, an idea. There are different types of symbolism, such as metaphor and allegory, and various symbols are typically used to represent a specific concept. Dickens has used a number of symbols in his novel “Great Expectations.” The purpose of this paper is to explain the symbolism of fire as used in Dickens’s novel. To achieve this, the paper will discuss the fire incident at Miss Havisham’s home, explain the purpose of this incident in the novel, and discuss its symbolic purpose. In fact, Miss Havisham was the one on fire not her home as she was “shrieking, with a whirl of fire blazing all about her….” (Chapter 49).
The fire incident at Miss Havisham’s home is clearly described in the novel. Miss Havisham wedding dress caught fire in her room, and since Pip was around, he managed to respond just in time. He dashed to the room to save Miss Havisham. Pip used an ancient wedding tablecloth to smother the flames. When Pip pulled out the tablecloth, a rotten wedding cake fell. The …show more content…
The incident described in Chapter 49 is very important in the novel. Although the fire destroyed Miss Havisham, it does not satisfy her search for forgiveness. This is because she continued begging for forgiveness from her bed repeating the three lines described above a number of times in order “she never changed the order of these three sentences….” (Chapter 49). The fire provides punishment for her, and since she begged for forgiveness in her recovery bed, the fire is used here as symbolic of both punishment and purification. The fire incident also purified Pip as he managed to save Miss Havisham, who has offended him in the