Miss Havisham's influence and hurtful actions prove to pay a vital role in the development of young Pip. Her obsessio

n with her failed marriage and her intense hatred towards men, show the reader how bitterness and isolation from society plaque the mind. Despite these bad qualities, critic Julian Maynaham has described Miss Havisham as a "false fairy-godmother", as she shows great power over Pip and teaches him many life lessons. In raising Estella, she manufactures the young temptress to break Pip's heart. A.L. French agrees in saying that Miss Havisham trains Estella to hurt men as men had hurt her and trains Pip to be to Estella as she was to Compeyson (51). Her desire to control the life of another is motivated by the fact that she feels that she had no control of her own. In stopping the clocks and remaining in her withered bridal dress, Miss Havisham feels that she can be hurt no more. However, she is blind to the new independence she has gained from having been left alone. Brenda Aryes writes that without a husband Miss Havisham has the liberty to define herself and achieve her desired position in society (89-90). She emerges as a woman who attempted to take advantage of her new potential independence, Linda Raphael explains (219). Having realized the power she has, she decides to raise a child to have the life she wishes she had had. To the reader, the manipulation and deceit in raising Estella without a heart is quite apparent, but to Miss Havisham a life without emotion is better than a life of heartache and regret. Aryes also contends that the rearing of Estella became a manifestation of Miss Havisham's hate for men (89-90). In addition, Miss Havisham's isolation in a psychological and social prison -The Satis House- threatened to engulf Estella completely, thus driving Estella to want to escape. This prison "...in shutting out the light of day...had secluded [Miss Havisham] from a 1000 natural and healing influences" (399). Thus keeping Estella far from humanity and distorting her perception of the world. Although it appears Miss Havisham shows no remorse or regret as to the two lives she has diseased, towards the end of the novel we see a definite change of attitude and a shift in the balance of power. French reflects that one, in taking revenge on a world that has let one down has in fact taken revenge on oneself for one's own inadequacy (58). Miss Havisham shows heartfelt sorrow and sincere apology when confronted by Pip in Chapter 49. She discovers that while she had brainwashed Estella in order to live through her, she had caused Estella to stop loving altogether. Upon this discovery, Miss Havisham breaks down in a fit of desperate plea and begs for Pip's forgiveness. The power she had once held over Pip disintegrates: "...[Miss Havisham] dropped on her knees at [Pip's] feet; with her folded hands raised to [him]...to [his] amazement and horror..." (398). According to French, after contemplating what she had done Miss Havisham, starts to slip into the role she had been sustaining and becomes a pleading child (51). In seeing this, Pip concludes that his life would have been much happier if Miss Havisham had never come into his life. Her purification by burn

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2076
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)