Great Expectations A Children’s Book By Will Baxter-Bray

Pip lives a mostly happy life in a small village in the English country side with what is left of his family (his parents died shortly after he was born).

One day, Pip is invited to stay a few days at a rich, well known women’s house. Once there, Pip is introduced to the women’s daughter, a haughty, rude but beautiful girl around the same age as him.

After Pip meets this girl, he becomes obsessed with overcoming his “course and common” (p7 Dickens) status (an insult used against Pip by the girl, Estella, the rich women, Mrs. Havisham’s daughter).

Pip finds this a very hard if not impossible status to overcome, until a mystery benefactor puts Pip into “Great Expectations,” providing Pip funding for becoming a gentleman, and sending him off to London.

Pip is convinced that his mystery benefactor is Mrs. Havisham, who would want to make him a gentleman so that he would be allowed to marry Estella (spoiler alert). This view changed on his 21 st birthday, when he was visited by his real benefactor, a man who turned Pip into a gentleman to show his gratitude for a favor Pip had done for him when he was just a boy.

He realizes that Mrs. Havisham might not want him to marry her daughter, and devastated, goes to see her to consult her about marrying Estella. Once there however, he finds that Estella is already preparing to marry Pip’s mortal enemy, a man that Pip has described as a “thick skulled barbarian” (p437).

After leaving the house, he is reminded of his family. He is reminded of the many letters sent to him from them that he has not responded to. He is reminded of his “dear, innocent Joe” (p507) his step brother, and is reminded of Joe’s wife, Pip’s sister, who has recently died. He is reminded of Biddy, his friend whom he has always treated poorly despite her constant faithfulness to him and Joe, especially after the death of Pip’s sister.

All of these memories makes Pip realize that he must visit his family immediately. After arriving at his old house, he is met by his two, joyfully surprised best friends. He then realizes that although Joe and Biddy are very “coarse and common,” they are much better friends than he could ever have had while being a gentleman. He realizes that what he most wanted all his life (Estella), wasn’t really what he needed. He really needed the warm love of his family and friends in his little coarse and common village.

Pip realized that being rich does not always lead to complete happiness and that what you might think you want most is not always what you really need. These are some of the main themes in the book Great Expectations.