Women and Property in Great Expectations Women and property are one of the central themes in Charles Dickens' Great Expectations. Dickens wrote this novel during the mid-nineteenth century, a time when women's property rights were the subject of intense debate in England. Her portrayal of women landowners in the novel reflects Victorian England's beliefs about women's inability to responsibly own and manage their own property. Miss Havisham is presented as the embodiment of women's inability to properly manage wealth and property. Mr Havisham's transfer of the majority of his estate to his daughter, despite the existence of a male heir, is unconventional, as the property system operated on a patrilineal basis. Estella's economic tragedy illustrates the consequences of handing over property to women who will inevitably marry. She suffers the loss of her assets at the hands of an unscrupulous husband who abuses his fortune. The most recent analysis of the chronology of Great Expectations shows that the main action extends between 1812 and 1829 (Carlisle 5). Dickens clearly pays attention to wealthy women who own property and are susceptible to abuse. The social and historical context in which the novel was written, and the period in which it is set, suggest a critique of women's property rights. Despite the existence of a male heir, Havisham rejects the patrilineal system of property distribution and wants the bulk of his estate to go to his daughter, Miss Havisham. Mr. Havisham is a wealthy brewer whose first wife dies during Miss Havisham's childhood. Later, Mr. Havisham "privately" takes his cook as a second wife and she bears him a son (176; ch. 22). After the death of his second wife, Mr. Havi......middle of paper......his family is on economic recovery and restores the patrilineal system of the family. He financially helps Herbert secure his investment in a profitable business. He also wants Mathew Pocket "four thousand fantastic" (423; ch. 57). By investing in her male relatives, Miss Havisham plays a vital role in preserving the patrilineal system. The novel's ending eliminates women as an economic force and repositions them to their rightful place in Victorian society. Works Cited Carlisle, Janice. "Introduction: biographical and historical context". Charles Dickens. Great expectations. Ed. JaniceCarlisle. Boston: Bedford 1996. 3-21.Dabney, Ross. Love and property in Dickens' novels. Berkeley: University of California P, 1967. Walsh, Susan. “The Bodies of Capital: Great Expectations and the Climate Economy.” Victorian Studies 37 (1993): 73-98.