Exhibit:

Great Expectations: Locations and Social Class

Preview of images

An exhibit of some of the locations described in the novel Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. Discusses how certain descriptions allude to different social classes throughout the novel. 

Images in this Exhibit

Pip's house/ Chalk Village forge

This forge at Chalk Village in Kent, England was used as inspiration for Pip's house in Great Expectations. For a lower class family, it would not have been uncommon to live in a house made entirely out of wood and/or stone, as these types of materials were a lot cheaper than other things. Having an all wood house that is attached to the place where you work would have been a sign of a lower class family in the 1800's. 

 

Works Cited

Purdue, David A. A Masterpiece...and a Bit of Autobiography, The Charles Disckens Page, 14 Mar. 2022, ...
Blacksmith's House

This blacksmith shop in Bolton, Massachusetts is another example of a type of building that would have been common for a poor or working class family in the 1800's. These types of building are made out of cheap materials and are made to last rather than for show. You can see a garret window in the picture, which is where Pip's bedroom was in Great Expectations.

 

Works Cited

Blacksmith Shop, Old Sturbridge Village, http://www.osv.org/building/blacksmith-shop/.
Pip and Joe in the Kitchen

This illustration by Felix O.C. Darley (scanned by Phillip V. Allingham) shows a young Pip with Joe Gargery in their kitchen. Items like the pan and book on the floor hint at a limited amount of storage space. The chairs and table are minimalistically designed, and there aren't many decorations to be seen in the illustration. 

 

Works Cited

Darley, Felix O.C. Joe Gargery and Pip, The Victorian Web, 1888, https://victorianweb.org/art/illustration/darley/2.html
What a Kitchen Would Have Looked Like

This is an example of what a kitchen would have looked like for a working class family in the 1800's, and viewers will be able to see some similarites between this photo and Darley's illustration previously. Well worn furniture that was made for use and not decoration, everything was very cramped, and there were more tools and supplies than actual decorations. This is a good example of what Pip's kitchen would have realistically looked like, although Pip's house wouldn't have had such a decorated floor. 

 

Work Cited

enjoynz. Reframing the Victorians, ...
Pip approaches Satis House

Here we see an image of Pip approaching Satis House. Just based on the size of this house, viewers can see a clear jump in social class from the previous images. A large house accompanied by large property, as well as things such as a gate and lots of windows show that this is an upper class house in society. Satis House was made from brick rather than wood, which makes it both more expensive and more decorative than other houses mentioned in Great Expectations. "Although [hallways were] crucial to the ideal of ordinary domestic modernity, [their] decoration was to be unassuming...
Chingle Hall

Here we see an image of Chingle Hall (formerly known as Singleton hall) in Preston, England in 1870. This is an example of an upper class home and can be compared to Satis House. 

 

Work Cited

Harris Museum. Upper Class Homes, MyLearning, http://www.mylearning.org/stories/victorian-homes-in-preston/360.
Miss Havisham

This illustration of Miss Havisham by Charles Green (scanned by Phillip V. Allingham) shows an interior of her lavish lifestyle. The candelabras and the large expanse of fabrics are both evident of a person of upper class. The chair she's sitting in can also be compared to the chairs shown earlier in the illustration of Pip's home as well as the photo of a Victorian kitchen. Whereas those chairs had been made of only wood with no decorative aspects, Miss Havisham's chair has armrests and fabric built into it. When talking of chairs, something to keep in mind is how difficult it actually is...
Pip and Miss Havisham

This illustration by John McLenan (scanned by Phillip V. Allingham) shows Pip meeting Miss Havisham. While this is a different artist than the previous illustration, both photos manage to capture some aspecs of Miss Havisham's lavish life. The vanity pictured in both illustrations is described in the novel as a "draped table with a gilded looking-glass," (Dickens, chapter 8).

 

Work Cited

Dickens, Charles. Great Expectations. Aug. 1861.

McLenan, John. "Who Is It?" Said the Lady at the Table. "Pip, Ma'am.," The Victorian Web, 22 Dec....
Gilded Vanity

While this vanity is French, it is a great example of what Miss Havisham's mirror may have looked like in real life. This table is currently prices at 2,800 American Dollars (about 2,224 Pounds) which would have been about 120 American Dollars (about 95 Pounds) in 1812, which is when the beginning of Great Expectations took place. To give viewers a better understanding of how expensive this vanity would have been, in the mid-1860's a common labourer would have made about 3 shillings and 6 pence for a 60 hour work week (Skipper). It would have take this common labourer about 543...
Dining Room

While this is an example of more of a middle class design, I think it's a similar style to the table described in Satis House. Having the places set with fancy silverware and plates, as well as the plates themselves being decorative, is something that a person would see in an upper class house. The chairs in this photo aren't as fancy as the ones in Satis House would be, but having things like a tablecloth and fabric/cushioning on dining chairs aren't things that a person in a lower class family would have. 

 

Work Cited

Mcbeath, VL. Rise of the Middle...
Mr. Jaggers' Office

This illustration by Charles Green (scanned by Phillip V. Allingham) shows an adult Pip (right) in Mr. Jaggers' (left) office. Mr. Jaggers himself is shown wearing a three piece suit with a chain for a pocket watch, both of which shows his upper class status. In looking around the room, we can see his high backed chair, which is made from "deadly black horsehair [and has] two rows of brass nails around it," (Dickens, chap. 20). In Victorian times, horsehair was "a mark of quality because it is strong, durable, and much more expensive than the alternatives," (Christie's). We can also see...
Dinner with Mr. Jaggers

This illustration by John McLenan (scanned by Phillip V. Allingham) shows the dinner that takes place in Chapter 26 of Great Expectations at Mr. Jaggers' house. While this house is described as being made of stone and wood, readers shouldn't be too hasty to assume that Mr. Jaggers is living below his means. His house in Soho is described as a stately house having a stone hall with a dark brown staircase which leads to three dark prown rooms on the first floor. There are carved garlands on the panelled walls, and bookcases in the room, and a shaded lamp on a little table (Dickens,...
An Office

This photo, while not directly linked to Great Expectations, shows a room that Mr. Jaggers would likely have had. The dark colours and bookshelves filled with books are something that a wealthy, working man would have had for an office. Things such as a rug and cushionsed chairs are things that reader already know Mr. Jaggers has a penchant for, and they show that he is of a higher class. 

 

Work Cited

Volo, James M. What Kind of Rooms Did Victorian Houses Have? , Quora, 26 July 2023, ...