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How do Great Expectations and Our Mutual Friend address social class and human worth?

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Portrait of Charles Dickens seated at a desk, writing with a quill pen, dressed in a suit with a bow tie. — Charles Dickens English novelist Charles Dickens working at his craft. Dickens published some of most beloved novels in English literature, including *A Christmas Carol*, *A Tale of Two Cities*, and *Great Expectations*.

In his later works, Charles Dickens utilized the novel form to offer profound critiques of the Victorian era's rigid social hierarchies and the moral implications of wealth.1

Great Expectations

In Great Expectations, Dickens explores the protagonist Pip’s journey as he pursues "great expectations"—wealth and social status—only to realize their emptiness. The novel posits that true human worth is not defined by one's class or social standing, but by qualities such as loyalty and compassion. Pip’s eventual growth involves shedding his snobbery and finding contentment in a simpler life, ultimately learning that his personal integrity is far more valuable than the superficial status he once craved.2

Our Mutual Friend

Our Mutual Friend serves as a fierce critique of Victorian monetary and class values. Dickens portrays a London defined by corruption and the complacency of "respectable" society, challenging the idea that wealth equates to virtue. By attacking the superficiality of the upper classes, the novel emphasizes the moral bankruptcy inherent in a society that prioritizes money over human dignity.3