I think its his most mature and understanding novel. The days of a rich man showing up at the end of the book to solve everyones worries is gone, here patronage actually backfires on the younger characters. I think Estelle and Miss Havisham are probably the two strongest female characters he created. Pip is throughly relatable and the themes of the book hold up very well to this day. The troubled romance also plays probably better with modern readers than the earlier sweeter love stories he wrote in The Pickwick Papers or Nicholas Nickleby. Modern tastes prefer a love story full of turmoil and difficulties. Also the way Pip ends up becoming a snob before eventually regretting what he became also plays well with a modern reader.
"Why, he is a common laboring boy!" Estella says this of poor young Pip and this is one of my favorite Dickens' lines. Says all you need to know about that cold, cruel princess! Well done video!!!
@@kevinrussell1144 Well, Kevin, I am retired and watch lots of videos on literature and history, etc. and, yes, I do like Great Expectations a good deal. My first reading was almost 50 years ago and then again about 15 years ago. I am a major Charles Dickens fanboy, by the way, but the novels are just too long for me in my advanced years. So sorry about those terrible storms in California just now. The photos show such immense devastation and our hearts are with the people trying to stay out of harm's way. Kind regards from the midwest!
@@kevinrussell1144 RUclips has been quite a windfall for those of us still in the game and I so enjoy the content supplied by our young friend from Books and Things. I love her energy and positivity. The entire nation is watching these California storms and hoping for a quick return to normalcy. Yes, it has been a good ride!
One of the things I like about “great expectations” is that the plot twist makes sense, and in the end you can see that it was hinted to all along, it didn’t just come flying out of thin air
surprised no one mentioned the hilarious early scene, in which the pompous Uncle Pumblechook takes a big drink of the brandy bottle that Pip had emptied to give the convict ....[and then willed it with "tar water"....! ].... Also some comic relief with the somewhat slow-witted but so very kind, and so very wise in his own way, blacksmith Joe Gargery, who is always sharing bits of wisdom with young Pip and protecting the orphan from the unjust wrath of his sister, "Mrs. Joe" as he calls her...As Joe put it, "On the rampage, Pip, and off the rampage. Such is life!"
I was forced to read Great Expectations in high school in an absolutely stultifying English class and it made me want to have nothing to do with Dickens. Later after I met and married my husband, he would tell me again and again that I would love Dickens , because I loved droll, dry humor. Finally, one day he read aloud that passage to me where Pip and Joe contemplate what they would do if Pup’s sister died. I was rolling on the floor. I have loved dickens ever since.
So far I've read 2 Dickens books: Hard Times (thought it was pretty good) and Great Expectations (thought it was really good, probably my favorite classic novel). What would you recommend reading next? I'm leaning towards David Copperfield since I liked the first-person narrative, or perhaps Tale of Two Cities since it seems like it would be thrilling and I enjoyed the more "thriller" parts of Great Expectations a lot (like when Pip gets the "don't go home" letter).
How wonderful to you have seen an adaptation of this book when you were somewhat young! That would have really brought Dickens alive to you, I am sure.
I am about to start reading it. I hesitate to watch your video not because of spoilers but because I don't want to spend time on interpretations that I may not concur. The fortitude of the reader guided by the writer produces the interpretation, which is a separate product all by itself.
This novel was my first exposure to Dickens. Because it was a high school assignment in my least favorite subject I hated it and I hated the teacher. I've grown to love it. The first paragraph, which you read, has to be the most famous starting line of all of Dickens novels, excepting possibly A Tale of Two Cities. Pip's problems stem from his obsession with Estella. (As I suppose Bradley Headstone's problems stem from his obsession with Lizzy Hexam.) Pip wouldn't have high-hatted Joe if it weren't for his desire to impress, which comes from his desire to possess Estella. We can put this on the positive side of Pip's ledger: his own behavior bothered him here. My favorite character is Abel Magwitch.
It's probably a difficult (if not impossible) task to do justice to a novel via cinema. I suppose the best that one can do is to attempt to distill the spirit and direction of the original work. David Lean, after his spate of films based on works by Noel Coward (especially "Brief Encounter"), attempted such an adaptation with both "Great Expectations" (1946) and "Oliver Twist" (1948). I am enjoying your book reviews immensely. Your enthusiasm provides quite an impetus to further discover the wonderful worlds created by Dickens. Thank you!
I can't wait to read this! Miss Havisham sounds fantastic. So looking forward to seeing your favourite four. I know Our mutual friend will be in there somewhere but other than that I'm not sure.
When you talked about the man in the graveyard I thought... I know this! And then I remember reading a part of Great Expectations in high school and I remember loving that part! I don't know how I could forget. Definitely want to pick it up again now.
Thank you so much for your insights about your favorited classic books. Love how you carrie yourself while displaying the subjects. Appreciate your perspectives. I picked Great Expectations thanks to you. Now I’m reading P&P, the Tennant of the Wildfell Hall & will read Dicken’s.
