A Critique of Victorian Social Class in Dickens' Great Expectations

Great Expectations is a masterpiece by Charles Dickens, which portrays expectations for different characters and these expectations are depend on their social classes and social changes in the overall community of the Victorian Period. There are many factors responsible for social changes in Victorian Period and one of the significant elements is industrialization which made individuals from the country side to move towards city communities leaving their cultivation work. We also find the class conflict during this period as the poor and class people used to be like rich people and rich people’s attitude to oppress the poor people. Pip, the hero of the novel also has many expectations in his day to day life. Firstly, he dreams of becoming a blacksmith like Joe Gregory, his brother-in-law however, later on he needed to turn into become a gentleman of his word. The Setting of novel Great Expectation is the early Victorian England, the time of inconceivable social changes in the realm and the central point for these progressions was The Industrial Revolution of late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. Social Outcasts is the dominant theme of this novel which is depicted through the nature and character of Pip, an orphan boy and we also find the portrayal of Upper Class Society through the characters like Estella and Miss Havisham. These Characters represent the society at that time. All through the original Great Expectations, Charles Dickens observed the class system in Victorian England, from criminals, unfortunate labourers, and working class to the exceptionally rich. To end the slavery was a significant focal point of Social changes and to eliminate burden on women and children. The circumstances in the creation lines were not ideal for working and it was the justification behind disobedience of average workers. The rise of Working Class in this period was critical as it was brought by industrialization. This article focuses around the theme of social class depicted in the novel by concentrating on the characters in particular the hero of the original Pip, portrayed as a representation of development and self-awareness and furthermore contains brief presentation that investigates the job social class in Victorian society. This study concentrate an illuminates Dickens such that he introduced the issues and problems of Victorian society and its social classes in Great Expectations with an significant focus on Pip's struggle with fate, deep quality, and wealth