Reading Assignment 3

Uncle Pumblechook escorts Pip to Miss Havisham's home to play. A girl about Pip's age, named Estella, greets them at the gate. Estella then takes Pip to Miss Havisham. Dressed in an old wedding gown, wearing one white slipper, and flowers in her hair, Pip finds Miss Havisham to be quite strange. Miss Havisham mentions that her heart is broken and wants to see Pip play. Therefore, Estella comes to play cards with Pip. He then notices that all of the clocks are stopped at the same time. He later discovers that Miss Havisham's wedding was cancelled at exactly twenty minutes to nine while she was getting dressed in her room. Since then she has left everything exactly how it was that morning. Miss Havisham asks Pip what he thinks of Estella. He replies that she is proud, pretty and insulting. Miss Havisham wants Pip to love Estella because she knows that Estella will never want him. She wants Pip's heart to be broken. Pip was given permission to explore the yard and premises. It is plain that Estella is pleased when Pip is upset and humiliated. While walking, Pip spots Miss Havisham hanging by the neck on a wooden beam. Frightened, Pip ran and returned but only sees Estella walking around the area he just saw Miss Havisham. This shows that even if Miss Havisham dies, it will not matter because Estella is just like her. Miss Havisham wants her revenge on the male sex because of what happened on her wedding day. As a result of Estella's actions, Pip returns home thinking how much of a common boy he is. This is exactly what Miss Havisham wants.

Reading Assignment 2

Early in the morning, Pip leaves to find the convict at the Battery. On his way, Pip meets another convict who Pip believes is the young man that was previously spoken of. Pip finds his convict and gives him the wittles and the file. Pip asks him if he will be saving any food for the young man. Immediately, the man acts startled and furiously files the iron around his leg. He is realizing that he is not alone.

When Pip returns home, Mrs. Joe is preparing Christmas dinner. Throughout dinner, Pip cannot stop thinking about the pork pie that he stole that it to be dessert for everyone after the main meal. When Mrs. Joe leaves to get the pork pie, Pip runs towards the front door out of guilt and finds a sergeant standing with handcuffs. The officer is looking for Joe so that he can fix the cuffs. Pip thought that the officer was coming to get him because he stole to help a convict. The officers are leaving to steak out the runaway convicts and Mr. Woplse, Pip, and Joe tag along. The group finally finds the two convicts fighting in a ditch in the Battery. I think they were fighting about whose idea it was to escape. The convict that Pip helped spots Pip on Joe's back. Pip tries to make the convict understand that he had nothing to do with it before he boards the ship. Pip's convict explains that he stole the food from Joe's home. Pip and Joe silently agree that it was not completely wrong because no one should ever starve.

One night when Mrs. Joe is out with Uncle Pumblechook, Pip is home practicing writing. Pip then realizes that Joe cannot read because he was unable to go to school. Throughout their conversation it is understood that Joe wishes a better life for Pip. With Mrs. Joe's return, she reports that Miss Havisham wants to have Pip over to play at her home uptown. Although Pip does not know who Miss Havisham is, Mrs. Joe appears to be excited about the invite.

Reading Assignment 1

Near Christmastime, Pip Pirrip was observing the tombstones of his late parents when a frightening man approached and threatened him. The man was dressed in raggy clothing with iron on his leg. The man demands a file and “wittles” or food. The man also tells Pip of a young man who could do much more harm to Pip if he does not follow orders. Pip then runs home after the man leaves. Pip lives with his sister, Mrs. Joe, who is 20 years older than Pip, and her husband, Joe, who works as a blacksmith. Mrs. Joe is admired in their community for bringing Pip up by hand. This means that Mrs. Joe beats him so that he learns lessons and behaves. Over the years, Pip has developed a friendship with Joe, who has always warned Pip when Mrs. Joe is on a “ram-page”, even though Joe gets his own share of beatings as well. On a “ram-page”, Mrs. Joe uses the tickler; a stick with hardened wax on the end used for punishments.
Later that night, Pip steals some alcohol, bread, pork pie, and a file from Mr. and Mrs. Joe for the man at the cemetery. Pip feels guilty for stealing from his guardians but he does not want to let a person starve to death. On his way, Pip sees a figure sitting in the cemetery. Thinking it is the man Pip spoke to earlier, he approaches him and thinks that it is the young man that was brought up during the man’s and Pip’s conversation earlier. When Pip finds the correct man, he asks him if he will save any food for the young man. Realizing he is not alone, he immediately asks Pip about the young man’s whereabouts and fiercely files his iron as Pip walks home.