Discussion Topic
Pumblechook's Role and Influence on Pip in Great Expectations
Summary:
In Great Expectations, Uncle Pumblechook is a pompous, self-important cornchandler who facilitates Pip's introduction to Satis House by suggesting him to Miss Havisham. Despite having little real influence, Pumblechook takes undue credit for Pip's fortunes, leading to antagonistic interactions. His attitude, like Mr. Trabb's, changes dramatically when Pip acquires wealth, highlighting the theme of social mobility and the superficial respect wealth commands. Pip's joke about Pumblechook's exaggerated self-importance underscores the satirical portrayal of Pumblechook as a symbol of opportunistic hypocrisy.
In Great Expectations, Chapter 6, who is Pumblechook and how does he help Pip enter Satis House?
Dickens introduces Uncle Pumblechook in Chapter 4, when he comes to dinner at the Gargary household. Pip, the narrator of the novel throughout, describes the man as follows:
Mr. Wopsle, the clerk at church, was to dine with us, and Mr. Hubble the wheelwright and Mrs. Hubble, and Uncle Pumblechook (Joe's uncle, but Mrs. Joe appropriated him), who was a well-to-do cornchandler in the nearest town, and drove his own chaise-cart.
This gives a picture of the social status of the Gargarys. Mrs. Joe appropriates Uncle Pumblechook because he has the most money and highest status. A cornchandler deals in grain and seed. Drivinig his horse and buggy is a symbol of status--but no doubt he needs transportation to get around the countryside in his "peppercorny and farinaceous" occupation.
It is in Chapter 7 that Pip's sister explains to Joe how Pumblechook managed to get Pip into Satis House:
"And...
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couldn't she ask Uncle Pumblechook if he knew of a boy to go and play there? Isn't it just barely possible that Uncle Pumblechook may be a tenant of hers, and that he may sometimes--we won't say quarterly or half yearly, for that would be requiring too much of you--but sometimes--go there to pay his rent? And couldn't she then ask Uncle Pumblechook if he knew of a boy to go and play there? And couldn't Uncle Pumblechook, being always considerate and thoughtful for us--though you may not think it, Joseph," in a tone of the deepest reproach, as if he were the most callous of nephews, "then mention this boy, standing Prancing here"--which I solemnly declare I was not doing--"that I have for ever been a willing slave to?"
Dickens adroitly manages to impart a great deal of information to the reader in the form of dialogue rather than tedious prose, while at the same time characterizing the speaker as a tyrant and self-styled martyr, Pip as an abused child, Joe as a long-suffering husband, and Pumblechook as a man of higher social status than the Gargarys but of no importance to an aristocrat like Miss Havisham.
The eccentric Miss Havisham did not bother to explain to Pumblechook, who was standing in the hall talking to her through her closed door, why she should want to have a boy come and play at her house, and he was probably afraid to ask. He is just grateful to be able, at no cost to himself, to be able to ingratiate himself with Miss Havisham and with the Gargarys at the same time. No doubt he hopes to benefit from having a family member gain access to this upper-class home--although it turns out in subsequent chapters that he has never even met the owner and probably never will. When the family is cross-examining Pip about his visit, Pumblechook asks:
"Boy! What like is Miss Havisham?"
"Very tall and dark," I told him.
"Is she, uncle?" asked my sister.
Mr. Pumblechook winked assent; from which I at once inferred that he had never seen Miss Havisham, for she was nothing of the kind.
Miss Havisham's motive for wanting a boy to come and play at her house has to be inferred from the way Pip is treated when he goes there. Evidently the old lady is lonely and wants company. At the same time she would like to have a vulnerable young male for her niece Estella to begin to play cat-and-mouse with in order to have practice for tormenting the male sex in the future, as well as to provide some entertainment for her vengeful foster mother.
In Chapter 19 of Great Expectations, why did Trabb and Trabb's boy change their attitude toward Pip?
Mr. Trabb is much more interested in Pip once he has money.
It is much easier to use the etext for page numbers. I have included enotes pdf page numbers here.
Pip was a poor blacksmith’s nephew until Magwitch elevated him. Trabb did not expect Pip to have anything to spend money with. He did not come to Pip because he “did not think it worth his while to come” (p. 105). When Pip came to Mr. Trabb in chapter 19, he told him that he had money now.
