AWEJ for Translation & Literary Studies, Volume 5, Number 1. February   2021                                Pp.262 -278
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awejtls/vol5no1.19

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Pip’s Ego Oscillations in Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations 

Bechir Saoudi
English Department, College of Science and Humanities, Hotat Bani Tamim, Prince Sattam Bin
AbdulAziz University, Al-Kharj, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
English Department, ISEAH, Kef, Jendouba University, Tunisia
Correspondent Author: ctat.ctat@yahoo.com

Lama Fahad Al-Eid
English Department, College of Science and Humanities, Hotat Bani Tamim, Prince Sattam Bin
AbdulAziz University, Al-Kharj, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Noura Mohammed Al-Break
English Department, College of Science and Humanities, Hotat Bani Tamim, Prince Sattam Bin
AbdulAziz University, Al-Kharj, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Rahaf Saad Al-Samih
English Department, College of Science and Humanities, Hotat Bani Tamim, Prince Sattam Bin
AbdulAziz University, Al-Kharj, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Tarfah Abdullah Al-Hammad
English Department, College of Science and Humanities, Hotat Bani Tamim, Prince Sattam Bin
AbdulAziz University, Al-Kharj, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

 

Received: 12/10/ 2020               Accepted: 2/2/2021                   Published:  2/24/2021

 

Abstract:
This research project studies Pip’s ego fluctuations in Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations. Freud’s division of the human psyche into id, ego and superego is appropriate for the analysis of the rise and fall of the hero in his pursuit to attain gentlemanhood. Four main questions have been addressed: First, what makes up Pip’s id? Second, what are the main components of his superego? Third, does Pip’s ego succeed or fail in striking a balance between his id and superego? In what ways does it fail? And fourth, how does Pip’s ego eventually succeed in striking a balance between his id and superego? The study finds out that Pip’s id is demonstrated through his fascination with high-class lifestyle and relinquishment of common life. It shows that his superego is constructed from the hurdles that prevent him from pursuing gentlemanhood, namely past common life restraints and present high class deficiencies. It also demonstrates how Pip’s faulty ego comes as a result of his frustration at high class lifestyles and resentment of his old common life. The study eventually reveals that two important factors contribute to the success of Pip’s ego: His reconciliation with the past and appreciation of the present in order to have more realistic expectations of the future.
Keywords: Charles Dickens, ego, Freud, Great Expectations, id, oscillations, superego

Cite as: Saoudi, B., Al-Eid, L. F., Al-Break, N. M., Al-Samih, R.S., Al-Samih, R. S., & Al-Hammad, T. A. (2021). Bechir Saoudi. Arab World English Journal for Translation & Literary Studies 5 (1) 262 -278.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awejtls/vol5no1.19

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Received: 12/10/ 2020 
Accepted: 2/2/2021  
Published: 2/24/2021
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5593-6891
http://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awejtls/vol5no1.19

Bechir Saoudi got his Ph.D. in English Literature and Cultural Studies from the University of Manouba, Tunisia. He is currently an Assistant Professor of English literature at the English Department of the College of Science and Humanities, Hotat Bani Tamim, Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia. His research interests are in the literary and cultural studies domain. ORCiD: https://orcid.org/ 0000-0001-5593-6891
The rest of the authors are graduate students of English Language and Literature at the College of Science and Humanities, Hotat Bani Tamim, Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia.