Great Expectations Genre

Coming of Age; Fantasy; Horror or Gothic Fiction; Literary Fiction; Realism

If we were asked to describe the plot of Great Expectations in ten words or less, we could say this: "a very long story about a boy who grows up." Or we could say this: "a three-part story about unrequited love." Or we could say this: "a serialized novel about a boy and an escaped convict." Or this: "it’s about a little boy who meets a crazy lady." Or perhaps the following: "a tale of a boy who betrays his best friend." Or even this: "a story about how Victorian society is wack." And we think even this one would work: "a story about beer." The point is that there is a lot going on in this big, fat novel and, while Pip is most definitely the object of our affection and attention, Dickens does not hesitate to cram in every detail possible about the world around Pip, thus leaving us with a good sense of the everyday, realistic details of the working class life. There are also certain spooky elements in this novel that remain unexplained, namely the ghost of Miss Havisham in the brewery and the casts of dead men’s faces in Mr. Jaggers’ office.