Thus far, Great Expectations had been the only dickens I've read. However, thanks to your recent videos my interest in reading more dickens has been rekindled and I recently picked up A Tale of Two Cities. Can't wait to begin this novel!
Suggest you try David Copperfield....Aunt Betsy is wonderful..Mr. Dick [who can't keep from obsessing on King Charles III's ancestor, Charles the First....then there is Uriah Heep...amazing characters...oh, how can i leave out Mr. Micawber....always just one step away from Debtor's Prison, BUT !....always CERTAIN that "something good will turn up" at any moment!
So this is a Dickens novel I had a great experience with listening to as an audiobook. I listened to it with my mom over Christmas break while in undergrad and had a grand time of it. Such an immersive experience. I really like Miss Havisham, and so many of the characters, although Pip was not my favorite.
I just finished great expectations. I got lost towards the end a bit and glazed over a lot of the middle that I didn't feel was important, but I liked it. I both felt sorry for pip and wanted to tell him to get his crap together.
Is that the film that is available here on RUclips, free with Ads? I watched a bit but didn't like the cast, especially the actor cast as the adult Pip.
Super late in the game, but I have to comment. I read Great Expectations for the first time last year for a Victorian lit class. I remember at one point in the novel I screamed because everything was starting to come together for one of the characters (won’t spoil who that is) Not many people can pull that off, and it just solidified my love for Dickens even more.
Really enjoyed this video! It has certainly made me want to read Great Expectations. I hope you get a chance to see the David Lean film soon, I would love to hear your thoughts! It is based on the stage play from 1939 so it is a bit stream lined but I still enjoyed it!
I just got started with Great Expectations and I came across this brilliant video! I have seen the movie of 1946 version before and I am now impressed by the supurb sentences of Dickens! Oh I really really appreciate your passion for literature! Would you mind my asking what is your major in university? And how could you manage to spare time to read so many books?
Thanks! It is a great novel. I'm no longer a student, but I studied English Literature and History at university, then did a Masters degree in Creative Writing. I read on the train to and from work and also listen to a lot of audiobooks - but I have an Q&A video coming up, so I'll add your question to the list and try and address that more there :)
Wow many thanks for your attention. Looking forward to that video :) It's so amazing that you spend the commuting time with books! And is your work related to literature too?
yes! who could not like Aunt Betsy Trotwood and Mr. Dick and, of course, Mr. McCawber!...and the scene where Aunt Betsey puts Mr. Murdstone and his dreadful sister in their place is an absolute GEM !
I like Great Expectations even though I am not a particular Dickens fan. I was surprised when you started to talk about screen versions of the book you didn't mention the David Lean 1946 film, Matita Hunt as Miss Haversham became the definitive for me, although John Mills was a bit too nice as PIp. What is outstanding about this film is cinematography, especially with the graveyard scene and also around Miss Haversham and her house. The film won an Academy Award and deservedly so.
I have seen the Great Expectations 1946 film, but I don't think I had at this point, and while I enjoyed it, it hasn't especially stayed with me. To be honest I haven't seen a lot of the older films (ie, pre-1980s), and don't tend to enjoy them very much when I do watch them - I just think they often have a style of acting and production that is very alien to me and I struggle to fully get used to.
I agree Dickens created memorable characters in this novel and yes I would like to hug Joe and Biddy and Wimmick and Herbert are so funny. But i don''t agree with you about Pip of not liking him I think Dickens portrayed very correctly as clueless lad discovering life I would have disliked him if he made him to much ideal and unreal.
I agree with you regarding Pip. I just could not bond with the character and take his side until the end. However, that is perhaps intended by the author ? We get annoyed at Pip’s immaturity until we see him grow ?
Wow, you look ready enthusiastic. In my view, Great Expectation is the best book that I´ve ever read. It just brilliant how is made. Today I finished it and it´s my first novel that I´ve ever read in English.
I am impressed you read it all in English! I first read this book at age 12, and much of it went right over my head, it was too ''grown up'' for me....read it again at 15 and it made more sense...read it again at around age 30 and it finally all made sense.
This is the next Dickens book I want to read, but my library doesn't have it in book forum :( I'm planing on going to my used bookstore soon and I'll have to try and find it there. Great video! :)
There is also the 1935 Hollywood version of David Copperfield. Highly condensed but rumbustious and colourful (in back and white). Often I find it is the version one sees first which is the one we prefer. At the risk of labouring the point: people's speech has changed dramatically over the last 40 years,just look at any political interview from the 1970's on RUclips for example. So to the generation...roughly under age 55,old films sound very stilted and artificial,mainly I think because of the speech. Well done for your videos,I enjoy them,even when I don't always agree with you! I show them to my daughter about to do Al evels and she enjoys them too
Just a minor complaint is that you use 'brilliant' a lot. Yet, your enthusiasm, explanations, great parts, and disappointing parts overcomes that you use 'brilliant'. So don't worry about it too much if it takes away from your enthusiasm, and your 'brilliant' commentaries on the books. Please ignore me if it would make you too self conscious to continue. You are one of the best channels on RUclips.
