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Question: Great Expectations Question!? HELP Please!!!!?
Why did people in the 1800's want to be gentlemen!?
Did Pip from Great Expectations fulfill his dream and become a gentleman!? Explain!.!.!.

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Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
To be a gentleman meant that you were refined, educated well and associated with the upper levels of society!. In some cases, as in Pip's expectations, you would also inherit some wealth!. Loads of money were certainly not required!. Most gentlemen were born as such; meaning they came from an aristocratic family!. Any and all doors would be open to a gentleman, but not to a peasant or the poorer classes!. A gentleman, at that time, usually did not have a job!. He might have investments which made money, but manual labor (in particular) was out of the question!. A gentleman could be a soldier (usually an officer), a naval officer, a solicitor, a teacher, a vicar (or other church position), an MP but certainly didn't own or work in a shop nor would he have been a laborer of any type!. Many of the gentlemen who held these types of jobs (other than MP) would be, for instance, a younger son in an aristocrat's family or a poorer member (therefore of less importance than others) of that class of men!.

Pip did become a gentleman and lived as such for quite some time!. He did not attain to the highest level of society, but still he was educated as a gentleman!. However, when he lost his money, he had to go to work as a clerk (which in Dickens' time was not a shop assistant but could be something such as an accountant or one who keeps records)!. This would be a reasonably acceptable position for a gentleman of no means to hold, but would exclude him from some of those benefits other gentlemen enjoyed!.

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