dmak A dickensian character •

Henry Hulbert

Henry has just finished getting off his carriage and is attended to by his servants. He strolls the streets of London with them carrying his suitcase. He wears his tophat with pride, although he does not realize a corner is bent. People pretend to admire him. However, they mock him as he turns his back. Henry is a wealthy businessman in his 40's. He is proud and stout, never saying “thank you” or “please”. He has inherited the business firm from his father. In his office, he relaxes while fiercely commanding his employees. He is overweight; the last time he exercised was 2 years ago. Currently, he is divorced because his family left him because he had committed adultery. He is not a well-liked person among the workplace. His bossiness and unpleasantness scares everyone away and as a result causes him to read his newspaper out of boredom. Everyday, he wears a dress shirt and tie with tophat, deemed as his “Sunday best”. He has never formally “worked hard” to earn his living. At an early age of 16, he shunned his parents and left Camden Town for London. Henry has a habit of licking his lips. People are led to believe he is looking for power and wealth, not food. He is extremely picky, only eating at certain times.


Pip has just finished eating breakfast and must meet Estella at the train station in 10 minutes. Henry is on his way to work. Pip admires his status by looking at him but is surprised when he actually talks to him. At first, Pip thinks that Henry is definitely of “gentleman” status because of his formal dress on a weekday. When they meet, Pip discovers that Henry is snobbish and disrespectful. He boasts of his high position in his company and his class. As a result, Pip leaves Henry alone and runs to the train station, causing him to doubt his view of a true English gentleman.

Pip (to himself): "Ooh la la. I see a true gentleman. I want to talk to him."
Henry: "Hey, boy, move. I’m walking. You are in my way"
Pip: "But sir, I have to meet my friend at the train!"
Henry: "I don’t care. Servants, remove him. Now"
Pip: "Fine. But before I leave, I just wanted to ask you what it feels like to be a gentleman."
Henry: "It is really pleasing. The food, the money, the clothes. What else do you want?"
Pip: "I was curious if you have nice family and friends."
Henry (crying): "They left me! Bahahaha What else do you want?"
Pip: "Nothing much, sir. Why are you licking your lips"
Henry: "I am impatient. OK? I need more money for my food costs."
Pip: "I will not disturb you anymore, since you are in a rush"
Henry: "Argh, I just wasted 3 minutes talking to you little poor rat."
Pip: "How dare you!"
Henry: "I have to make sure my employees go on-time to work."
Pip: "Bye"
Henry: "Kids are a pain."



dmak

my added character

My brother, Paul, was a pale, skinny, small creature of six. He always seemed busy in some way or the other - either hiding from my sister, or helping Joe with his instruments, or playing outside with the neighbors' dog. I must admit that he was in much better relations with my sister. For some unknown reason, it was never he who caused Mrs. Joe's uncontrollable anger. It even occured sometimes that she would smile at him, to the surprise of everyone who knew her. Every time Paul would catch a cold - which happened quite often - Jo would sit at his bedside and yell at me for not having been there when Paul went outside under the rain without his little coat on. Naturally, Paul felt a little more at ease than me in the presence of Mrs. Joe, and was not so much in need of Joe's protection when my sister found a new reason to get angry. Paul and I knew each other's most private secrets. There was something very comfortable about having a creature who was always ready to help you. Right now, as I was running home from the cemetery, I felt a very strong need to share what just happened with Paul. But at the same time I felt so embarrassed by my own weakness and by the crime that I had just committed, that I was wondering whether I would be able to look into Paul's big innocent blue eyes and tell him the truth. I also remembered how he dreamed of that pork pie and felt terrible for having given it away to that frightening man. As I came near to the forge, I saw Paul coming out.

"Pip, where 'ave you been? I was looking for you!" I was still hesitating.
"Well, you know...the carols...Paul, I have to tell you something important. But you must swear not to tell...

comparing THEM.

The first version was much more accurate than the second one was, but that was probably because the first one is just for fun and the second one was professional and had time limits. It also occurred to me that since in the book most of the impressions we get from characters come from Pip’s descriptions of them, we lost quite a lot by just watching the action and not hearing the descriptions. Also, the second version cut away Pip meeting the convict, so we do not catch so much of what the convict is like. In the second version, the actors were of course much better selected and it was far more believable, but I thought that Mrs. Joe was better in the first version.

Nigel Hedgedale

Nigel Hedgedale

Pip meets Nigel at Miss Havisham’s house on one of his later visits. Miss Havisham says that there is a surprise waiting for Pip. Pip is very excited about this because he thinks Miss Havisham will allow him to marry Estella. When Pip arrives, to Pip’s surprise, Miss Havisham allows Nigel Hedgedale to marry Estella. Pip is devastated by his appearance.

He was not a poor man. He did not wear dirty clothes at all. He was not a young man.
He is not thin.
He is not a very friendly man.
He does not have a family.

