The Isolating & Perverting Effect of Money or The Theme of Great Expectations

        Charles Dickens lashes out on the anomalies, social evils and injustice of his time. Such as imprisonment for debt, delay in justice, maladministration of public schools, greed of capitalists and cruelty on working class. 

In the last phase of his novels his main subject of attack is money and all that goes with it, such as power, position and authority. Interestingly, the novel “Great Expectations” is from the last phase of his novels. Here the main subject of attack is the isolating and perverting effect of money. Pip the main protagonist of novel is perverted and gets isolated from his loved ones. It is the irony of fate that he realizes at last that the money to which he owes everything has come from criminal. 

There are number of characters in “Great Expectations” who have so much greed for money.

Miss Havisham:

She is aristocrat lady. Her relatives behave so meanly and flatter her only to get some share in her wealth. Pip calls them toadies, means flatterers, humbugs, mean imposters and cheats. She is the victim of her lover’s greed for money. He robbed  a considerable amount of wealth and then deserted her. 

Estella:

Her decision to marry Drummle is because of his wealth. Otherwise he is repulsive character. Pumblechook’s attitude changes towards Pip according to the changes in latter’s fortune. Everyone worships, Mammon, the God of wealth, paying no regard to human values.

Pip (The Main Protagonist): 

He falls in love with Estella thinking that she would also love him. He is apprenticed to Joe, but feels ashamed and miserable while working as blacksmith boy. He wants to be unnoticed and remain in shadows. That is because of his love for Estella and his aspiration to become gentleman and marry her. The life of Pip changes when Mr. Jaggers announces a change in Pip’s fortune. This becomes the cause of his change in nature and he becomes snob. While living in London, he completely forgets his loves ones, Joe, Biddy and his sister. He disassociates himself from them. Money suppresses whatever is good and human in him. He is cold and snobbish. When Magwitch dramatically appears and reveals himself as his benefactor.  He is shocked to learn that his benefactor was a convict not Miss Havisham. 

To conclude, Dickens in “Great Expectations has showed the perverting effect of money in the life of an outstart like Pip.