Do you prefer people who overuse like? I mean, like sometimes when people speak, they like, use like a lot to describe, like bits of the story, and seem to use it like, too much.
Pip is human, he wants to be loved and admired, like most humans. We understand it is love for Estella that drives his need to improve his status and not innate greed. Estella the ‘rich girl’’ He just made the mistake of believing ‘the rich lady’ must be playing a part to help himto achieve a higher status, and therefore be deserving of Estella’s love trust and affection.Following his rise to gentleman status he became snobbish, entitled and thoughtless, especially in regards to Joe, but l think Dickens takes us on that journey with him. Pip is blindsided when he learns it is the convict’s hard work, love and regard for him that brings about his good fortune. Most of us realise he was placed in a trap most of us would have been caught in. Thinking rich means has resources and will help others. Criminal means bad and with hurt and obstruct their fellow man. Pip is ok he could have been a better kinder person but he is human after all.
I actually like reading a character with flaws- much better than having a protagonist that is perfect. I enjoyed reading the conversations he had with other characters, being completely oblivious to his own arrogance
I just finished this book two days ago! I thought it was bloody brilliant. I always wanted to see the BBC adaptation, but you ranting about it convinced me to skip that one. :D
The first time I was exposed to the story was with the modern adaptation (the movie with Gwyneth Paltrow) and later on I realized it was a book and not actually in modern times! (I'm from Brazil, and as a teen I knew little of world classics :P ) I didn't enjoy the 2012 movie adaptation at all. And I liked very much the 2011 BBC series. My favorite scene was Stela's relief from her husband's death (there is so much emotion and beauty in that scene). I have decided to read it years ago (it's sitting on my shelf) but now I hear from you so much is wrong in the adaptations I must correct my view! :D I expect not to approve of Pip also. But as you said, there are so many wonderful characters that make up for it.
+laraelwing I really need to see that modern film! I strongly recommend reading it - it's a beautiful brilliant book, and quite different in essence to a lot of the adaptations :)
Great Expectation is my second favourite book of all time. RIght after American Gods. And I agree with you. Pip is such a prick, specially when he grows up. He becomes this materialistic snobby manchild! but I think his prick-ness is the key point of the book as the story takes him down a few notches.
I love Miss Havisham in this book, but I didn't love the book as a whole unfortunately- mainly because of the issues you raised about Pip, which was a bit more of a problem for me as I found both his character and his narration, deeply irritating!
+A Hermit's Progress I love the rest of the characters so much I can kind of get past Pip, but yes, he is rather irritating, and if you don't like his narration either that is a bit of a problem!
@@katiejlumsden Those early chapters are a window into early 19th century England. The culture, the hardship, food, money, speech......they completely took a kid from the American west into another world. I love the whole damn book. THIS book is what set me on the path of being a lifetime reader.
I'm not in favor of angel characters, male or female (in CD female is more likely), as they ain't real, & there is certainly one in GE. Pip himself bothers me, but not as much as with some other people. Plaudits to his writing style. Pedantic types never place GE any worse than 3rd & often 1st. I found reading GE to be a chore in parts, until I got to the last 100pg, where it picked up somewhat. BH could be next, though I hope not. LD may be more probable. You could put Dombey anywhere from 2 to 4.
+TimeAndChance I love Great Expectations - I think it's one of Dickens's best-written novels, for all that Pip does irritate me. The final four were a tough call for me. Obviously I have my favourite, but I adore all of the final four so much!
Hi Sorry, I´m not an English native speaker it is hard to me to write properly. I love Dickens and I am enjoying a lot your videos, you are great speaking about Dickens. Nevertheless, excuse me, I can´t agree with you about Pip. I love Pip, Yes, that´s true, at the beginning he is selfish, ignorant, and turns his back to his true friends. But perhaps you should have to be more fair with him. Pip is a man in love. He loves Stella so much that he struggles in order to become a person that he is not. Let´s not forget: a blacksmith in the Victorian society can´t marry with someone like Stella - by the way, Stella means star- Stella is such a distant thing to Pip like a star. Pip´s motivation is to be worth of Stella. In the end, Pip finds out the importance of friendship, hardwork, and self respect. And turns in a great human being like Joe. In other words, Great Expectations is a “bildungsroman” a coming of age novel. Pip´s story, his deep feelings, his youthful illusions, make Great Expectations one of the most touching novels of all times. Summarizing, I have read Great Expectations, David Coperfield, Bleak House and Oliver Twist. IMHO Great Expectations is the best of them. Great Expectations has got “what it takes”. I mean, the opening is powerful, the language is magnificent, depicts fabulous characters, it is touching, and criticizes Victorian classism in order to make a better society.
Thanks :) I do like Pip, and he is a fascinating character - but his behaviour to Jo and his dislikable qualities are for me one of the greatest things about the book. I have also reread the book since making this video, and liked Pip a lot more :)
Thank you : ) Of course I agree with you, Pip doesn`t treat Joe well. This is a good reason to reject him. Let´s say that good literature always provides diverse meanings and interpretations.