He is shorter than Pip.
He always wears his top hat.
He wears nice clothes.
His clothes are nicer than Joe’s Sunday best.

Nigel was a very famous man in London because of his great inheritance from his deceased father. He now owns a ship carpentry company. He is known to be very aggressive towards his employees. He does not have many friends. He is not very talkative. He is known to be very proud and arrogant. He later mistreats Estella after their marriage. Estella is said

Characteristic mannerism: He always would hold his right hand over his stomach when he is laughing.

“Hello Pip. Miss Havisham has spoken of you as a hard working boy,” said Nigel.
“Please, Mr. Hedgedale, you are much greater than me,” said Pip.
“Yes, I am. That is true. Did you know that I am to marry Estella in June?”
“Yes. That is true. I have decided Mr. Hedgedale is the ideal man for Estella,” said Miss Havisham. Nigel laughed, putting his right hand over his stomach. Once Pip heard this, his heart filled with sorrow. He looked down in disgrace.
“Well, congratulations, Mr. Hedgedale. When do you plan to marry Estella?” said Pip.
“I plan for the wedding to be six weeks from now,” said Nigel with a confident stare.
“Uhmm. That’s great,” Pip looked down sadly.

By: Freddy Wong

Task 2 - Freddy Wong

Both films have helped me understand the beginning of Great Expectations. The films reinforced my thoughts on the novel. For example, I thought that the convict was very scary, and he was very frightening in the films. As well, I knew that Mrs. Joe Gargery was a very angry woman, and in the films I saw her hitting Pip relentlessly.
In general, these two films have helped me visualize the overall text in the beginning of the novel.




By: Freddy Wong

MARILYN Task 1:

The two different versions were very dissimilar. The first version was made by a class and was clearly unpolished and unpracticed. The visuals did not fit with the time period (as the couches were plush and leather and the wood floors varnished) and the acting didn’t seem to fit the characters. The convict was most evidently dangerous in the book, yet he just seemed angry in this adaptation. The second version matched the visuals I had in my head much better than the first. I found that Pip was similar to the way I imagined him, while Ms. Joe was a little older and Joe a little more bearded. I liked the setting in that it seemed also to be very accurate to the book. The first version seemed more selective about the lines and less selective of how they portrayed characters (for example, Ms. Joe in the first version didn’t seem nearly as violent or angry as in the book), while the second version seemed to show all the lines as settings, while being more selective and authentic to the characters.

MARILYN Task 2:

I feel that the second film version strongly affected my perspective on the convict, and also on Joe. Firstly, I felt that the convict-although dangerous in the book- seemed more so because in the book, we see him from Pip’s young perspective, while in the film clip, we can look at him without childish exaggeration. While the film clip did show the convict as clearly nasty and rude, I didn’t get the same feel as in the book where I was completely convinced that the convict would physically attach Pip. Joe seemed different than I thought because he was so much quieter than I found him in the book. In the book, I found Joe to be much more authoritative, its just that he didn’t show it because he didn’t want a conflict with Ms. Joe. In this adaptation (the second), Joe seems genuinely scared of his own wife and genuinely didn’t want to upset her for fear of physical harm .

dmak paragraph part 2

The videos allowed me to visualize the setting and atmoshpere of the book. I never realized that Pip's home was that far away from the marshes. Mrs. Joe is very old. In the video, the house that Pip lives in looks old and small. While reading the book, I interpreted the house as being spacious and well-kept. Pip's innonence is captured well in the second video as he tries to defend himself against the convict. There is a great contrast between their personalities at the beginning of the plot. I understand why Pip is so afraid of Mrs. Joe now, since she is over-protective and governs the household.

Task 1 - Freddy Wong - Video compare and contrast

The first version of Great Expectations was not very professional, all the actors and actresses were children. The transitions were not very good and the setting was not even realistic. They were in a 21st century house, with electricity. Their clothing was not very Victorian either.

Meanwhile, the second version of Great Expectations had adult actors and seemed to be much more realistic, with a very Victorian setting. Pip went to an actual grave and a very old house. Their clothing was raggedy and the style of the clothing looked like that of people from the 19th century in England. As well, the transitions between different parts were very smooth.

Well, both versions had nearly the same plot. They showed Pip's scary encounter with the convict and Mrs. Joe Gargery's anger towards Pip.


By: Freddy Wong

dmak video paragraph part 1

The first version was made by children, so it was funny. However,I did not feel as if the atmosphere was sombre or sad in any way due to the way the actors talked and dressed. The convict was wearing adidas shoes and jean shorts.

I thought the second version was much more professional, having a well-described plot. The convict is actually "convict-like" with chains and rags. Mrs. Joe Gargery seems alot older than Pip. The sound effects are good since they effectively create the background.


the two videos are similar, becuase they both focus on the plot of the original book and the settings are about the same (e.g. marshes). Although the actors dress quite differently, their attitude and personality is maintained consistently.