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Great Expectations

THOMAS LOE (ESSAY DATE SEPTEMBER 1989)

SOURCE: Loe, Thomas. "Gothic Plot in Great Expectations." Dickens Quarterly 6, no. 3 (September 1989): 102-10.

In the following essay, Loe explores the origins of the Gothic plot devices used in Great Expectations.

In spite of the enormous amount of critical attention the plot of Great Expectations has received in the last two decades, there has been a reluctance on the part of critics to identify its structure in terms of traditional genres. The novel's length, number of characters, and elaborate texture make plot identification a subtle issue, especially since the sense of progression of the story is skillfully interwoven with the development of Pip's character. With few exceptions, critics looking at structure tend to synthesize all these elements into one main plot. Such syntheses demonstrate that Great...

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1. Introduction
2. Principal Works
3. Primary Sources
   1. Charles Dickens (Story Date 1836–1837)
4. General Commentary
   1. Julian Wolfreys (Essay Date 2000)
5. Title Commentary
   1. Bleak House
   2. Great Expectations
   3. Little Dorrit
6. Further Reading

1. Charles Dickens