"In this new book, Dickens scholar Jerome Meckier examines Great Expectations as an anti-Cinderella story in which Dickens rewrote half a dozen Victorian novels that rely on Cinderella motifs.".

"Meckier argues that Dickens not only updated David Copperfield but also rewrote novels by Lever, Thackeray, Collins, Mary Shelley, and Charlotte and Emily Bronte. He parodically revised his competitors' themes, characters, and incidents to discredit their novels as unrealistic fairly tales that contributed to the Victorian era's view of itself as a Cinderella among nations.".

"Great Expectations, Meckier argues, shows us the tragicomedian Dickens thought he had become. He also wanted to elevate his brand of melodramatic realism to a tragicomic level that would invite comparisons with Shakespeare and Sophocles. Distinguishing himself from rival novelists, Dickens used the Misnar tale as a corrective for the era's Cinderella complex and a warning to both Haves and Have-Nots."--BOOK JACKET.