“Mr. Trabb,” said I, “it's an unpleasant thing to have to mention, because it looks like boasting; but I have come into a handsome property.” (p. 105)
When Pip told him this, a “change passed over Mr. Trabb” and he was suddenly very interested. Now Trabb bows respectfully. Pip and Trabb’s employee, whom Pip calls “Trabb’s boy” do not get along. Pip calls him “the most audacious boy in all that country-side” and does not like him at all.
[My] first decided experience of the stupendous power of money, was, that it had morally laid upon his back, Trabb's boy. (p. 106)
Pip is beginning to realize that money changes everything. With money comes respect. Now that he has money, he will begin to expect respect too.
How does Pumblechook's attitude change in chapter 19 of Great Expectations affect Pip's feelings towards him?
The bombastic Pumblechook represents the new middle class of the Industrial Revolution who, with the attainment of money, aspired to become wealthy and rise to the level of what Charles Dickens perceived as a frivolous aristocracy. As such, Pumblechook is an object of Dickensian satire, and in Chapter XIX, his hypocrisy is illustrated as Pumblechook now compliments and acts affably toward Pip, whom in the past he has scolded and deprived of food.
Pip, too, has become hypocritical with his attainment of "great expectations." For, he tells Joe that he will change into his new clothes at Mr. Trabb's because showing himself dressed as a gentleman for the Hubbles and Mr. Wopsle at the Jolly Bargeman would be "coarse and common business."
After Pip goes to be measured by the tailor, Mr. Trabb, he heads towards Pumblechook's shop where he stands in the doorway, waiting for Pip with impatience. Unlike when Pip was a boy, Pumblechook has a meal for him, and orders his shopman out of the way.
“My dear friend,” said Mr. Pumblechook, taking me by both hands, when he and I and the collation were alone, “I give you joy of your good fortune. Well deserved, well deserved!....To think that I should have been the humble instrument of leading up to this...."
Pip begs him not to mention anything about his first visit to Miss havisham's. As the fauning Pumblechook talks and shakes Pip's hand, after eating and listening to Pumblechook state that he is Pip's "favorite fancy and ...chosen friend," Pip begins to feel that he has been mistaken in his previous opinion, "...and that he was a sensible, practical, good-hearted, prime fellow."
Swept up with "the joy of money," Pumblechook flatters Pip and wishes to be associated with him solely because Pip has now some money. Likewise, Pip has been adversely affected by his new wealth and is deluded by the sychophantic Pumblechook, finding him now a "good-hearted" fellow when heretofore he has perceived Pumblechook as a petty, critical, and selfish man--"a swindler." These hypocritical attitudes of both Pumblechook and Pip point to the dangers of wealth.
What joke does Pip make about Pumblechook in chapter 28 of Great Expectations?
Philip Pirrip, better known as "Pip," has a lot of people who are connected to him in various ways throughout the novel Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. One of those is a character who is referred to by Pip as "Uncle Pumblechook"--and he is what I would colloquially call a piece of work.
Pumblechook is, in actuality, Pip's uncle-in-law, but Pip and his sister both refer to him as their uncle. The man is consumed by money: making it and taking credit for making it. He is a seed salesman, but he is also an arrogant man, full of pomposity and braggadocio.
It is true that Pumblechook is the person physically responsible for Pip's meeting with Miss Havisham, but all he really does is act as Pip's escort. Although his role in the entire proceeding is nominal, at best, Pumblechook boldly (and wrongly) takes credit for the resultant improvements in Pip's social class. In truth, of course, he did nothing specific to promote that relationship or connection; and even if he had, it is not Miss Havisham who is Pip's secret benefactor but Magwitch.
The man is greedy, conniving, and penny-pinching in addition to being pompous about things he can take no credit for. At the end of chapter 28, Pip makes the following comment:
I entertain a conviction, based upon large experience, that if in the days of my prosperity I had gone to the North Pole, I should have met somebody there, wandering Esquimaux or civilized man, who would have told me that Pumblechook was my earliest patron and the founder of my fortunes.
Of course this is a joking reference to Uncle Pumblechook's outrageous and wrong-headed claims that he alone was responsible for Pip's successes. The man, according to Pip's comment, is so arrogant and persistent in taking credit for things (which he in fact had no part of) that even the Eskimos wandering in the uncivilized wilderness would have heard about Pumblechook's amazing accomplishments.
It is an exaggeration worthy of Pumblechook himself.
References
In Great Expectations, why did Trabb and Pumblechook change their attitude towards Pip?