A lot of women seem to dislike Pip. Pip is an unreliable narrator. I really felt for him. It was the most moving book I have ever read and it took me about three weeks to get the characters out of my head. I liked the childhood sections with Pip and Estella best. I know the last chapter was highly ambiguous, but what did you think of the alternative ending? I felt it was too cruel, but if you don't like Pip then maybe you think he deserves it. My favourite film adaption was the David Lean black and white version. Jean Simmons was superb as the younger Estella and the young actor who played Pip was great as well. Only the ending was a bit weak. There was a 1980's TV series, I think aimed for schools, that was good but a bit ponderous. That had Joan Hickson as Miss Haversham and Patsy Kensit as the young Estella. I did not watch the recent BBC adaption because it looked rubbish. You can't have Pip being better looking than Estella. The whole point is that he does not stand a chance.
+Kevin Varney Hmm I suppose the way Pip puts Estella on a pedestal may irritate the feminist in me. I still love the book though and I always enjoy unreliable narrators! *Great Expectations Spoilers below* For me, I like the ending ambiguous, but when Pip says he sees 'no shadow of another parting from her', I like to imagine it's because they'll never meet again, because they've both damaged each other too much to be happy together. I don't think it's cruel to Pip to think that, because I can't see them being happy together, not truly. And yes, the BBC adaptation was rubbish!
+Books and Things - Yes but there was another ending that he drafted before but was persuaded to change. Pip met Estella in a London street many years later.
Ah yes - I do like that ending, although I think the ending the book does have is probably more powerful, and I like the ambiguity of it. For me, both work - I don't find the alternate ending cruel really, because as I say I just can't imagine Pip and Estella being happy together.
@@katiejlumsden But don't we all put those whom we adore ''on a pedestal''.... whether we are male or female?.... Seems to be a part of human nature....until we find out that our adored one has "feet of clay" just like all of us, and then, hopefully, we accept it !
The BBC 2011 series was breath takingly bad. Try hard trendy twaddle drained of Dickensian colour and pumped full of college boy ''realism''. I think that the reason younger people don't like older films (like the 1947 masterpiece Great Expectations) is that they can't remember that people used to talk like that. When I was young in the 60's and 70's every one over say age 50 had a pre- war accent,so we were used to that posh way of speaking which now seems artificial to younger people. Just listen to the documentary on the Mitford sisters on RUclips,just for 3 minutes to illustrate my point. Or listen to the Queen when young!
Oh, it just wasn't right. You're quite right about them talking all the colour from Dickens - I love the recent David Copperfield film, if you've seen that - it's not super accurate to the book, but it really captures the feeling of a Dickens book. And yes, I must watch the David Lean film!
Joe has always been one of my favourite characters.
yes. a very simple man, but very kind...and even very wise, in his own way.
I think its his most mature and understanding novel. The days of a rich man showing up at the end of the book to solve everyones worries is gone, here patronage actually backfires on the younger characters. I think Estelle and Miss Havisham are probably the two strongest female characters he created. Pip is throughly relatable and the themes of the book hold up very well to this day.
The troubled romance also plays probably better with modern readers than the earlier sweeter love stories he wrote in The Pickwick Papers or Nicholas Nickleby. Modern tastes prefer a love story full of turmoil and difficulties. Also the way Pip ends up becoming a snob before eventually regretting what he became also plays well with a modern reader.
"Why, he is a common laboring boy!" Estella says this of poor young Pip and this is one of my favorite Dickens' lines. Says all you need to know about that cold, cruel princess! Well done video!!!
@@kevinrussell1144 Right. I never quite thought of it that way but, yes, you are correct.
@@kevinrussell1144 Well, Kevin, I am retired and watch lots of videos on literature and history, etc. and, yes, I do like Great Expectations a good deal. My first reading was almost 50 years ago and then again about 15 years ago. I am a major Charles Dickens fanboy, by the way, but the novels are just too long for me in my advanced years. So sorry about those terrible storms in California just now. The photos show such immense devastation and our hearts are with the people trying to stay out of harm's way. Kind regards from the midwest!
@@kevinrussell1144 RUclips has been quite a windfall for those of us still in the game and I so enjoy the content supplied by our young friend from Books and Things. I love her energy and positivity. The entire nation is watching these California storms and hoping for a quick return to normalcy. Yes, it has been a good ride!
One of the things I like about “great expectations” is that the plot twist makes sense, and in the end you can see that it was hinted to all along, it didn’t just come flying out of thin air
surprised no one mentioned the hilarious early scene, in which the pompous Uncle Pumblechook takes a big drink of the brandy bottle that Pip had emptied to give the convict ....[and then willed it with "tar water"....! ].... Also some comic relief with the somewhat slow-witted but so very kind, and so very wise in his own way, blacksmith Joe Gargery, who is always sharing bits of wisdom with young Pip and protecting the orphan from the unjust wrath of his sister, "Mrs. Joe" as he calls her...As Joe put it, "On the rampage, Pip, and off the rampage. Such is life!"
