Arthur Havisham Arthur Havisham In Charles Dickens' novel "Great Expectations", Arthur Havisham is Miss Havisham's younger, rebellious half-brother who was a result of Mr Havisham's affair with the cook after Mrs Havisham died. He and Compeyson plot against her and swindle her to gain more money, despite the fact that Mr Havisham had left Arthur plenty. Arthur was jealous that Mr Havisham favoured his sister and was extravagantly greedy with his money. He is a subordinate character in "Great Expectations", working with Compeyson. He dies of an illness caused by the guilt of how he had treated his sister. Descriptions in the
Charles Dickens I wonder if there ever was a captain yet that lost a ship with his log-book up to date? He generally has about a month to fill up on a clean break, like Charles Dickens and his serial novels." Dickens's novels were, among other things, works of social commentary. He was a fierce critic of the poverty and social stratification of Victorian society. In a New York address, he expressed his belief that "Virtue shows quite as well in rags and patches as she does in purple and fine linen". Dickens's second novel, "Oliver Twist" (1839), shocked readers with its