Great+Expectations+and+Modern+America

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This page will consider the timeless nature of Dickens' novel, //Great Expectations//, by highlighting themes and characters of this Victorian novel that are translatable and applicable in today's society. This page will also explore the various film adaptations of this classic novel and the ways in which the novel was modified to fit a modern context.

Dickens in Today's Society
**Translating the Novel into a Modern Context** Many of the ideas and conflicts in //Great Expectations// can appeal to and speak to modern audiences. Specifically, the abundance of characters allows for more opportunities for a person to relate to a specific character based on either their ideas, their class, or their issues regarding life and the world and society. Dickens' has created several characters who are outstanding. Pip, whose "great expectations" for life are what carry the book, is someone many people can relate to. His ups and downs in life and his incredible desire to see and be and do more are universally recognizable, and this was the intention of Dickens. Estella whose seemingly chosen obliviousness to the concerns and feelings of other people paired with her societal status make her the quintessential snob and she remains statically so throughout the chapters. Also, the major emphasis placed on the 'here and how' is echoed in the decisions and actions of the characters and are influenced in some cases by the society of the time (here and now society). For example, Pip is embarrassed of his Uncle Joe when he comes to visit and although he love him very much, he wrestles in his mind with what is more important; his new life and the pursuit of his 'great expectations', which would mean abandoning his old life, or his loyalties to his family. This is something that many people can relate to presently. These things accompanied by a clear and direct writing style and a consistent incorporation of problems and situations that people are commonly faced with, Dickens' has taken the Realistic Novel to a level that has allowed his characters and ideas to penetrate the 21st century.

The period surrounding Charles Dickens’ creation of //Great Expectations// was one overflowing with social, political, technological and religious revolution and advancement. All of the changes within the reign of Queen Victoria and the 19th century were no doubt immensely influential on Dickens’ in writing his novel. In his article, __[|Charles Dickens’ and Today’s Reader]__, Joseph Gold writes about the novel as a newly emerging art form during Dickens’ time and he comments on Dickens’ utilization of the positive and negative aspects of the turn of the century and the [|Industrialization of England]. Gold writes that Dickens’, “celebrates his civilized modern world, the disappearance of a brutal lawless past, of religious fervor, of the plague, of the aristocracy, and in addition he sees all the evils and dangers of the industrial explosion, the horror of the cities, the worst aspects of the new middle class who rule England” (Gold 206). Employing the aspects of the modern world, himself living through this monumentally transitional era, Dickens’ is able to give an acutely accurate account of the sociological and psychological roller coaster that is a result of change and this is something that people of the late 20th and 21st century are personally acquainted with.Gold later remarks that Dickens’ “psychological insight is staggering” and that his writing serves to “reveal Dickens’ vast knowledge, the authenticity and range of his social awareness” (Gold 209). The changes experienced by society during this time are echoed in //Great Expectations// and represented in the characters hopes, fears, problems, and personalities.
 * The Influence of Technological, Political and Industrial Change in the 19th Century and the Present**

As for the 20th and 21st centuries, the issues explored in Dickens’ novel are the same as the issues we face every day. Who are we? What are we here for? Does it get better? Are inventions such as the Transatlantic Telegraph, and Electric Lighting not the same sort of technological advancement as the advent of the Internet and the cell phone? If they are the same, then wouldn’t it stand to reason that the positive and negative reactions would be similar to those of Dickens’ time? Therefore, in writing these reactions into his novel, Dickens’ has merely documented a revolution and revolutions have continued to happen since Dickens’ time. A reader today living through major changes in society would be able to identify with Dickens’ characters and his themes involving class shifts, as well as the Victorian Era’s new ideas about religion and politics and technology because we, ourselves, are directly involved in a similar transition.

Translatable Themes
 The pursuit of an individual identity and self worth is what Pip struggles with and the steps he takes along his way to becoming a gentleman are all goals situated under the high bar or his "//Great Expectations."// Pip's ambitions and desires to be a better person are influenced by the people he meets and the things he sees. As explained in the Sparknotes, //Great Expectations// study guide, when Pip, "sees Satis House, he longs to be a wealthy gentleman; when he thinks of his moral shortcomings, he longs to be good; when he realizes that he cannot read, he longs to learn how". With every step he takes, Pip creates new goals for himself and for his life. He believes that he can achieve anything he chooses, and contrary to that of Estella, or Miss Havisham, Pip creates these goals in order to fulfill himself. He does these things in order to improve himself morally and intellectually, and as a result of this he feels he will become a better and more respectable person. He regards morality and loyalty much more highly than wealth and class. This particular theme is one that can be very easily translated into the context of modern America. The race for class and wealth and social status has reached a level that could be considered unhealthy and the value placed on a person for their quality or character and intelligence has been replaced and belittled by the value assigned to a person's bank account and contacts list. Pip is the perfect model of the every day man, trying to find more meaning in life and attempting to gain a position in the world that is earned on goodwill and merit, a position that, when all the money is gone, will hold strong as a point of pride and strength.