I was forced to read Great Expectations in high school in an absolutely stultifying English class and it made me want to have nothing to do with Dickens. Later after I met and married my husband, he would tell me again and again that I would love Dickens , because I loved droll, dry humor. Finally, one day he read aloud that passage to me where Pip and Joe contemplate what they would do if Pup’s sister died. I was rolling on the floor. I have loved dickens ever since.
So far I've read 2 Dickens books: Hard Times (thought it was pretty good) and Great Expectations (thought it was really good, probably my favorite classic novel). What would you recommend reading next? I'm leaning towards David Copperfield since I liked the first-person narrative, or perhaps Tale of Two Cities since it seems like it would be thrilling and I enjoyed the more "thriller" parts of Great Expectations a lot (like when Pip gets the "don't go home" letter).
The description of the postbox mouth has forever captured my mind for some reason LOL.
And mine - what a great description :)
How wonderful to you have seen an adaptation of this book when you were somewhat young! That would have really brought Dickens alive to you, I am sure.
It really did - it was so great.
I am about to start reading it. I hesitate to watch your video not because of spoilers but because I don't want to spend time on interpretations that I may not concur. The fortitude of the reader guided by the writer produces the interpretation, which is a separate product all by itself.
This novel was my first exposure to Dickens. Because it was a high school assignment in my least favorite subject I hated it and I hated the teacher. I've grown to love it. The first paragraph, which you read, has to be the most famous starting line of all of Dickens novels, excepting possibly A Tale of Two Cities. Pip's problems stem from his obsession with Estella. (As I suppose Bradley Headstone's problems stem from his obsession with Lizzy Hexam.) Pip wouldn't have high-hatted Joe if it weren't for his desire to impress, which comes from his desire to possess Estella. We can put this on the positive side of Pip's ledger: his own behavior bothered him here.
My favorite character is Abel Magwitch.
It's probably a difficult (if not impossible) task to do justice to a novel via cinema. I suppose the best that one can do is to attempt to distill the spirit and direction of the original work. David Lean, after his spate of films based on works by Noel Coward (especially "Brief Encounter"), attempted such an adaptation with both "Great Expectations" (1946) and "Oliver Twist" (1948).
I am enjoying your book reviews immensely. Your enthusiasm provides quite an impetus to further discover the wonderful worlds created by Dickens. Thank you!
I can't wait to read this! Miss Havisham sounds fantastic. So looking forward to seeing your favourite four. I know Our mutual friend will be in there somewhere but other than that I'm not sure.
+Olivia Pope (Reading like a mad woman) Miss Havisham is very awesome! And yes, I think I talk about that one enough to be predictable :P
When you talked about the man in the graveyard I thought... I know this! And then I remember reading a part of Great Expectations in high school and I remember loving that part! I don't know how I could forget. Definitely want to pick it up again now.
+Britt Reads I think a lot of people do read extracts of it in school. It's a brilliant novel so I hope you do get to pick it up some time soon :)
You seem like a modern Hermione! Love your enthusiasm!
Ha thanks.
@@katiejlumsden You are welcome! ,💓
Thank you so much for your insights about your favorited classic books. Love how you carrie yourself while displaying the subjects. Appreciate your perspectives. I picked Great Expectations thanks to you.
Now I’m reading P&P, the Tennant of the Wildfell Hall & will read Dicken’s.
Thanks very much :)
The psychological profiles in Dickens are incredible: Mrs Joe Gargery, the Spider, Matthew Pocket's household - the fabulous baby.
Thus far, Great Expectations had been the only dickens I've read. However, thanks to your recent videos my interest in reading more dickens has been rekindled and I recently picked up A Tale of Two Cities. Can't wait to begin this novel!
+LeatherAndCashmere That makes me so so happy - I hope you enjoy A Tale of Two Cities :)
Suggest you try David Copperfield....Aunt Betsy is wonderful..Mr. Dick [who can't keep from obsessing on King Charles III's ancestor, Charles the First....then there is Uriah Heep...amazing characters...oh, how can i leave out Mr. Micawber....always just one step away from Debtor's Prison, BUT !....always CERTAIN that "something good will turn up" at any moment!
“Are infants to be nut-crackered into their tombs, and is nobody to save them?” One of the funniest lines I have ever read in a book.
So this is a Dickens novel I had a great experience with listening to as an audiobook. I listened to it with my mom over Christmas break while in undergrad and had a grand time of it. Such an immersive experience. I really like Miss Havisham, and so many of the characters, although Pip was not my favorite.
+BooksandQuestions Agreed - so many brilliant characters surround him, but Pip can be a little irritating!
I just finished great expectations. I got lost towards the end a bit and glazed over a lot of the middle that I didn't feel was important, but I liked it. I both felt sorry for pip and wanted to tell him to get his crap together.
I'm glad you enjoyed it. I feel like that's how a lot of us feel about Pip!
Love your way of speaking.... ❤❤
I can't believe that you didn't mention the 1947 David Lean film of Great Expectations!
I have alas never seen it!
Is that the film that is available here on RUclips, free with Ads?
