Once upon a time, there was a young boy named Pip. Pip was an orphan, which means he didn’t have a mom or dad. He lived with his sister, Mrs. Joe, and her husband, Joe Gargery, who was a kind blacksmith. A blacksmith is someone who makes things out of metal.
One day, Pip was walking in the marshes near his home when he met a scary man. This man was an escaped prisoner named Magwitch. Magwitch asked Pip to bring him food and a file, a tool used to cut metal. Pip was scared, but he did what the man asked. Later, Magwitch was caught by the soldiers, but he didn’t tell them about Pip’s help.
Pip often visited a strange old lady named Miss Havisham. She lived in a big, dark house and always wore a wedding dress. Miss Havisham was very sad because she was left at the altar on her wedding day. She had a beautiful adopted daughter named Estella. Estella was very pretty but also very proud and mean to Pip. Despite this, Pip fell in love with her.
As Pip grew older, he wanted to become a gentleman, someone who is well-educated and has good manners, because he thought that would make Estella like him. One day, a lawyer named Mr. Jaggers visited Pip and told him he had “great expectations.” This meant Pip was going to receive a lot of money from a secret benefactor, someone who wanted to help him but wanted to remain anonymous.
Pip moved to London and lived with a kind friend named Herbert Pocket. Herbert taught Pip how to act like a gentleman. Pip also met Mr. Wemmick, Mr. Jaggers’ clerk, who had a fun home called the Castle and took care of his old father.
As time went on, Pip became snobbish and ashamed of his poor beginnings. He ignored Joe and Biddy, a kind girl who cared for Joe and Mrs. Joe. One day, Mrs. Joe passed away, and Pip felt sad but didn’t go home to visit often.
One night, Pip’s life changed forever. Magwitch, the old convict he helped, came to his home in London. Magwitch revealed that he was Pip’s secret benefactor. He had made a lot of money in another country and wanted to thank Pip for his kindness long ago. Pip was shocked and scared because helping a convict could get him into trouble.
Pip decided to help Magwitch escape from England because the police were looking for him. With Herbert’s help, they made plans. Meanwhile, Pip learned that Estella was going to marry a cruel man named Bentley Drummle. Pip was heartbroken.
Before Magwitch could escape, he was caught by the police. During the struggle, he was hurt badly. Pip stayed by Magwitch’s side and learned that Magwitch had a daughter who was still alive. He realized that Estella was that daughter. Pip told Magwitch before he died, which made him very happy.
After Magwitch’s death, Pip became very sick. Joe came to London to take care of him. Pip realized how kind and good Joe was and felt sorry for being ashamed of him. Pip decided to return home and ask Biddy to marry him, but when he got there, he found out that Joe and Biddy had just gotten married.
Pip was happy for them and decided to work hard and be a better person. He went to work with Herbert at his business. Many years later, Pip visited Miss Havisham’s old house again. There he met Estella, who had also changed. They both had been through hard times and became kinder people. They walked away from the house, hand in hand, as friends.
And that is the story of Pip and his great expectations.
