A review by baybod
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

adventurous emotional reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I think I would’ve enjoyed this better if I didn’t have a five day break in reading due to moving out of school and coming home absolutely exhausted. However, I really appreciated the way Dickens approached  wealth and class structures. While specific to his time, the exposure of classism in society and the idea that wealth can corrupt good people and strain meaningful relationships is timeless. I really like that we get to see Pips constant struggle with how his wealth has changed him for the worse, how unhappy he becomes in leaving the people he loved for “great expectations,” and yet how he cannot seem to stop these changes from happening. This is mirrored in his romantic endeavors. Biddy represents the simple, yet pleasant and respectable life Pip would have had as Joes apprentice and Estella the life of wealth he comes into with his great expectations. With Biddy, he is able to be himself and in return she makes him a better person. With Estella he is instilled with a sense of self loathing and finds himself miserable in her presence. Pip realizes early on in his journey that he would have been happier living the life he originally planned with Joe, but cannot go back and have it. I was sad to see Pip’s relationship with Joe diminish over the course of the novel, but the redemption arc came together nicely. Altogether I would say that this book is worth reading, but it’s not at the top of the list of things I would recommend to someone.
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