I watched a bit but didn't like the cast, especially the actor cast as the adult Pip.
Super late in the game, but I have to comment. I read Great Expectations for the first time last year for a Victorian lit class. I remember at one point in the novel I screamed because everything was starting to come together for one of the characters (won’t spoil who that is) Not many people can pull that off, and it just solidified my love for Dickens even more.
Great Expectations is so great - I'm glad you liked it!
Really enjoyed this video! It has certainly made me want to read Great Expectations. I hope you get a chance to see the David Lean film soon, I would love to hear your thoughts! It is based on the stage play from 1939 so it is a bit stream lined but I still enjoyed it!
+Liz L Thank you :) The DVD's arrived now so hopefully I can find a few hours to watch it in the next few weeks :)
+Books and Things Hooray! Can't wait to hear what you think!
I just got started with Great Expectations and I came across this brilliant video! I have seen the movie of 1946 version before and I am now impressed by the supurb sentences of Dickens! Oh I really really appreciate your passion for literature! Would you mind my asking what is your major in university? And how could you manage to spare time to read so many books?
Thanks! It is a great novel. I'm no longer a student, but I studied English Literature and History at university, then did a Masters degree in Creative Writing. I read on the train to and from work and also listen to a lot of audiobooks - but I have an Q&A video coming up, so I'll add your question to the list and try and address that more there :)
Wow many thanks for your attention. Looking forward to that video :) It's so amazing that you spend the commuting time with books! And is your work related to literature too?
i read david copperfield when was 10 and loved it...
yes! who could not like Aunt Betsy Trotwood and Mr. Dick and, of course, Mr. McCawber!...and the scene where Aunt Betsey puts Mr. Murdstone and his dreadful sister in their place is an absolute GEM !
I like Great Expectations even though I am not a particular Dickens fan. I was surprised when you started to talk about screen versions of the book you didn't mention the David Lean 1946 film, Matita Hunt as Miss Haversham became the definitive for me, although John Mills was a bit too nice as PIp. What is outstanding about this film is cinematography, especially with the graveyard scene and also around Miss Haversham and her house. The film won an Academy Award and deservedly so.
I have seen the Great Expectations 1946 film, but I don't think I had at this point, and while I enjoyed it, it hasn't especially stayed with me. To be honest I haven't seen a lot of the older films (ie, pre-1980s), and don't tend to enjoy them very much when I do watch them - I just think they often have a style of acting and production that is very alien to me and I struggle to fully get used to.
This girl is what i picture a real life Belle from Beauty and the Beast would look like. Loved the review btw👍
I am so excited to read this!
+Wina Wonders I have a feeling you'll enjoy it! It has a brilliant atmosphere. And I am very intrigued to see the modern adaptation :)
I agree Dickens created memorable characters in this novel and yes I would like to hug Joe and Biddy and Wimmick and Herbert are so funny. But i don''t agree with you about Pip of not liking him I think Dickens portrayed very correctly as clueless lad discovering life I would have disliked him if he made him to much ideal and unreal.
I have actually reread this since making this and I feel like I had a bit more sympathy for Pip.
you make a very good point!
David Lean's film is regarded as a classic treatment.
I agree with you regarding Pip. I just could not bond with the character and take his side until the end. However, that is perhaps intended by the author ? We get annoyed at Pip’s immaturity until we see him grow ?
Oh, definitely, I do think it's part of the point - but that doesn't stop he getting annoyed with Pip at times!
Yes he really annoys me too. I can’t like very much
Wow, you look ready enthusiastic. In my view, Great Expectation is the best book that I´ve ever read. It just brilliant how is made. Today I finished it and it´s my first novel that I´ve ever read in English.
Thanks! Well done on reading Great Expectations - it's so great!
@@katiejlumsden Yeah. Now I´m reading A Tale of Two Cities, but I find it a bit hard. I hope it is worthwhile reading, like Great Expectations.
I am impressed you read it all in English! I first read this book at age 12, and much of it went right over my head, it was too ''grown up'' for me....read it again at 15 and it made more sense...read it again at around age 30 and it finally all made sense.
Subscribed !
This is the next Dickens book I want to read, but my library doesn't have it in book forum :( I'm planing on going to my used bookstore soon and I'll have to try and find it there. Great video! :)
+ElizabethAnneBooks Thank you. And good luck - I hope you manage to find a copy and enjoy reading it :)
There is also the 1935 Hollywood version of David Copperfield. Highly condensed but rumbustious and colourful (in back and white). Often I find it is the version one sees first which is the one we prefer.
At the risk of labouring the point: people's speech has changed dramatically over the last 40 years,just look at any political interview from the 1970's on RUclips for example. So to the generation...roughly under age 55,old films sound very stilted and artificial,mainly I think because of the speech.
Well done for your videos,I enjoy them,even when I don't always agree with you! I show them to my daughter about to do Al evels and she enjoys them too
Thanks! I really would like to see some older Dickens adaptations sometime.
the Copperfield film with the incomparable W.C. Fields as Mr. Micawber is a classic....and his delivery of the one word, "HEEP !!!!!!!!!"