Trabb, like any small businessman, wants to make money. And when Pip, on his way to London to become a gentleman, enters his tailor's shop, he starts seeing pound signs (£) before his eyes. Money talks, and so when Pip casually produces some shiny new guineas from his pocket, Mr. Trabb becomes incredibly interested, all of a sudden. Ever the businessman, he sees Pip's patronage as potentially leading to even better things. So, Trabb seizes his opportunity and asks Pip if he'd be so kind as to recommend him to any London gentlemen he may encounter.
Uncle Pumblechook is also highly delighted with Pip's sudden good fortune. But like Trabb, his motives are far from being disinterested. He regards himself as being ultimately responsible for Pip's becoming a gentlemen, the "humble instrument" who helped make it all happen. After all, he was responsible for introducing the young man to Miss Havisham, and like Pip himself, Pumblechook automatically assumes that she is Pip's benefactor. Pip is very much a feather in Uncle Pumblechook's cap. He sees Pip as his protege. He hopes that Pip will be grateful for having started him off on his journey towards gentility. And once Pip is finally established in London, perhaps he will be so kind as to remember his old Uncle Pumblechook and share some of his good fortune with him. It is not just Pip, then, who has "great expectations."
The simple answer is money. Before Pip's acquisition of wealth, Trabb and Pumblechook didn't give Pip a second thought, and even treated him with a bit of derision. When Pip comes into his money, Trabb and Pumblechook decide that he might be worth their time. Pip goes into Trabb to buy some new clothes, and remarks that Trabb "did not think it was worth his while to come out to me." At this point, Trabb did not know that Pip had money; he was eating his breakfast and didn't even stand up to help Pip. However, when Pip tells him of his wealth, Trabb immediately sets down his breakfast and Pip remarks, " a change passed over Mr. Trabb." Trabb then goes out of his way to behave respectfully. The only difference here was the fact that Pip had money.
It is the same with Pumblechook. Before Pip's money, Uncle Pumblechook was a bully to Pip; he teased him, scorned him, called him names, and beat up on him a little. After Pip received his money, Pumblechook changed his tune. All of a sudden Pip was "my dear boy," and "my dear young friend." He becomes submissive, asking Pip's permission for everything, and goes out of his way to feed him and be polite and solicitous. Again, the difference here was Pip's money.
It just goes to show how much power money can have; it also shows a rather unflattering side of human nature, one that indicates we will do quite a bit for money. I hope that those thoughts help; good luck!
How does Pumblechook antagonize Pip in Great Expectations?
Uncle Pumblechook antagonizes Pip by treating him like he is unimportant and yet taking advantage of him. Pip considers Mr. Pumblechook “wretched company” because he does nothing but nag and harass him (ch 8, enotes etext p. 38).
Uncle Pumblechook is a bit more well-to-do than Pip’s family. He is actually Joe’s uncle, but Mrs. Joe “appropriated” him because he has money and she wants to be associated with him. Pumblechook pretends to be important, but in reality he is just an insignificant blowhard whose slight success has gone to his head.
Pip comments that he is not allowed to call Pumblechook “uncle” under the most severe penalties. Pumblechook antagonizes Pip first at Christmas dinner, when he insists he should be grateful for his upbringing and he and Wosple compare Pip to a pig.
Mr. Pumblechook further irritates Pip by arranging for him to go to Miss Havisham without asking his opinion.
[Pip fell asleep] without throwing any light on the questions why on earth I was going to play at Miss Havisham's, and what on earth I was expected to play at. (ch 7, p. 37)
When Pip returns from Miss Havisham’s house the first time, he is so annoyed by Pumblechook’s demeanor and so confused by Miss Havisham that he makes up a variety of lies about the elegant Miss Havisham. Pumblechook has only been pretending to personally know Miss Havisham, so he cannot contradict the lies.
Who is Pumblechook and how does he introduce Pip to Satis House in Great Expectations?
Pumblechook is Joe's uncle. He is a seedman, which means he sells seeds. He is also a tenant of Miss Havisham's, and he goes every so often to her home, Satis House, to pay the rent. On one cold day when he is there, Miss Havisham asks him if he knows of a boy who could be sent up to her home to play.
Pumblechook suggests Pip, and Miss Havisham takes him up on it. Because he makes this suggestion and later takes Pip to Satis House at the appointed time, Pumblechook thinks he has done Pip an enormous favor.
In general, Pumblechook is unkind to Pip. Pumblechook hoards food and likes to eat—while at the same time he waters down Pip's milk. He also lords it over the boy, bullies him, and then expects to be treated with great gratitude.