Analysing Pips Character

Source: http://www.aceshowbiz.com/still/00006902/great-expecations-still08.html

Pip is a young boy who is very romantic and ambitious although he is also very immature. However because of Pip's ambition he has a huge desire to improve himself and achieve any possible progression, such as, educational, moral or social. Pip hopes to marry Estella and be able to be a part of the upper class. Pip very rarely thinks positively of himself as he continuously judges his past actions very harshly. Pip's unrealistic belief of perfection usually makes him look at the world very narrowly as he often oversimplifies situations from superficial values which causes him to behave in a bad way especially towards people who care about him, for example, when Pip becomes a gentleman he instantly starts to act as a gentleman should act, which then causes him to act in a snobbishly and coldly manner towards Joe and Biddy. However deep down Pip has a heart of gold and is always very sympathetic and generous, for example, when he helped Magwitch. 

Once Pip learnt all his lessons he eventually turned into a mature gentleman. 

Source Information: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/greatex/canalysis.html

Analysing Estella's Character

Source: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/greatexpectations/characters.html

Estella is a young girl adopted by Miss Havisham. She is a very beautiful young girl although she has been brought up since the age of three by Miss Havisham who taught her to be very cold-hearted, manipulative and rude. Miss Havisham completely destroys Estella's ability to express any emotion and to interact normally with the world. However in the story it does show a sympathetic side to Estella although this is sometimes difficult to see as she usually acts in the way of her upbringing opposed to her own feelings. In the story when Estella shows her sympathetic side it helps to give a clearer picture as to why Pip may be so in love with her. Even though Estella continuously keeps pushing Pip away warning him that she has "no heart", it still seems that she doesn't want to hurt him.

Source Information: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/greatex/canalysis.html

Analysing Miss Havishams Character

Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/film-news/9622620/Helena-Bonham-Carter-plays-Miss-Havisham-in-new-Great-Expectations-film.html

Miss Havisham I found to be one of the most eccentric characters in Great Expectations. However she is a wealthy dowager and lives in a a mansion which is decomposing after her fiancée Compeyson left her at the altar on her wedding day. This was very tragic for Miss Havisham so she stopped all the clocks in Satis House at twenty minutes to nine which was the time when she first realised Compeyson had gone. She also only wears one shoe as when she came to realise that Compeyson had betrayed her she was only wearing one shoe at that time. 

After Miss Havisham lost her fortune she no longer liked any male and decided to get revenge on them. To do this she adopted a little girl named Estella and raised her to purposely break hearts, one of them being a young boy named Pip. Miss Havisham made Estella to be a very cold hearted young girl as Miss Havisham is very single-minded and believed this was the only way to heal her broken heart, only thinking of herself and was unable to see the hurt and upset she was causing Estella and Pip. However Miss Havisham eventually can see the heart break in which she has caused young Pip to have and realises it is just the same as she felt and instead of getting revenge she notices that she notices that she has only caused more pain and begs Pip for his forgiveness.

Source Information: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/greatex/canalysis.html

The Great Expectations - My Film Review

Source: http://www.songonlyrics.net/soundtracks/great-expectations-soundtrack-list.html

I thoroughly enjoyed the film, I thought it was very well acted. The film includes intense drama, a love story, emotion and tragedies and I found it all so entertaining.

I love the love story between Pip and Estella as they are two people that were never meant to be together and even though Estella is trying to push Pip away, he always comes back. It is clear to see the chemistry between the two of them in the film.

I found the choice of costumes and hairstyles very intriguing, I particularly liked the wedding dress Miss Havisham wears, I found it fascinating and I loved the way it had been made contemporary as well. I think all the costumes worked well for the time period in which the story is set and they are totally as I imagined from reading the book previously.

The Great Expectations - Novel by Charles Dickens

Source: http://www.pfspublishing.com/bookclub/2010/12/first-line-analysis-charles-dickens-great-expectations.html

After reading 'The Great Expectations' novel, I was amazed at how fantastic and unforgettable the novel actually is. It is one of the most touching love stories which I have read. Right at the start of the novel the relationship between Pip and Estella becomes alive and there are always mysteries to be solved, and the urge to find out what happens next. Pip being the immature boy he is, is one of the most engaging characters. His friends John Wemmick and Miss Skiffins are also very memorable. There are a lot of humorous moments which stand out as well as the moments of suspense, passion and realisation. I read the book more than once to make sure I got a full understanding of the story and both times reading it I was totally engaged.

Below are some quotes which I liked from reading the novel.

Part 1

• Quote: I give Pirrip as my father's name on the authority of his tombstone. Here you are able to discover that Pip is an orphan and someone we feel very sorry for. (chapter 1)

• Quote: Miss Havisham's house, which was of old brick and dismal, and had a great many iron bars to it. Some of the windows had been walled up; of those that remained, all the lower were rustily barred. Here it shows Satis house resembles a prison. It's made of brick and is dismal and dark, has very few windows, and many bars. (chapter 8)

• Quote: I thought I heard Miss Havisham answer, only it seemed so unlikely, "Well? You can break his heart". Here you can see Pip learns early on what Estella and Miss Havisham's plans are, although he still continues to pursue her. This introduction to the two shows the reader immediately what Estella and Miss Havisham are like. (Chapter 8)

• Quote: It is a most miserable thing to feel ashamed of home. Here you can see Pip's desire to impress Estella makes him ungrateful and blind to the things that once made him happy. (Chapter 14)

Part 2

• Quote: So throughout life our worst weaknesses and meannesses are usually committed for the sake of the people whom we most despise. Here you can see Pip regretfully expounds on a universal truth after disrespecting Joe in order not to look bad in front of a student who he hates. (Chapter 27)