Awesome video :) Must say I do love "Great Expectations " ...fantastic book
+Harriet Dark Thank you :) I love it too!
The film to watch is David Lean’s from 1946. Still the best, even if John Mills is a bit old for the role.
Which one is your favorite? I listened 3 times and couldn't understand the title.
Just a minor complaint is that you use 'brilliant' a lot. Yet, your enthusiasm, explanations, great parts, and disappointing parts overcomes that you use 'brilliant'. So don't worry about it too much if it takes away from your enthusiasm, and your 'brilliant' commentaries on the books. Please ignore me if it would make you too self conscious to continue. You are one of the best channels on RUclips.
"Brilliant" is a fine word and very apt, so i enjoy hearing it said with her genuine enthusiasm !
Do you prefer people who overuse like? I mean, like sometimes when people speak, they like, use like a lot to describe, like bits of the story, and seem to use it like, too much.
Pip is human, he wants to be loved and admired, like most humans. We understand it is love for Estella that drives his need to improve his status and not innate greed. Estella the ‘rich girl’’ He just made the mistake of believing ‘the rich lady’ must be playing a part to help himto achieve a higher status, and therefore be deserving of Estella’s love trust and affection.Following his rise to gentleman status he became snobbish,
entitled and thoughtless, especially in regards to Joe, but l think Dickens takes us on that journey with him. Pip is blindsided when he learns it is the convict’s hard work, love and regard for him that brings about his good fortune. Most of us realise he was placed in a trap most of us would have been caught in. Thinking rich means has resources and will help others. Criminal means bad and with hurt and obstruct their fellow man. Pip is ok he could have been a better kinder person but he is human after all.
Well yes, he is a fascinating character - but he can be a little frustrating to read at times!
I actually like reading a character with flaws- much better than having a protagonist that is perfect. I enjoyed reading the conversations he had with other characters, being completely oblivious to his own arrogance
Ha yes, that is true! He's such an interesting character.
Gosh I felt like the book dragged a bit!!
there are some slow parts, in which Dickens is developing the characters
I just finished this book two days ago! I thought it was bloody brilliant. I always wanted to see the BBC adaptation, but you ranting about it convinced me to skip that one. :D
It's great, isn't it! But yes, that BBC adaptation is definitely NOT worth a watch!
I've seen several movie and tv versions of Great Expectations but None of them have satisfied me completely.What about you?
The 1999 TV adaptation is quite good - but no, none of them have ever really worked for me.
The first time I was exposed to the story was with the modern adaptation (the movie with Gwyneth Paltrow) and later on I realized it was a book and not actually in modern times! (I'm from Brazil, and as a teen I knew little of world classics :P ) I didn't enjoy the 2012 movie adaptation at all. And I liked very much the 2011 BBC series. My favorite scene was Stela's relief from her husband's death (there is so much emotion and beauty in that scene). I have decided to read it years ago (it's sitting on my shelf) but now I hear from you so much is wrong in the adaptations I must correct my view! :D I expect not to approve of Pip also. But as you said, there are so many wonderful characters that make up for it.
+laraelwing I really need to see that modern film! I strongly recommend reading it - it's a beautiful brilliant book, and quite different in essence to a lot of the adaptations :)
I will :) I have just discovered your channel and I'm loving your videos! :D
Aw thank you so much :)
good comments, thanks! And Hello to Brazil from Ohio !
Great Expectation is my second favourite book of all time. RIght after American Gods.
And I agree with you. Pip is such a prick, specially when he grows up. He becomes this materialistic snobby manchild! but I think his prick-ness is the key point of the book as the story takes him down a few notches.
Yeah, I do think I agree. I've reread it again since this video and Pip sort of grows on me. He's frustrating but I like how he grows.
I need a little more help understanding this book
One may read David Copperfield followed by Demon Copperhead.
It could happen.
You crazy woman I have the same copy! The little one
I love Miss Havisham in this book, but I didn't love the book as a whole unfortunately- mainly because of the issues you raised about Pip, which was a bit more of a problem for me as I found both his character and his narration, deeply irritating!
+A Hermit's Progress I love the rest of the characters so much I can kind of get past Pip, but yes, he is rather irritating, and if you don't like his narration either that is a bit of a problem!
Q: When the book ends is Pip a virgin?
A LITTLE frustrating to read?!?!?! How about the first ten chapters? So so so painful, and then worth it later on
Aw, I love the first few chapters. It's later that Pip annoys me :P
@@katiejlumsden Those early chapters are a window into early 19th century England. The culture, the hardship, food, money, speech......they completely took a kid from the American west into another world. I love the whole damn book. THIS book is what set me on the path of being a lifetime reader.
WOW! She prattles like a machine gun.
I'm not in favor of angel characters, male or female (in CD female is more likely), as they ain't real, & there is certainly one in GE. Pip himself bothers me, but not as much as with some other people. Plaudits to his writing style. Pedantic types never place GE any worse than 3rd & often 1st. I found reading GE to be a chore in parts, until I got to the last 100pg, where it picked up somewhat.
