Literature(The Forgotten Story)

I have a confession to make. In my writing haste and because of my bad memory, I neglected to mention Charles Dicken's "Great Expectations". For this I apologize. This post shall rectify this grievous error.

"Great Expectations". I believe this was assigned Freshman year by the lovely Ms. Danford. Where to begin with "Great Expectations"? The difficulty? The time problem? Perhaps the odd English world it painted?

No, the resistance of the entire class(minus me of course) to read "Great Expectations". Boy did my class mates not want to read this. It was long, old, and difficult to say the least. Boy did I enjoy it though.Dicken's world of Old England was completely uncharted territory for me. By my Freshman year, I had been many places. The universe of Redwall. The early 1900's with The Hardy Boy's. If I am remembering correctly, I had even been introduced to England through the wizardry of Harry Potter. I had been  introduction to Middle Earth. And of course, those previously mentioned stories and a multitude of others too numerous to mention.

But I was unprepared for England as Dicken's illustrated. To be clear though, Dicken's land was hardly extra-ordinary. It was just different and unexpected in how he portrayed it. I knew history i could certainly imagine. But Dicken's, like Steinbeck(though not on par with Steinbeck, but we'll get to him), painted an amazing, realistic, world.

To recap "Great Expectations":: amazing world, class resisting(and eventually not) reading, long, old and difficulty. Ms. Danford cancelled the reading of "Great Expectations" but not before I had become determined to finish it.And finish it I did. This was such an accomplishment that 4 years later I was playing a game of Trivial Pursuit with my girlfriend. This was a Trivial Pursuit where the cards were 1 topic with 6 questions of increasing difficulty. Admitting that I don't always remember what I read is disappointing to say the least. But I answered the 5 hardest questions on that card(the answer to the easiest being "Mince Pie"). Being American and not well versed in British society, I knew the phrase, but never knew what it meant. After answering the questions my father made a comment about my dedication to finishing Dicken's classic tale. That was a proud moment. beyond the Trivial achievement was the acknowledgement of an achievement from my hero, my dad. He knew how difficult it was for me to finish the story. I heard the pride in his voice in complementing me for that feat. I will never forget that. I might need to actually channel some of that spirit again. That is a later story as well.

Back to "Great Expectations". For those who don't know, "Great Expectations" is the story of a very poor little boy who becomes the recipient of a large inheritance, his "Great Expectation", from an unknown benefactor. I don't recall many details, but the jist is the protagonist, Pip, comes to believe he is being groomed for a purpose(and the marriage of a beautiful women) only to realize that his inheritance was the result of a random act. The ending is hazy, but from what I recall Pip realize what the greatest expectation of all is. We will leave it at that shall we?

"Great Expectations" was tough to read, not necessarily because of the advanced language or literary elements(lengthy exposition anyone?) but because of the strangeness of the culture and the outdated language.

So after all that, everyone must be craving for the point. "Whats the point" you ask? Well, class, the point is the same point I have been making. "Great Expectations" conceived and stoked my desire to finish what I started and differentiate my self from others. Let's be frank shall we? Although the story here is clearly about the literature I have read and its affect on me as part of the Human Condition, there is a huge underlying piece, hidden, and mystical if you will(Please? You will, won't you?) This is about me. My short comings. My personality. My achievements. What makes me tick. That is the purpose. We are learning who Daniel; who(and how) I am, shaped by my experiences.

This blag is entitled "The Forgotten Story" because of the impact "Great Expectations" had on me. There is at least 1 other "Forgotten Story". "The Old Man and The Sea". Maybe Hemingway will get his own post, to cover the great story and its impact on me.

This is the perfect place to illustrate something touched on previously in this very post, especially since it coincides so well with the theme of "Great Expectations". My father. My hero. Many things impacted me, none quite like my Father. Without getting bogged down in details, you taught me to be a man Dad. Your tutelage will never be matched again. Thank you for all that you have(and continue) to do and teach. You are my hero.