We read fiction not to gain new information so much as to experience the ideas and feelings a story inspires within us. ... Fiction evokes ideas and feelings indirectly by triggering emotional responses and mental pictures. ... The meaning of fictional works is personal. ... Characters are the invented, imaginary persons in a dramatic or narrative work, which are given human qualities and behavior. ...
When the audience is able to draw it's own story around an author's narrative, the experience is more satisfying than when every detail is presented through the cinematic medium - an active audience is happier than a passive one. ... The novel installs all these ideas, but it also allows the reader to use their creativity. ... Portrayed in both the novel and movie is Mary Anne's change in personal hygiene. ...
A recurring theme in Charles Dickens' "Great Expectations," is the reversal of stereotypical gender roles. Victorian women were seen as kind and nurturing, men were seen as strong, imposing and tolerant; Mrs Joe is mean, coldhearted and chastising (pp 11) while Joe is caring, submissive and gentle (...
