From reading Charles Dicken’s writing of the boys’ series, the boys in the stories had various destiny due to their different family background and surroundings. People’s experience during young age could significantly affect their whole life, even circumstantially decide people’s fate. In Dicken’s book, each novel, each different story, tells a story about a boy. David Copperfield, Oliver Twist, and Great Expectation are all about three boys who is born or subsequent as an orphan, but due to their different background and growth environment, they have different conditions and life choices, which is inevitable tendency that they go on different types of life, and their childhood had influenced to their whole life.
To be the one who is not of the same clan, David Copperfield is not born as an orphan, but his childhood is just like being an orphan. After his mother’s second marriage, his childhood became miserable, his experiences during his young age somehow affected his personality and behaviors. Both because of his father died before his birth and Mr. Murdstone’s cruelty to him, also his mother died when he was 10, he’s quite lack love and security, that he’s trying to offset those missing caring during his childhood for rest of his life, even though others like Aunt Betsy supports him a lot. Mr. Murdstone and his sister’s cruel treatments left indelible traumas in David’s heart, which also instill in him a profound sense of vulnerability and seek for love and caring. This is a factor of David loving Dora since Dora is very similar to his mother, Clara Copperfield. They both had no experience or idea on house management, so Dora’s existence might make David remember his mother and see this as a compensation for losing his parents at such an early age and having a miserable childhood with the Murstone family. David’s young age is unfortunate, that his stepfather didn’t treat him well and both his parents died early, which resulted in a profound sense of vulnerability and pursuit for love and caring.
Oliver Twist and Pip are both orphans since their parents died early, but Oliver's circumstances are more unfortunate that nobody cares about him when he’s born, those at the workhouse are only ensuring he’s not dead. Things around Oliver are not what he should face due to his high social status, but he seems not to be influenced by the wickedness of human nature. Oliver’s growth environment always follows the law of the jungle, which he’s bullied and beaten, always hungry since Mr. Bumble hates him since he asked for more porridge in the workhouse. Also, people at Fagin’s gang and Monks are all approaching him for interest. Before meeting Mr. Brownlow and Mrs. Maylie, his situation is severe that he didn’t receive enough daily needs at the workhouse and is forced to be pickpocketed. Nonetheless, he was a typical example of circumstances hardly change human nature, that Olive’s kindness and sincerity to everything around him is subconscious, showing that his born human nature is well-meaning, the environment didn’t have any impact on him, which is also why he insist to prove himself to Mr. Brownlow. Therefore, Olive could be the unique one that he wasn’t affected by the surroundings, he’s always following his moral bottom line, but not obeying others command.
Unlike Oliver, Pip’s childhood is not only full of difficult situations and harsh treatments, but also with kindness and love from the surroundings. His brother-in-law, Mr. Joe, protects and cares him from the harsh treatments of his sister, however, after meeting Miss Havisham, a wealthy spinster, he became quite aware of his social status. Since Pip visits Miss Havisham at Satis House, he falls in love with Estella, and determined to be “uncommon” that Estella is aloof and hostile to him. The difference between the two social statuses had quickly made Pip feel shame about his family background. Even though Joe is a comfort to him in his childhood that he suffered less from his tyrannical sister, Pip still wants to get rid of his current social status of a blacksmith’s brother, so then he can be closer to Estella. Apart from creating a sense of shame of his origin, Estella’s influence also drives Pip a relentless ambition of being uncommon, improving his social standing, which he decided to move to London. From the change of Pip’s horizon after visiting Miss Havisham, Pip has a central driving force in his life, changing his life track.
To sum up, all three boys from those novels have a similar family background, but due to their social status and surroundings, their life is distinct. It's common sense that people’s experience during their young age has a huge effect on their whole life, is unforgettable memories for them, and established their decisions and world view. David, Olive, and Pip are three different kinds of orphans with different social levels and family background; their destiny is also different since their own personalities and how the surroundings affected their life, their decisions, and their ambitions. Whether how the rest of their life is, there’s always hints during their childhood, which is also a main factor that their life track has such a difference.
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