Study Guide: The Great Expectation Part One

Study Guide Questions: Solved

Who was Charles Dickens?

I know teachers hate students using Wikipedia but since I don’t know Dickens personally myself, there’s no option.

Charles John Huffam Dickens: 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular,

The Great Expectation

The Great Expectation by Charles Dickens is a fictional story about a boy named Philip Pirrip who much rather be known as "Pip". The introduction is quite disheartening; Dickens presents a strong sense of death wandering around the old graveyard where Pip meets a threatening old man. According to Dickens' biography, he grew up miserably through his childhood and also parentless so his life similarly represents Pip's life. Assuming there will be a turn on the table, something of great expectation is bound to occur. 

Literary Analysis #4

1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read.
2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid clichés.
3. Describe the author's tone. Include three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).
4. Describe five literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthened your understanding of the theme and/or your sense of the tone. Include three excerpts that will help your reader understand each one.

Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan


1. The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan contains many stories about Chinese immigrant mothers and their children who are born and raised in America. One of the main characters, Jing-mei Woo, took her mother’s place playing mahjong which was in San Francisco. The club members of this Joy Luck Club all share their stories and pass them on to their American children.