Notes on "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens - Chapter 1

Introduction to Pip

• Full Name: Philip Pirrip, but known as Pip.
• Family Background:
  • Never knew his parents or saw their likeness as they lived before photography.
  • Sister: Mrs. Joe Gargery, married to a blacksmith.
  • Developed ideas about his parents' appearance from their tombstones.

Childhood Impressions

• Father's Appearance (imagined): Square, stout, dark, with curly black hair.
• Mother's Appearance (imagined): Freckled and sickly.
• Siblings: Five deceased brothers, imagined humorously as born with hands in pockets.

Setting

• Location: Marsh country near the river, twenty miles from the sea.
• Memorable Scene:
  • Raw afternoon towards evening.
  • Pip in the churchyard, realizes the identity of his parents and brothers who are buried there.
  • Churchyard setting with marshes, dykes, mounds, scattered cattle, and a distant sea.

Encounter with the Unknown Man

• Stranger's Appearance:
  • Clad in coarse grey, with an iron on his leg (suggesting he's an escaped convict).
  • No hat, broken shoes, rag around the head.
  • Soaked, muddy, limping, and menacing.
• Interaction:
  • Stranger threatens Pip to keep silent.
  • Demands Pip's name and location.
  • Pip, terrified, complies by providing his name and pointing to his village.

Themes Introduced

• Fear and Innocence:
  • Pip's fear when confronted by the man.
  • Innocence reflected in his simple understanding of death and family.
• Isolation and Vulnerability:
  • Pip alone in the churchyard, exposed to the threatening world.

These initial notes capture the key events and characters introduced in Chapter 1, setting the stage for Pip's journey in "Great Expectations."