Essay about The Misery of Wealth - 619 Words

â€Å"We spent as much money as we could, and got as little for it as people could make up their minds to give us. We were always more or less miserable... There was a gay fiction among us that we were constantly enjoying ourselves, and a skeleton truth that we never did † (Dickens 291). Many people believe that having money automatically gives happiness. However, reality has proven that money only ever allows people to choose a form of misery. Flawlessly, Dickens creates a novel that utterly captures this theme. Great Expectations expresses the theme â€Å"money does not bring happiness†; Dickens perfectly demonstrates this idea through the eccentric Miss Havisham and the self-centered Mr. Jaggers.†¦show more content†¦As a well-known London lawyer, Mr. Jaggers has both the wealth and the connections. However, his amount of success does not correspond to his joy in life. Living in a fixed society, Mr. Jaggers believes that everything has a price. â€Å"Ã¢â‚¬Ë œ But what,’ said Mr. Jaggers, swinging his purse, ‘what if it was in my instructions to make you a present, as compensation,’ ‘As compensation for what?’ Joe demanded. ‘For the loss of his services’... ‘But if you think as money can make compensation to me for the loss of the little child- what come to the forge-and ever the best of friends!’† (Dickens 150). When Mr. Jaggers comes to the marshes to inform Pip of his expectations, he offers money to Joe as compensation for no longer having an apprentice. When Joe refuses, Mr. Jaggers feels more than surprised. Mr. Jaggers has never understood nor had the joy of experiencing things worth more than money. Mr. Jaggers works with both civil and criminal clients; his work often leads him into the horrors of criminal life. â€Å"My guardian was in his room, washing his hands with his scented soap... I embrace the opportunity of remarking that he was washing his clients off. .. and he would wash his hands, and wipe them and dry them all over this towel, whenever he came in from a police court or dismissed a client from his room† (Dickens 223). Mr. Jaggers has an obsessive habit of washing his hands after he works with his clients,Show MoreRelated Comparison and Contrast of The Destructors and The Rocking Horse Winner888 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"The Destructors† and â€Å"The Rocking Horse Winner† were both written in the third person by British authors and set in post war Great Britain. â€Å"The Destructors† was written post World War II and â€Å"The Rocking Horse Winner† was written post World War I. Misery caused by poverty is the underlying theme of each story. The significance of the period each story was penned can easily be understood when considering the miserable living conditions of the people of post war Great Britain. The characters inRead MoreCorrupted American Dream in the Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald1389 Words   |  6 PagesAfter World War I ended, America appeared to be a promise land of opportunities for people who are willing to work for it. However, for some, it corrupted them as they set to reach the American dream by acquiring wealth for the only purpose to pursue pleasure. The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald showing that no one is unaffected by the corruption. This novel is seen through the eyes of Nick Carraway, who moves from the mid-west to west-egg to chase his American dream.Read MoreA Textual Analysis of the Adam Smith Problem1353 Words   |  6 Pagesthat arises from observing passion in others, but does not necessarily reflect the exact same passion in the observer as it does in the observed. Instead, when humans are observing a situation that elicits passion in others – whether it is anger, misery, or happiness – they imagine themselves in the same situation and are overcome with the emotion that they feel is appropriate for the situation. To illustrate this point, Smith, when speaking of the suffering-based side of sympathy, states that â€Å"TheRead MoreWinter Dreams And The Great Gatsby Analysis753 Words   |  4 PagesDexter starts off very poor but ends up a very successful man with a lot of wealth. Gatsby, the main character from The Great Gatsby, also started off from humble origins. Gatsby was very poor in his childhood which caused him to leave his family at a young age. Gatsby as well as Dexter acquired their wealth later on in life. Gatsby gained most of his wealth through his â€Å"drug store† and it also was rumored he gained wealth from bootlegging. Dexter on the other hand made his money off a laundry storeRead MoreThe And Female Characters Of Candide1369 Words   |  6 Pagesand abuse. Throughout the journey, Candide was able to acquire love and wealth. Though, both things wer e taken away from him. Cunegonde and Candide were separated frequently ever since that kiss they shared. As for the wealth, Candide kept flaunting it around and spent a lot of it unwisely. Therefore, the villainous characters in the novel were able to notice that Candide was a fool and noticed that robbing some of his wealth would be an easy task for them. Though, it was at this moment that CandideRead MoreThe Portrayal of Industrialization in London by William Blake526 Words   |  3 Pagesloss of purity can be found in â€Å"every cry of every Man, In every Infants cry of fear, In every voice.† Blake characterizes the self-imposed misery for the prospect of profit in â€Å"The mind-forged manacles† he hears in the cries and voices of the city. The entrapment Blake acknowledges cannot not all be accredited to the machines. The infectious nature of misery, is mass-produced much like the goods and products being made within the towering structures. Blake continues to use the setting andRead More Daisy Buchanan : The Great Gatsby Essay991 Words   |  4 PagesDaisys life she has wanted to be noticed, to be heard, and to be loved. However, when everything she has always wanted is being held in her hands, in the form of Gatsby, Daisy chooses money as her form of happiness ultimately leading to her misery. Daisys action and choices are extremely defined by her East egg way of life, which is a representation of old money and high class society within the novel. In short, Daisy thinks with her wallet instead of using her common Read MoreAnalysis Of Anton Chekhov s Misery906 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"If Iona’s heart were to burst and his misery to flow out, it would flood the whole world† (Chekhov). Misery isn’t something that a person is born with, neither is it something that develops out of the ordinary. Instead, misery is established through past life experiences. It is the product of grief, suffering, loneliness, frustration, or even hopelessness. These causes are fundamental elements in Anton Chekhov’s short story, â€Å"Misery.† In â€Å"Misery,† Chekhov illustrates grief, man’s inhumanity to manRead MoreWhat Makes A Nation Wealthy? Essay1668 Words   |  7 Pagesquestion may not be as simple as it seems. Because we must first analyze what â€Å"wealth† is. This essay is going to cover Adam Smith and Karl Marx’s work and t heir views how the society works and how wealth is created. It is going to highlight the theory of â€Å"Division of labour† and how it shaped the social relations. Lastly Robert Heilbroner’s concept of â€Å"drive for capital† will be discussed and how it produces wealth and misery to analyze Sinclair’s insights into the nature of industrial life in the lateRead MoreUnited States Vs Cologo803 Words   |  4 Pagesthe set of his economic and social needs. It is not Liberal the notion of growing now to distribute then, that justifies the misery of many, today, in order to make possible the illusory wealth of all, tomorrow, the 28 million Colombians living in poverty are not free, much less the 11 million who subsist in conditions of misery. Equity in the distribution of income and wealth, which includes equal opportunities but also the equality of conditions to be able to take advantage of opportunities. Work