• Quote: I'll tell you what real love is. It is blind devotion, unquestioning self humiliation, utter submission, trust and belief against yourself and against the whole world, giving up your whole heart and soul to the smiter as I did. Here you can see this quote on love given by Miss Havisham could have just as well as been stated by Pip. Miss Havisham raised Estella to be the smiter, and she succeeded. (Chapter 29)

• Quote: I did really cry in good earnest when I went to bed, to think that my expectations had done some good to somebody. Here Pip finally figures out the secret to happiness, serving others and this serves as the turning point in Pip's life. (Chapter 37)

Part 3

• Quote: It would have been cruel of Miss Havisham, horribly cruel, to practice on the susceptibility of a poor boy, and to torture me through all these years with a vain hope and an idle pursuit, if she had reflected on the gravity of what she did. But I think she did not. I think that in the endurance of her own trial, she forgot mine, Estella. Here Pip displays his maturity as he forgives Miss Havisham for all her wrongs and cruelties against him. Pip realises he is not the only tormented soul and can actually empathise with the eccentric jilted lover. (Chapter 44)

• Quote: I want to pursue that subject you mentioned to me when you were last here, and to show you that I am not all stone. But perhaps you can never believe, now, that there is anything human in my heart. Here the old freak eventually does something kind. Her remorse, although it was late shows Miss Havisham to be a dynamic character, one who changes throughout the novel. Both Pip and Miss Havisham's first kind act involve establishing Herbert in business. (Chapter 49)

• Quote: "Oh", she cried despairingly, "What have I done!" Here Miss Havisham's wasted life is the subject of her rant, a hard repentance for a hard heart. (Chapter 49)

Victorian Era - Beauty Ideals

This period began in 1837 when Victoria became Queen and then ended when she died in 1901. The Victorian period was for a very long time as Victoria's reign lasted over 63 years which is longer than any other British Monarch.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/yourpaintings/artists/Franz-Xaver-Winterhalter

A healthy and natural complexion or a pale and delicate look was valued a lot in the Victorian period. Make-up was used but it wasn't really allowed to be revealed to others as the Victorian era was a time dominated by a strict moral code, religious values, modesty and sexual restraint. So therefore cosmetics were thought to be immoral and considered to be something that only women of doubtful morals would wear. However this did not stop them from using cosmetics altogether.

Complexion
A pale complexion meant a woman was wealthy and did not have to spend hours working outside just the same as other historical periods. Some of the nasty, poisonous mixtures were still around in the Victorian period although there were also new safer mixtures such as Zinc Oxide which is a white mineral powder.
Without the use of cosmetics, women would usually try to keep their skin looking pale by avoiding the sunlight and they used parasols when outside in order to protect their skin from the sun and also drank vinegar!
Many Victorians went to great extents to maintain a pale complexion, some would paint soft blue lines on their skin because the veins underneath would be showing and they wanted to make it look more clearer. Others would apply red to the cheeks and lips in order to emphasize their dark circles.

Source: https://uk.pinterest.com/darlajluc/duchesse-de-polignac/

Make-up
Make-up was always used in softer tones to create a very subtle and natural look and they would use their make-up very sparingly. The Eye-shadows in which they used were made from lead and antimony sulphide and lipsticks were made from mercuric sulphide. Beet juice was also used for the cheeks and eyebrows were always plucked nicely.

Source: http://www.katetattersall.com/?p=3735

Skincare
Victorian's would use ingredients found in their kitchen to create DIY Skincare recipes which was a very popular thing for the women to do. They made creams using natural ingredients made with waxes, almond oil and scents and tonics were mixtures of water and scents of roses, violets or lilies.

Hair 
In the Victorian period it was very rare for women to cut their hair, this would only usually be done if they had become ill. They took great pride in their nice, long locks and would even use fake hair to make their hair look fuller.
The most common look for Victorian hairstyles was having it pulled back in a bun or chignon and they would often have loose curls that would gently hang down at the back or even at the side of the face to emphasize it.
Oils were used in the hair to help keep it looking sleek and they used clips and ornate combs to decorate the hair.
Victorian men had their hair much shorter in this period, although their moustaches and beards still remained.

Source: http://www.history.com/news/5-things-you-may-not-know-about-queen-victoria

Source Information: https://faculty.unlv.edu/kirschen/handouts/victorian.html

19thcentury.wordpress.com/2009/06/02/girls-make-up/

beautifulwithbrains.com/2010/08/06/beauty-in-the-victorian-age/

Introduction to Gothic Horror

In this semester we are learning about Victorian Gothic Horror. The task given was to familiarise ourselves with the characters Miss Havisham, Pip and Estelle from the British novel 'The Great Expectations' by Charles Dickens.

Gothic is a word used by the Italians to describe something gloomy or bizarre or something that seemed unreal to the civilised world. The world Gothic often referred to architecture particularly buildings firstly located in Rome Italy and Greece.
Gothic later expand to describe other pieces of art such as paintings and also literature such as poems and novels, the first popular Gothic horror novel was the Horace Walpol Novel the castle of Tranto which mainly character was the castle itself also known as a Gothic piece architecture.

Over the centuries people have become fascinated with horror for many reasons, people have become fascinate particularly with the past such as the medieval period and the Victorian era. The Victorian era was a period which was mainly interested in death due to figure head Queen Victoria being obsessed with death after the loss of husband Price Albert.  The fear and interest  of death and the unknown as well as  anxiety of changes such as industrial changes and science also made people fascinated with Gothic horror.