Ajones294

Your class in the time that **//Great Expectations//** is based in meant a lot. Your position in society determined almost every aspect of your life. It determined your income, education, the people you associated with, the food you ate, and how good your quality of life was. Pip was born into the lower class society, and he felt the effects of it. He didn’t have the nicest home, the fanciest clothes, the best foods, but he did have heart. Sadly, the smoke rising from the hot air of high class poisoned it.

In the beginning of the story, Pip was only seven or eight years old. He lived with his sister and brother-in-law, because both of his parents were deceased. His brother-in-law, Joe, was a blacksmith. Blacksmiths were there to serve people, so this meant their whole family was in the very low class society. Their house was small, and Pip didn’t have very nice clothes. When he didn’t have the nicest clothing or house, people looked at him differently. He couldn’t read and was illiterate, but so was Joe. There was little chance of him moving up the social ladder.

Soon though, Pip was introduced to Miss Havisham, a wealthy, older woman. She had a very big and nice house. She didn’t have to do any work, yet she still maintained her social status because of her wealth. Wealth played a large part of the class you were in. Joe didn’t make a lot of money, so his family didn’t have a high social class position. Pip had no choice when it came to his position in society. He had no control over it because he was just born into that particular class.

There were cases, though, were Pip meets higher classman that **do** use their power for the better good. Wemmick uses his money to build a great house that will entertain his near deaf father and always tries to keep his father happy. Herbert took notice of Pip at Ms. Havisham's estate, even though Herbert must have noticed from his clothes that Pip was lower class. Pip helps to start Herbert off in his own buisiness, providing the money to finance it in secret.

What I think Charles Dickens is trying to say about your class and birthrights is, no matter what your class; whether it be lower or upper; you should still act like a caring and compassionate human being. You should have empathy for others, and you should try to be as nice as you can to anybody. He shows this with Pip in the beginning. Pip was little, and he was nice to a convict, and he was nice to everybody. Then through Wemmick and Herbert, who acted justly and didn't have a head full of hot-aired pride.

Back in the time that //**Great Expectations**// was written, class meant everything to people, but that shouldn't affect the way you treated those around you. It was hard to change you social position, but you should try to make the best of it. Pip was poor, he didn't have nice clothes, and he was not very educated, but he had the most valuable thing a person could have. He had a heart, and he showed empathy for others.