intrigue. The story focuses upon a central character, Pip, who relates his adventures to the reader through Dickens’ stylistic use of the first person point of view. Pip is raised by his sister and her husband, Joe Gargery. Pip’s parents had already died and were buried in the graveyard by the marshes when we first meet him at the age of seven. The reader learns much from Dickens in the opening scenes of the story by his treatment of the family relationship which had been of primary importance to his central character. Dickens’ genius also relies on Pip’s heritage to advance the plot of the novel since Pip was visiting the graves of his father and mother when he meets the escaped convict, Abel Magwitch, who is later to become his anonymous benefactor and a character of great importance and concern to Pip and the story.Family life for young Pip was somewhat of a challenge in the Gargery household. Mrs. Joe, Pip’s sister, is considerably older than her brother and treats both him and her husband as the chief chores of her life. Mrs. Joe is dominant and condescending toward her family and very vocal about the effort she has had to expend in order to maintain it. In short, Mrs. Joe rules with an iron hand and is not against using it to discipline her much younger brother.Joe Gargery, however, is a good, honest man who is a blacksmith by trade. Joe has little say in his household and is not a character of any literate accomplishment. Joe represents the average man of nineteenth century England who toiled in a blue collar trade by day and trotted off to the local tavern by night to socialize with his friends and neighbors and to just maybe get away from his wife for a while. Joe and Pip had a lot in common and, needless to say, were best of friends.Dickens’ effective use of Joe Gargery in his story transcends far beyond the importance of his trade which is important because it presents the file Pip gives Ma...
