Language in Great Expectations

Language in Great Expectations

1. Motifs of darkness and light

   • "a long black horizontal line … and the sky was just a row of long angry red lines and dense black lines intermixed. On the edge of the river I could faintly make out the only two black things in all the prospect that seemed to be standing upright" (1.45).
     • The motif of darkness to describe the setting in instrumental developments within the story for instance the soldiers searching for Magwitch and Compeyson adds to the gothic sense of the novel, this also shows the character felling, possibly showing Pip as feeling lost.
   • "glowing road to manhood and independence" (14.2).
     • This describes how Joe's forge is a beacon for Pip, representing how light reflects positive experiences
       • Although light is not always used to portray positive experiences as Estella is reffered to as 'bright' although she does not initally have a positive influence on Pip. Therefore the motif of light can be seen be represent the theme of unattainable expectations as Pip never truly resoundes with Joe.
     • The differing association that both light and darkness connotate throughout the novel may emphazize Pip's struggle to understand the truth

2. Characterisation

   • Language in the great expectations is used to great effect to describe characters