We first addressed the novel's next big plot surprise: Magwitch, the convict, is actually Estella's father. We noted the irony . Estella projects herself as the epitome of upper class society .Yet, she would be spurned violently if people knew her true lineage . We further discussed the symbolism of PIp's physical wound and healing as he develops values . In this regard, we studied the text and focused on Pip;s selflessness and compassion as he readily forgives Miss Havisham and asks nothing for himself. Likewise, we studied the textual passage wherein Miss Havisham pleads for forgiveness and exhibits deep remorse as she has led a life consumed with hatred and revenge. We discussed how the motif of remorse and guilt has appeared throughout the novel.
We studied Dickens' reliance on forced coincidence and the impacts of the rigid Victorian class structure. We explored the irony in the idealized refined upper class Estella having a mother who is in fact nothing but a lower class criminal who was charged with murder.. In this regard, we discussed the novel's developing theme that a person's value is not tied to an arbitrary standard such as social station. Kaitlin offered interesting comments on how social class and status still play a role in modern life. We then reviewed the numerous coincidences in the novel and explored the extent to which these forced coincidences detract from the novel.
We first addressed some of the tangled plot details surrounding the plan to secrete Magwitch out of the country We examined the significance of the legal assistant, Wemmick, aiding in this "illegal" scheme only at his home again emphasizing that Wemmick must segregate his obligations as a lawyer from his compassionate humanity which he can only manifest outside the office. Next, we reviewed the character development of Pip and Miss Havisham and noted how the convict, Magwitch, is one of most admirable characters in the novel notwithstanding his very low social status. Last, we reviewed Kaitlin's study guide homework and made additions /modifications where warranted.
We studied the role of remorse in the novel's characterization of Estella and Miss Havisham, After studying the textual passage wherein Estella insists to Pip that she has been irrevocably raised to lack love and compassion, we discussed whether Estella ever truly cared for Pip in any manner. Kaitlin did well in emphasizing how Estella's constant warnings to Pip reflect some degree of care perhaps indicating she is not totally heartless. We then analyzed how Estella's parting question to Pip ,"Are you still a visionary boy or a Man," embodies the bildungsroman journey from boyhood to maturity. Last, we studied textual passages reflecting the motif of remorse and forgiveness.
We first studied a textual passage from the novel and examined the relationship between the text and the bildungsroman genre. Reviewing Kaitlin's prior work on this passage, I reviewed my prior comments noting the symbolic significance of clothes as a disguise of true character and discovery of one's true self as an element of this genre. We then studied the next chapter where Pip encounters Drummle , his nemesis . We examined why Estella chooses to marry Drummle a brutal oaf. Kaitlin then in writing completed questions on the reading and class discussion. I also began parsing the next critical chapter and explained the textual dichotomy of blood(social class) and character.
We explored the development of the guilt motif in the recent reading noting how as each character develops values and remorse guilt ensues. We further addressed how Magwitch and Miss Havisham are surprisingly similar in that each "uses" Pip as a vehicle of revenge(although for different wrongs). Notes were taken on both of these areas. Last, we explored a plot inconsistency in Pip's refusal to accept Magwitch's money- honestly earned- while having no misgivings about accepting the same wealth when he thought Miss Havisham the source. Kaitlin correctly noted that Magwitch's moral character is far superior to Miss Havisham's yet Pip's perception of Miss Havisham's social class still warps his judgment at this point in the novel.
We studied Estella's organic character . In other words, is she capable of change or improvement having been molded by Miss Havisham into a heartless cruel woman? We focused on the textual metaphorical passages wherein Estella herself explains how and why she is the way she is. Kaitlin discussed the metaphor and its import to character. We further untangled plot details such as Compeyson's identity as Magwitch's archenemy and the swindler who jilted Miss Havisham . Last, we discussed the legal predicament of the lawyer ,Jaggers ,regarding Magwitch's illegal and dangerous reappearance in London.
We reached a critical stage of the novel- the climax where Pip's benefactor is revealed to be not Miss Havisham ,but a convict Pip had assisted as a young boy. I provided instruction on the term "epiphany" and Kaitlin placed in her notes the contents of Pip's awakening from his fantasies. I then discussed how the epiphany is an essential element of the bildungsroman as Pip begins to learn his life lesson about the arbitrariness of class and the moral distance between wealth and virtue. In this regard, we also explored the significance of the convict's assertion that he is Pip's "second father" as PIp's search for self and identity within the genre is intertwined with Pip's orphan status.
