As a little boy, Pip didn’t interact with people socially very much, Joe was his only true friend at the time. He could always count on Joe to help him through his hard life with his sister, which Joe had to go through also. His sister was harsh on both of them, controlling all three of their lives, then blaming Joe and Pip for her having a hard life. This common problem they shared is probably one of the reasons they got along so well, along with some other common things about them. Unfortunately, though, after Pip was informed of his expectations and moved to London, they no longer had the same troubles and needs for comfort. This made their relationship grow apart. Pip had never been treated so highly before, and it seemed as though he let it go to his head very quickly, so much so that he finally started looking down on the people he had once respected. He started judging people for how much money they had and how well educated they were, instead judging their character and their actions after getting to know them. A major example of this is the way he looked at the convict who had so generously given him the status of being able to make these kind of judgments of people. The convict may have been very gruff, but eventually Pip went from despising him to loving him, after getting to know his real personality.
Pip’s benefactor had given him more money than he had ever had in his life, and Pip, who had turned into a selfish, self-conceited boy, spent it very foolishly, getting himself into a very large debt. This also shows some of the loss of his moral character. Instead of spending his money wisely and in ways that could help him or other people, he spends it on useless things that weren’t ever going to get him anywhere in his future. With the money he was given, he finally does something for someone other than himself when he helps his friend Herbert Pocket to get the job he wants by paying off an owner of a business. This generosity helped to get Herbert going in his future, being almost like his friend’s benefactor. By the time he started back in this productive direction, his expectations were almost over due to the sudden revelation of his benefactor. This causing his downfall in society, he realized how his morals had gone down the drain. He thought it was too late to mend the hurt he had caused to loved ones, but he underestimated their kindness and forgiveness, for he does reconcile with them.
Pip had to make his own mistakes before he could learn from them. If this book had a theme or a moral, I think it would be learn from your mistakes before it is too late. Pip’s rise and fall in society might have changed his morality, but, luckily for him, it didn’t change the morals of Joe or Biddy, and they loved him just the same after he returned to his normal self. He had started working for the same business owner as Herbert, Pip was the partner of one section of the business and was doing good, as an average person. If Pip’s morals hadn’t returned, he wouldn’t have gone anywhere in his life, especially without the unconditional love of Joe. If Joe hadn’t paid off Pip’s debts, Pip would have ended up in jail, ruining his expectations for life. This book really shows the importance of a morally stable person and what could happen without that.