Great Expectations, Greater Disappointments: Why Dickens Was a Master of Making Us Uncomfortable
In the grand halls of Victorian literature, few novels promise as much and deliver so little satisfaction — gloriously, deliberately — as Great Expectations. On the surface, it’s the tale of an orphan who dreams big, gets rich (sort of), falls in love (tragically), and grows up (painfully). But Charles Dickens, ever the puppeteer of paradoxes, isn’t here to soothe your soul. No, he’s here to make you squirm, to make you think, and — dare we say — to make you disappointed. This is not failure; it’s design. Great Expectations is an experiment in discomfort, a psychological labyrinth where fulfillment is postponed, pleasures are hollow, and redemption comes only after a soul has been wrung dry. In short, Dickens weaponizes disappointment to craft a timeless masterpiece. Let’s unravel how. Pip: The Unheroic Hero There’s something deeply unsatisfying about Pip — and that’s the point. He begins as a likable, earnest boy with muddy boots and big eyes. But soon, as he comes into mysteriou...