The critic’s name during the Victorian era: Charles Dickens

“The sun was shining through the raindrops and casting a beam of light into the large windows of the courtroom, connecting the judge and thirty-two defendants together. Perhaps this view reminded some of those in the courtroom that everyone is truly equal, and that we will all one day stand before that judge who knows everything and can never make a mistake.”

Charles Dickens, the English writer and social critic, born on February 7th, 1812, is not only famous for creating some of the most unforgettable fictional characters but also considered the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. Dickens, who was born in Portsmouth, England, had to leave school and work in a factory due to his father’s debts leading to imprisonment. Despite not receiving a proper education, his early impoverishment helped him on the road to success. Throughout his career, Charles Dickens managed a weekly newspaper for 20 years, published 15 novels, 5 long stories, hundreds of short stories, and non-fiction articles tirelessly, and fought for innovations in children’s rights, education, and other social issues. In his lifetime, his works gained unprecedented fame and, to this day, his works such as Great Expectations continue to be considered among the best. You will surely remember his name when you hear it.

“I looked at the stars,” I thought, “how painful it must be for a man dying of cold to look at them and not receive any help or mercy in this brightness.”

Great Expectations” is a novel that tells the gripping story of Pip’s life and reflects the living conditions in mining villages in 19th century England. Joe Gargery, who works under very difficult conditions as a miner in the village, yet is still very poor, is reflected in the novel. The gap between the rural and urban population is also noticed in the novel. The most prominent emotion in the novel is the society’s bleeding wound of greed and discrimination. The hero of the story is a young man known as Philip. He lives with his sister in their village. His best friend is Joe Gargery, the village blacksmith and his sister’s husband. In the forest, a man appears before him and asks him to bring him some food. Charles Dickens portrays this man as terribly intimidating and ugly. The man will reappear in the novel and change Pip’s life. It becomes clear that this man is an escaped prisoner. Pip is so afraid of him that he cannot refuse the man’s request for food. Miss Havisham is a lonely woman who lives with her adopted daughter, Estella. She asks Pip to come to her house after Pip’s sister sends him there. Miss Havisham was rejected by the man who was supposed to be her husband at the wedding. The breakfast, along with the cake on the table, stays there for years after the wedding night. When Pip visits Miss Havisham, he cannot make sense of her strange behavior. Miss Havisham asks Pip to come and spend time with her stepdaughter frequently. Pip is bothered by Estella’s cold and haughty attitude, but he has fallen in love with her despite being angry with her.

“It is a blind loyalty, an unquestioning acceptance of one’s own weakness. It is to completely submit to it, to believe and trust in oneself and the whole world, to give one’s heart and soul to that villain. Like what I did.”

Later on, Pip surrenders his actions and all his desires to the hands of the passion he feels as the greed for money. Here, thanks to a relative, he becomes the owner of all that inheritance. Pip now starts living in London. He becomes intoxicated by this flashy lifestyle: he wouldn’t recognize his sister if she turned and came to him. When he finally realizes this, he returns to his village… to Estella…

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·7 October 2021

The elder sister of chewed flowers; Sennur Sezer

This valuable work allows us to access the concepts left by people from a few centuries ago and to find the events that shook societies. It is recommended for both children and adults, without age limit.

“I wanted to have “Let whoever reads this know… he had many weaknesses, but he was a good man at heart.” written on my gravestone.”