"Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens

What is a gentleman? It is a question that has been discussed exhaustively throughout time by men and women alike. Charles Dickens attempts to answer this question in the novel Great Expectations. In this book, he portrays two characters, Pip and Joe, as two different views of a gentleman. Pip represents 19th century society's view of a gentleman, while Joe is Dickens' depiction of what he thinks a gentleman is. The two are contrasting views, however, through my personal experiences, I believe Joe, Dickens' portrayal of what he thinks a gentleman is, truly captures the essence of what a gentleman is.
19th century society believed that a gentleman was determined by his wealth, job, and status. In Great Expectations, Pip represents this view of the gentleman. …