Two Graves

By: Maya Bernbeck

Is any act truly deserving of revenge? Throughout Shakespeare’s many works, revenge and its ramifications are a common theme. Whether through Edmund’s death in King Lear or Romeo’s banishment in his signature play Romeo and Juliet, vengeance is portrayed in a negative light. Two and a half centuries later, the works of Charles Dickens mirror Shakespeare’s messages. Throughout both Dickens’ Great Expectations and Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, characters’ lust for revenge drives them to commit heinous acts with disastrous consequences. My understanding of vengeance in Great Expectations supports the message conveyed through Romeo and Juliet: seeking revenge provides no satisfaction and only serves to harm all those consumed by it.

Reaching one’s dreams of revenge is unfulfilling and ultimately leads to dire consequences. After Tybalt kills Mercutio, Romeo is thrown into a vengeful fury, unable to accept that Tybalt is “Alive in triumph, and Mercutio slain!”(3.1.127). He laments, “Mercutio’s soul/ Is but little way above our heads,/Staying for [Tybalt] to keep him company” (3.1.127-133). Romeo, distraught over the death of his friend, chases and kills Tybalt with an enraged passion, intent on exacting his revenge. Magwitch shows a similar passion when pursuing his revenge on Compeyson, infuriated by his former partner’s betrayal. Blinded by his rage, Magwitch attacks and kills Compeyson during a crucial moment of secrecy, simultaneously sustaining severe injuries during the fight (Dickens 448-449). Lost in the fervor of revenge, Magwitch and Romeo both act out rashly and violently. While the deaths of their rivals seem to indicate that they reached the satisfaction of exacting their revenge, their hasty actions eventually lead to their detriment. Magwitch dies from his injuries, and Romeo is banished - a fate he considers worse than death. Moreover, Romeo regrets his vengeful act when he faces the consequences. Only seconds after killing Tybalt, he stands in amazement, realizing the reality of his vengeful action and its consequence. (3.1.139-140). Likewise, after imposing his own revenge, Magwitch spends the rest of his short life languishing in a cell and never mentions or gloats about Compeyson’s long awaited retribution. The extensive consequences of his vengeance, mirroring that of Romeo’s, lead me to understand that acts of retribution do not bring sufficient satisfaction to outweigh their dramatic ramifications.

Seeking revenge only leads to unattainable desires and severe repercussions. Lady Capulet is devastated by Tybalt’s death. Without fully understanding what occurred, she implores the Prince to “shed blood of Montague” (3.1.157) as punishment for Tybalt’s murder. Instead of the grief and mourning that one might expect, Lady Capulet’s immediate reaction to the death of her nephew is a call for vengeance. It continues to be her predominant thought when she returns to inform Juliet of her daughter’s wedding with Paris; she extensively promises Juliet revenge on Romeo and explains her lengthy plans to kill him (3.5.93-97). Her twisted, vengeful schemes are reminiscent of Ms. Havisham’s convoluted plot to punish Compeyson for leaving her on her wedding day. Revenge consumes Miss. Havisham’s entire life; she perpetually relives her wedding day while simultaneously raising Estella to break men’s hearts, all in the name of revenge against Compeyson and all other men. Without ever coming to fruition, this plan leaves her to deteriorate alone, still suffering from the same grief of his initial departure. When Pip visits Satis House after both he and Estella left Ms. Havisham, her withered form makes it clear that “In shutting out the light of day, she had shut out infinitely more” (Dickens 401). Consumed by her revenge, Ms. Havisham destroys any hopes of happiness or growth for herself, while having no actual effect on Compeyson. While Lady Capulet, in contrast, plays a much smaller role, she shows similar signs of obsession over revenge. Both women are never able to affect the men they so passionately despise, and their revenge plots only serve to lengthen the grief and sorrow they endure. Ms. Havisham’s woeful life leads me to conclude that seeking revenge is unfruitful and detrimental, a concept further supported by the consequences Lady Capulet faces: Romeo’s banishment, resulting from her plea for justice, eventually leads to the death of her daughter. The dangers of pursuing vengeance are further exemplified through Paris’ quest for revenge. While spreading flowers to honor Juliet’s supposed “death,” Paris is enraged to see Romeo near the Capulet grave. Paris only knows Romeo as “that banished haughty Montague/ That is murdered my love’s cousin, with which grief/ It is supposed the fair creature died” (5.3.49-51). Despite perceived danger, Paris approaches and insults Romeo with the intention of claiming his life as revenge. In a similar fashion, Orlick puts himself at risk to enact his revenge. He devises a plan to kidnap and kill Pip, heedless to the consequences should he be discovered. He passionately declares, “You was always in Old Orlick’s way since ever you was a child. You goes out of his way this present night. He’ll have no more on you. You’re dead” (Dickens 428). Orlick, along with Paris, pursues revenge against a person who barely takes note of him. Observing Orlick’s insignificance throughout the majority of the novel, I understand the dangers of inflated anger and consequences of an uncontrolled desire for revenge. His vengeful scheming backfires when Herbert, Startop, and Trabb’s Boy arrive to save Pip and punish Orlick (Dickens 433). Likewise, Paris’ determination to accomplish his revenge ultimately leads to his unnecessary death. His consequences for his rash, vengeful actions align with Orlick’s, and their dreams of revenge only cause their downfall. Aspirations of vengeance are unrealistic and end in dire repercussions.

The harsh consequences given to revenge-seeking characters in both Great Expectations and Romeo and Juliet support the message that vengeance is a fruitless effort that only causes harm to all those it reaches. For years, the Montagues and Capulets harm one another and trade blows in the name of revenge, and yet the reader never understands why; there is no clear start or reason behind the feud. Through their vengeance and passion for the feud, the families only harm themselves. Although alluring, those who seek revenge will always reap the consequences. As Confucious once said, “he who seeks revenge should remember to dig two graves.”