BH could be next, though I hope not. LD may be more probable. You could put Dombey anywhere from 2 to 4.
+TimeAndChance I love Great Expectations - I think it's one of Dickens's best-written novels, for all that Pip does irritate me.
The final four were a tough call for me. Obviously I have my favourite, but I adore all of the final four so much!
people are here for school
Hi
Sorry, I´m not an English native speaker it is hard to me to write properly.
I love Dickens and I am enjoying a lot your videos, you are great speaking about Dickens.
Nevertheless, excuse me, I can´t agree with you about Pip. I love Pip, Yes, that´s true, at the beginning he is selfish, ignorant, and turns his back to his true friends. But perhaps you should have to be more fair with him. Pip is a man in love. He loves Stella so much that he struggles in order to become a person that he is not. Let´s not forget: a blacksmith in the Victorian society can´t marry with someone like Stella - by the way, Stella means star- Stella is such a distant thing to Pip like a star. Pip´s motivation is to be worth of Stella. In the end, Pip finds out the importance of friendship, hardwork, and self respect. And turns in a great human being like Joe. In other words, Great Expectations is a “bildungsroman” a coming of age novel. Pip´s story, his deep feelings, his youthful illusions, make Great Expectations one of the most touching novels of all times. Summarizing, I have read Great Expectations, David Coperfield, Bleak House and Oliver Twist. IMHO Great Expectations is the best of them. Great Expectations has got “what it takes”. I mean, the opening is powerful, the language is magnificent, depicts fabulous characters, it is touching, and criticizes Victorian classism in order to make a better society.
Thanks :) I do like Pip, and he is a fascinating character - but his behaviour to Jo and his dislikable qualities are for me one of the greatest things about the book. I have also reread the book since making this video, and liked Pip a lot more :)
Thank you : ) Of course I agree with you, Pip doesn`t treat Joe well. This is a good reason to reject him. Let´s say that good literature always provides diverse meanings and interpretations.
@@wallyjm4037 Your English is excellent! You write better than most current English people.
Could you please speak more slowly..🙏🙏
Love your Video 💕💕💕💕💕💕
Thanks :) This is quite an old video - I do speak a bit slower in more recent ones!
Slow man!
A lot of women seem to dislike Pip. Pip is an unreliable narrator. I really felt for him. It was the most moving book I have ever read and it took me about three weeks to get the characters out of my head. I liked the childhood sections with Pip and Estella best. I know the last chapter was highly ambiguous, but what did you think of the alternative ending? I felt it was too cruel, but if you don't like Pip then maybe you think he deserves it. My favourite film adaption was the David Lean black and white version. Jean Simmons was superb as the younger Estella and the young actor who played Pip was great as well. Only the ending was a bit weak. There was a 1980's TV series, I think aimed for schools, that was good but a bit ponderous. That had Joan Hickson as Miss Haversham and Patsy Kensit as the young Estella. I did not watch the recent BBC adaption because it looked rubbish. You can't have Pip being better looking than Estella. The whole point is that he does not stand a chance.
+Kevin Varney Hmm I suppose the way Pip puts Estella on a pedestal may irritate the feminist in me. I still love the book though and I always enjoy unreliable narrators!
*Great Expectations Spoilers below*
For me, I like the ending ambiguous, but when Pip says he sees 'no shadow of another parting from her', I like to imagine it's because they'll never meet again, because they've both damaged each other too much to be happy together. I don't think it's cruel to Pip to think that, because I can't see them being happy together, not truly.
And yes, the BBC adaptation was rubbish!
+Books and Things - Yes but there was another ending that he drafted before but was persuaded to change. Pip met Estella in a London street many years later.
Ah yes - I do like that ending, although I think the ending the book does have is probably more powerful, and I like the ambiguity of it. For me, both work - I don't find the alternate ending cruel really, because as I say I just can't imagine Pip and Estella being happy together.
@@katiejlumsden But don't we all put those whom we adore ''on a pedestal''.... whether we are male or female?.... Seems to be a part of human nature....until we find out that our adored one has "feet of clay" just like all of us, and then, hopefully, we accept it !
The BBC 2011 series was breath takingly bad. Try hard trendy twaddle drained of Dickensian colour and pumped full of college boy ''realism''.
I think that the reason younger people don't like older films (like the 1947 masterpiece Great Expectations) is that they can't remember that people used to talk like that. When I was young in the 60's and 70's every one over say age 50 had a pre- war accent,so we were used to that posh way of speaking which now seems artificial to younger people. Just listen to the documentary on the Mitford sisters on RUclips,just for 3 minutes to illustrate my point. Or listen to the Queen when young!
Oh, it just wasn't right. You're quite right about them talking all the colour from Dickens - I love the recent David Copperfield film, if you've seen that - it's not super accurate to the book, but it really captures the feeling of a Dickens book. And yes, I must watch the David Lean film!
I don't like pip either !!! Down to the very last chapter.