**Film Adaptations of Great Expectations**
 In order to expose Dickens and his masterpieces most of his novels have been adapted into films in order to bring his society into modern times. Two films stand out among critics and viewers as being the most recognizable adaptation of the famous novel. The 1946 version of Great Expectations is directed by David Lean and is a true adaptation; that is, it is not made in a different time period and does not completely stray from the novel. Most critics tend to prefer the David Lean version because of its faithfulness to the novel. One reviewer from [|IOFilm], stated that David Lean's adaptation "is arguably one of the best adaptations of a book that has ever been made." The film is true to the novel as much as it can be and shows Pip's journey in a visual-audio medium.

====Modernized Interpretation ====  Another notable film version of //[|Great Expectations (1998)]//, directed by Alfonso Cuaron, updates the novel to appeal to a modern audience. To create this modern appeal, the film stars big name actors such as Ethan Hawke, Gwyneth Paltrow, Robert De Niro and Anne Bancroft. But not only are famous actors used to draw in a modern audience, Cuaron also chose to modernize the film by setting the story in New York City instead of Victorian London. The way in which the characters are translated from the novel into the film show how Dickens' plot and characters can be adapted into a modern story with the modification of some superficial details. Instead of the main character being called Pip, he is called Finn, short for Finnegan. Finn grows up in Florida, America's modern day marshes. Also, Finn's guardian Joe, who is equivalent to the Joe Gargery in the novel, is a fisherman. The fisherman is equivalent to the blacksmith trade in the novel. Both are considered working jobs and not high society. Pip's expectation to become a gentleman is translated into Finn's ambition to become a famous artist so that he may capture Estella's love. However, the character of Estella does not change. One can speculate that her character archetype is more or less universal in all ages. The convict from the beginning of the story also remains constant. Through these characters that can be translated from Victorian London to modern America without much trouble, readers and film-goers can experience the ways in which Dickens captured facets of human nature that are unchanging over time. Themes that are present in the film, as well as the novel, are: the importance of social class and money, the great expectations which direct the novel, the importance of knowledge, and the ability to find one's true identity in a society that does not value the individual.

Critical Reaction
 Critics were less than thrilled with the modernized version of //Great Expectations//. Janet Muslin, of [|The New York Times], said that the film had a "music video" feel to it. That is, the film is "more visual than verbal" than such adaptations like David Lean's. Though she is right in a sense, the reason for such a visually appealing film rather than informative one can be explained by the ever growing obsession with music being the frame work for visual appeal. MTV, music television, made the music video extremely popular and in modern 20th to 21st century times, viewers, especially young adults, identify with the music video montage of images rather than explanatory dialogue or narration. By making the film more visual, it lends itself to be interpreted by the viewer rather than telling the viewer what to think. Dickens in a sense wanted the reader to interpret the meaning of his novels in this same way. His visual descriptions of the marshes in Chapter III of the first book, give the reader a picture of what the damp morning on the marshes looks like and gives the reader a chance to interpret what the fog and dampness truly means in context to the novel (Dickens 19). The early morning fog is supposed to represent mystery and the fact that Pip does not know what he is doing by helping the convict that eventually becomes his benefactor. It is also supposed to represent a foreboding feeling, that what he is doing could potentially lead to an even worse outcome. By making the film visually centered version of //Great Expectations//, Cuaron makes the film appealing to younger audiences who enjoy the "music video" style and to older audiences who are looking for a new take on an old classic.

Want to know more about each film version? Go to [|Internet Move Data Base] and search for //Great Expectations//. You will find full cast and crew and also, trivia and goofs you would not normally know about in the media.

Dickens, Charles. __Great Expectations__. New York: W.W. Norton & Company Inc., 1999. "Great Expectations." __Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia__. 26 November 2007. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 16 November 2007. <[|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Expectations>.] "Great Expectations: Themes, Motifs and Symbols." __Sparknotes Study Guides__. 27 November 2007. Sparknotes LLC. 20 November 2007. <[|http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/greatex/themes.html>.] Mostic. "Great Expectations". IOFilm. Insideout.co.uk. 6 December 2007 < http://www.iofilm.co.uk/fm/g/great_expectations_1946.shtml> Muslin, Janet. "Tale of Two Stories; This One With A Ms.". __The New York Times.__ 30 January 1998.  Russell, Frazier. "When I Was a Child". __Penguin Classics.__ Penguin Group (USA). 4 December 2007.  Penna, Christopher. "The Realistic Novel". __British Literature 1660 to the Present.__ University of Delaware Online. 4 December 2007. <https://mycourses.udel.edu/SCRIPT/ENGL206_194_07F/scripts/serve_home> Gold, Joseph. "__Charles Dickens' and Today's Reader"__ //The English Journal//, Vol. 58, No. 2. (Feb., 1969), pp. 205-211. 6 December 2007. < http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0013-8274%28196902%2958%3A2%3C205%3ACDATR%3E2.0.CO%3B2-X >
 * Works Cited**

Danielle Huether Jessie Cogan
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