Education

Question 1

Briefly explain Victorian ideas of education. (3)

Answer 1

1. Boys from upper class families received the best education and were often privately tutored.
2. Working class children were the least likely to receive proper education
3. Many thought that ensuring education for all would make working class children dissatisfied with the menial work they were ‘born’ to do.

Question 2

How is the theme of education shown through Joe?

Answer 2

“Why here’s a J and a O”

• poor speech and grammar shows how he has been deprived of proper education; evokes pathos. Makes Pip view him inferior, he saw Joe as his equal as such that his lack of education put him on the same standing as a child. But Joe is content with this - his ambition is likely to be rooted in moral areas e.g providing for his family rather than material ambitions b/c he is not tempted by the allure of excess.

Question 3

How is the theme of education shown through Pip?

Answer 3

“brought up…as a young fellow of great expectations”

• use of deus ex machina (when something seemingly miraculous happens and a finds a convenient solution to a complex problem at a pivotal point) emphasizes that education is very much a privilege, so much so that he must have outside help to have his desries to be “uncommon” realized and to have receive an education.