Perceptions Of Pip's Life

Pip’s changing perceptions of himself, the world, and the people he interacts with are affected by various characters throughout Stage One of the book Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. In this section of the story, Pip’s life centers upon the Forge and the Satis House. The characters in these settings alter and shape his developing character and paradigms of the world by either nurturing and caring for him, treating him without regard to his feelings, or by exposing him to how different people perceive contentment. The characters that perform these fundamental changes are Joe and Biddy, Mrs. Joe and his Uncle Pumblechook, and Miss Havisham and Estella.
Joe and Biddy shape Pip’s perceptions by nurturing him in an environment of kindness

Pip is able to see people not by their past or initial demeanor, but by who they present themselves as after showing them kindness and trying to understand them. Along with Joe, Biddy expresses that the life she lives is complete and whole without the need of extensive or lavish things. Later in the book, after his perceptions are tarnished and common was no longer good enough, Pip asks, “How do you manage, Biddy, to learn everything that I learn, and always keep up with me?...She managed her whole domestic life, and wonderfully too” (97). Although Pip says this after he stops thinking that being common is fine, it shows that he admires the fact that she lives a domestic, common life, but is still happy and smart. Earlier in the book, seeing Biddy content, happy, and smart helps prove to him that a common life is anything he would ever need. Both of these examples show how Pip’s perceptions are affected by how they treat him with kindness as a young child and through characters like Biddy, who are happy, intellectual, and content without an abundance of material things. Through their nurturing and encouragement, they create the perceptions in Pip’s mind that he should first seek to understand people to overcome his initial prejudices of them by treating them with kindness and that a common lifestyle will satisfy all of his wants and needs. But, Pip’s close relations aren’t all good influences because along with Joe and

Both of these characters use their higher class to influence Pip’s idea of success and how he perceives contentment and achievement. Miss Havisham affects Pip’s idea of contentment by always alluding to the prospect of marrying Estella when she talks to him, “‘Does she grow prettier Pip?’ And when I said Yes (for indeed she did), would seem to enjoy it greedily” (73). Miss Havisham uses Pip as Estella’s test subject for breaking men's hearts and by doing so, she creates an environment where Pip begins to want more and longs to match the quality of an upper class gentleman that Estella would accept. She continually aids Estella in telling Pip how low and embarrassing his lifestyle is, making Pip feel that he is not good enough, that he needs to be rich and wealthy to succeed in life and meet the requirements of what Miss Havisham and Estella considers worthy. Estella acts in conjunction with Miss Havisham as the inducement for Pip’s wanting and longing for a wealthier, “better” life. She makes fun of Pip’s common language frequently, “‘He calls the knaves, Jacks, this boy!’ said Estella with disdain, before our first game was out.’ And what coarse hands he has! And what thick boots!’” (46). She frequently makes Pip feel insecure about his common ways, which he originally thought was completely acceptable. When Pip