Charles Dickens Expectations Analysis

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Indeed, if we apply the above cited definition to the analysed text, we can describe the total event as the whole story narrated in the book itself. In addition, the purposive activity of the writer, Charles Dickens, is to tell Pip’ story. Secondly, tenor must be analysed as well. According to Halliday “The tenor of discourse refers to who is taking part, to the nature of the participants, their statues and roles: what kinds of role relationship obtain among the participants, including permanent and temporary relationships of one kind or another, both the types of speech role that they are taking on in the dialogue and the whole cluster of socially significant relationships in which they are involved?” In the specific case of Dickens’ text,…show more content…
First of all, as far as processes are concerned, there is a high concentration of material and verbal ones within the analysed text. Precisely, within 253 lines of text it can be detected the presence of 63 material processes and 46 verbal ones. We should now clarify what a material process is. “A material process is a process of doing or happening, and the Actor is the key participant. You can probe a material process with ‘what did the Actor do?’ or ‘what happened?’.” Focusing our attention on the analyzed text, we can consider the clause “She gave me her hand.” (line 104), where the verb ‘to give’ functions as a material process. We have to bear in mind that material processes are the ones which involve actions and are related to active subjects. Thus, in my opinion, the presence of so many processes of this type in the text can suggest that we are dealing with a quite lively text. It also implies that we are not facing a text which is full of personal thoughts. Indeed, even the reflections of the main character are turned into a sort of physical action, like in the clause “Oh the sense of distance and disparity that came upon me, […]” (lines 102-3). In the latter clause, actually, the verb ‘came’, since it suggests a sort of movement or action, it functions as a material process rather than a mental or behavioral one. In my opinion, the author decided to use such a relevant amount of material processes because he wanted to give power and concreteness to the events Pip was telling
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