Great Expectations by Charles Dickens artwork

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

59 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 4 years ago - ★★★★★ - 46 ratings

From the opening passage itself of Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, the reader is drawn into the world of the hero, Pip, who is at that time, seven years old. The author creates an unforgettable atmosphere: the gloom of the graveyard, the melancholy of the orphan boy, the mists rising over the marshes and the terrifying appearance of an escaped convict in chains.
Told in first person (one of the only two books that Dickens used this form for, the other being David Copperfield) Great Expectations is a classic coming of age novel, in which we trace the growth and evolution of Pip or Philip Pirrip to give his full name. Pip has lost his parents very early in life and is being brought up by his much older sister and brother-in-law Joe Gargery. His sister is a dominating and shrewish woman, while Joe is an affectionate man. Joe's uncle Mr Pumblechook (another of Dickens' delightfully evocative names) asks Joe to send Pip to the stately mansion Statis House ostensibly to play with the owner Miss Havisham's adopted daughter Estella. This marks the beginning of a life-changing experience for Pip.
Miss Havisham is a wealthy eccentric whose twisted agenda is that of taking revenge on the man who jilted her at the altar. Pip is unwittingly drawn into her malevolent schemes. When Pip grows older, Miss Havisham's lawyer Mr Jaggers informs Pip that he has come into a large fortune from an unknown benefactor and that he must move to London and learn to become a “gentleman.” What follows is a strange and labyrinthine tale of Pip's journey into adulthood.
Dickens' wonderful gift for characterization peoples the book with a host of memorable characters and sub-plots. The novel also explores the fears and anxieties of childhood and traces Pip's moral and emotional development and his ambitions as he matures. Estella as the warped creation of a vengeful mind has her own route to traverse.
Great Expectations finds Charles Dickens at the peak of his creative powers. The Victorian preoccupation with wealth and social ambition, personal ambition, class distinctions, crime and punishment and how they looked at education and self improvement as a means to rise in society are all vividly portrayed here. There are some delightfully humorous passages throughout the book which add to its flavor and authenticity. As with most of Dickens' work, this is a book to be savored by young and old alike and preferably to be read aloud, as Dickens himself did in his wildly popular public readings.

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Episodes

Chapter 01

January 02, 2024 00:00 - 12 minutes - 5.72 MB

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Chapter 02

January 01, 2024 00:00 - 22 minutes - 9.54 MB

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Chapter 03

December 31, 2023 00:00 - 12 minutes - 5.72 MB

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Chapter 04

December 30, 2023 00:00 - 23 minutes - 10.5 MB

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Chapter 05

December 29, 2023 00:00 - 26 minutes - 11.4 MB

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Chapter 06

December 28, 2023 00:00 - 5 minutes - 1.91 MB

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Chapter 07

December 27, 2023 00:00 - 27 minutes - 12.4 MB

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Chapter 08

December 26, 2023 00:00 - 30 minutes - 13.4 MB

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Chapter 09

December 25, 2023 00:00 - 18 minutes - 7.63 MB

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Chapter 10

December 24, 2023 00:00 - 16 minutes - 6.68 MB

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Chapter 11

December 23, 2023 00:00 - 34 minutes - 15.3 MB

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Chapter 12

December 22, 2023 00:00 - 14 minutes - 6.68 MB

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Chapter 13

December 21, 2023 00:00 - 19 minutes - 8.58 MB

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Chapter 14

December 20, 2023 00:00 - 5 minutes - 1.91 MB

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Chapter 15

December 19, 2023 00:00 - 28 minutes - 12.4 MB

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Chapter 16

December 18, 2023 00:00 - 11 minutes - 4.77 MB

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Chapter 17

December 17, 2023 00:00 - 21 minutes - 9.54 MB

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Chapter 18

December 16, 2023 00:00 - 33 minutes - 14.3 MB

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Chapter 19

December 15, 2023 00:00 - 37 minutes - 17.2 MB

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Chapter 20

December 14, 2023 00:00 - 19 minutes - 8.58 MB

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Chapter 21

December 13, 2023 00:00 - 12 minutes - 4.77 MB

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Chapter 22

December 12, 2023 00:00 - 32 minutes - 14.3 MB

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Chapter 23

December 11, 2023 00:00 - 21 minutes - 9.54 MB

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Chapter 24

December 10, 2023 00:00 - 15 minutes - 6.68 MB

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Chapter 25

December 09, 2023 00:00 - 18 minutes - 7.63 MB

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Chapter 26

December 08, 2023 00:00 - 17 minutes - 7.63 MB

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Chapter 27

December 07, 2023 00:00 - 19 minutes - 8.58 MB

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Chapter 28

December 06, 2023 00:00 - 15 minutes - 6.68 MB

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Chapter 29

December 05, 2023 00:00 - 32 minutes - 14.3 MB

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Chapter 30

December 04, 2023 00:00 - 22 minutes - 9.54 MB

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Chapter 31

December 03, 2023 00:00 - 14 minutes - 5.72 MB

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Chapter 32

December 02, 2023 00:00 - 14 minutes - 5.72 MB

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Chapter 33

December 01, 2023 00:00 - 18 minutes - 7.63 MB

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Chapter 34

November 30, 2023 00:00 - 15 minutes - 6.68 MB

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Chapter 35

November 29, 2023 00:00 - 20 minutes - 8.58 MB

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Chapter 36

November 28, 2023 00:00 - 17 minutes - 7.63 MB

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Chapter 37

November 27, 2023 00:00 - 18 minutes - 7.63 MB

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Chapter 38

November 26, 2023 00:00 - 33 minutes - 14.3 MB

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Chapter 39

November 25, 2023 00:00 - 32 minutes - 14.3 MB

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Chapter 40

November 24, 2023 00:00 - 35 minutes - 15.3 MB

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Chapter 41

November 23, 2023 00:00 - 14 minutes - 5.72 MB

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Chapter 42

November 22, 2023 00:00 - 20 minutes - 8.58 MB

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Chapter 43

November 21, 2023 00:00 - 13 minutes - 5.72 MB

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Chapter 44

November 20, 2023 00:00 - 20 minutes - 8.58 MB

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Chapter 45

November 19, 2023 00:00 - 19 minutes - 8.58 MB

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Chapter 46

November 18, 2023 00:00 - 19 minutes - 8.58 MB

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Chapter 47

November 17, 2023 00:00 - 16 minutes - 7.63 MB

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Chapter 48

November 16, 2023 00:00 - 18 minutes - 7.63 MB

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Chapter 49

November 15, 2023 00:00 - 24 minutes - 10.5 MB

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Chapter 50

November 14, 2023 00:00 - 10 minutes - 4.77 MB

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